We underpin and repair Victorian and Edwardian homes in Aigburth, L17, working to a chartered structural engineer’s design. Terraces here usually share walls, so party wall procedure is often part of the plan, and houses with cellars need the new foundation taken below the cellar floor. Before any of that, the cause of the movement has to be found, because underpinning is often not the answer.
Period houses near Sefton Park and Otterspool
Aigburth covers L17 and parts of L19, within Liverpool City Council’s area, running from the edges of Sefton Park down towards Otterspool. Its streets are largely Victorian and Edwardian: terraces, larger semi-detached villas and some detached houses, many with bay windows and a good number with cellars. These are solidly built homes, but they were built on the foundation standards of their day, which were often far shallower than anything used now.
Cellars change the job
When a house has a cellar, its front or party walls already extend below ground, and the cellar floor is the starting point rather than the garden. Underpinning there means excavating in short planned sections from inside the cellar, in tight space, with every bay dug and filled before the next. Damp and drainage need checking at the same time. Our page on cellar and basement underpinning covers the approach in more depth, and the engineer always sets the depth and sequence.
Shared walls and the Party Wall Act
In a terrace, digging beside or below a party wall will almost always affect a neighbour’s foundations. The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 usually needs to be considered, with notices served and, where a neighbour does not agree, surveyors appointed to make a binding written decision. That takes time and is worth planning early. We work alongside the party wall surveyors; see party walls and underpinning.
If a crack runs through your wall and into the house next door, tell your neighbour and both insurers. Movement does not respect boundaries, and the investigation may need to cover both properties.
Is it old movement or new?
Many Aigburth homes carry cracks that are decades old and long since stable. The question an engineer asks is whether anything is still happening. That may mean fixing tell-tales or measuring studs and reading them over a year or so, along with a CCTV survey of older clay drains that run under yards and rear extensions. Leaking drains can soften clay or wash out sandier ground, and repairing them may be all that is needed.
Typical findings on period terraces
- Cracking at a bay, from the footing or from a failed lintel above the window.
- Rear extensions or outriggers moving differently from the main house.
- Old drains leaking near the back wall.
- Historic, stable cracking that only needs careful repair.
Around Aigburth
We regularly work in Mossley Hill and Allerton, and in the terraces of Wavertree. Our homepage sets out how we work as underpinning specialists across Merseyside, and the range of structural underpinning on Merseyside we carry out.
Concerned about an Aigburth terrace or villa?
Phone 07777 659786. Let us know whether the house has a cellar, which walls are cracked and whether a neighbour or insurer is involved, and we will ring you back.
Frequently asked questions
My Aigburth house has a cellar. Does that make underpinning harder?
It changes the job rather than ruling it out. Cellar walls already go below ground, so any new foundation has to reach firm ground beneath the cellar floor, and access is tighter. Damp, drainage and the condition of the cellar walls all have to be looked at. The engineer decides on the method and sequence after an inspection.
Do I need my neighbour’s permission to underpin a terraced house?
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 usually needs to be considered for terraces. It requires notice to the adjoining owner, at least one month for most nearby excavations and two months for work to the party wall itself. If they do not respond within 14 days, a dispute is deemed to arise and surveyors settle it. We are not party wall surveyors and do not give legal advice.
Is it normal for old Victorian houses to have some cracks?
Many period houses show historic cracking from early settlement, timber decay or alterations, and much of it is cosmetic. What matters more is whether cracks are new, getting wider or appearing with other signs such as sticking doors. BRE classes cracks up to 5 mm as aesthetic in most cases, but an engineer looks at the whole pattern, not just width.
Can resin injection be used under an Aigburth terrace?
Sometimes. Resin injection can work where the problem is loose or voided ground under a shallow footing, and it involves little digging. It is not suitable for every soil or cause, and it is not a substitute for fixing a leaking drain. The engineer decides whether it is appropriate; see our resin injection underpinning page.
What should I do if my insurer is involved?
Contact your buildings insurer first if you suspect subsidence. The insurer and its loss adjuster decide whether to investigate, monitor or repair, and which method is used. We can explain how the process tends to run and carry out a scheme the insurer has agreed.