Structural Engineer Surveys in Liverpool

When do you need a structural engineer?

Most hairline cracks in plaster are not structural and need nothing more than redecoration. A structural engineer earns their fee when there is a real question about whether a building is moving, why, and what should be done about it. Typical reasons people in Liverpool and Merseyside ask for one include:

• New or widening cracksCracks in outside brickwork or plaster that have appeared suddenly, are wider than about 3 mm, or seem to be growing.
• A buyer’s or lender’s requestA mortgage valuation or home survey has flagged movement and recommended a structural engineer’s report.
• Bulging or leaning wallsA gable, front wall or garden wall that has started to bow or lean.
• Sticking doors and sloping floorsDoors and windows binding for no obvious reason, or solid floors that have developed a slope.
• Before structural alterationsAdvice before removing a wall, widening an opening or building an extension near a tree.
• After an eventCracking after nearby tree work, a burst pipe, a vehicle impact or building work next door.

Building survey or structural engineer’s report?

These two are often confused. A general building survey from a surveyor reviews the condition of the whole property, from roof to drains, and may flag cracking as something needing further investigation. A structural engineer’s report goes deeper on that specific concern: the pattern of movement, its likely cause and the options for dealing with it. If a home survey has recommended a structural engineer, it is the second kind of report that is needed.

What happens during the inspection?

1. Background. You are asked when the problem was first noticed, whether it has changed, and about the property’s age, extensions, nearby trees, drains and any past repairs.
2. External inspection. The engineer looks at every elevation for crack patterns, distortion, bulging, lintels, bays, wall ties and the junctions with extensions, and notes trees, drains and slopes nearby.
3. Internal inspection. Cracks inside are measured and recorded, floors are checked for level, and doors and windows for distortion. Roof spaces and cellars may be looked at.
4. Classification. Cracks are often graded using BRE Digest 251, which runs from category 0 to 5. BRE treats categories 0 to 2, crack widths up to about 5 mm, as aesthetic; 3 and 4 as serviceability; and 5 as stability.
5. Report. A written report sets out the findings, the most likely cause, and the recommended next steps.

Crack width is not the only factor. Whether a crack is getting wider over time often matters more, which is why the engineer may not be able to give a final answer on the first visit.

What might the engineer recommend?

The report usually points in one of a few directions:

• No structural action beyond repairing and redecorating, where cracking is old, minor and not progressing;
• monitoring, where the engineer needs to know whether movement is seasonal or still going on, often over around 12 months, as explained on our crack and movement monitoring page;
• investigation such as trial pits, soil testing or a CCTV drain survey, covered on our soil and site investigation page;
• dealing with the cause, such as repairing a leaking drain or getting arboricultural advice about a tree;
• a repair scheme, which might be lintel replacement, wall ties, structural crack repair or, much less often, underpinning.

The RICS consumer guide on subsidence says fewer than 5% of affected properties need underpinning, and that the Institution of Structural Engineers recommends it only as a last resort. A good report will say plainly when it is not needed.

How we fit in

We are a contractor, not a design practice. Every repair we carry out is designed by a chartered structural engineer, and we build to that engineer’s design and specification, with Building Control involved where the Building Regulations apply. When you call us, we ask what you have noticed and, where the cause is not yet clear, recommend a structural engineer’s inspection before any repair is chosen. Once the engineer has decided on a scheme, we explain it in plain English, give a written quote and handle the Building Control notices, working alongside party wall surveyors where needed.

What affects the cost of a survey?

Engineers set their own fees, which depend on the size and type of property, how many concerns need looking at, whether a short letter or a full report is needed, travel, and whether investigation or monitoring follows. Ask for the scope in writing before the visit so you know what you will receive. Repair costs are a separate matter, explained in our underpinning cost guide.

Areas we cover

We work across Liverpool, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Wirral and Widnes. Survey questions come from all sorts of homes: large detached houses on sloping plots in Heswall, extended inter-war semis in Childwall, and properties in St Helens, where the free GOV.UK coal mining search is worth running for any postcode. Surveys sit at the start of our wider underpinning and subsidence work in Liverpool.