Chiba
23rd May 2009, 10:56 PM
We're interested in buying a house but after an inspection we found it requires "some repiling". Is this as big a deal as it sounds, or just a typical NZ wood house thing? Anyone ever done it? Idea of costs?
Repiling - a buy too far?
Kanga
24th May 2009, 01:07 PM
I'm not sure where you are but have a look in your phonebook adn get a couple of repiling companies out to give you a quote then factor that into your offer. It wouldn't put me off buying somewhere so long as the price was right because it's not something *you* have to do, iyswim.
Achavar
24th May 2009, 09:35 PM
some years ago I worked as a steel fixer for a piling company in the uk - were it me I would walk away (but hey, thats just me!)
Chiba
25th May 2009, 04:31 PM
some years ago I worked as a steel fixer for a piling company in the uk - were it me I would walk away (but hey, thats just me!)
Steel implies some kind of solid, strong, rigid thing. That would be... atypical... in a Kiwi house. :D
The piles in a typical older NZ house are basically just Totara logs banged into the ground, and the pile of sticks (OK, house) sits atop them. The piles eventually rot. In more serious cases you can get your whole house jacked up and releveled when you get the repiling done, the house typically being a light, dynamic, flexible kind of structure. See "pile of sticks", above. :uhoh
Steel implies some kind of solid, strong, rigid thing. That would be... atypical... in a Kiwi house. :D
The piles in a typical older NZ house are basically just Totara logs banged into the ground, and the pile of sticks (OK, house) sits atop them. The piles eventually rot. In more serious cases you can get your whole house jacked up and releveled when you get the repiling done, the house typically being a light, dynamic, flexible kind of structure. See "pile of sticks", above. :uhoh
bob_the_engineer
30th May 2009, 03:35 AM
In the UK you do something called underpining, because the structure is carried on the perimeter foundation, serious stuff. house can fall on your head!
As Chiba pointed out, this isn't the same as a kiwi house, pile of sticks on sticks, lol so its just a cost thing, if the price is right and you have a good quote for the work then yea.
Bob
As Chiba pointed out, this isn't the same as a kiwi house, pile of sticks on sticks, lol so its just a cost thing, if the price is right and you have a good quote for the work then yea.
Bob
Steven & Ann
30th May 2009, 04:29 AM
How much is some?
How quickly will the rest need attention?
Can new piles be inserted without lifting the house, so you can build structual timber down to the piles? Or is the clearance so small that the house must be lifted to drive the new piles in?
Do you need to live in while the work is done, or will the house be vacant?
Maybe this is minor, but it has the potential to be significant. You need professional advice from people who can actually assess the task.
Lots of houses in NZ are on piles. Some are designed to be "transportable" and are mainly rectangular, and have fixed dimensions (these are often called units). They have a strengthened sub-frame which holds the house true when its lifted, and the width is limited to what's allowed to be carried on a low-loader. Others are built on site or modified, and don't have as-deep timber sub-frame, or mabe the timber joists are not contnuous. I believe lifting them could be a more delicate operation and in extreme cases might involve adding angled bracing inside the building.
You could try speaking to the house relocation companies. They have the equipment to jack the house up, rip out the piles and replace them, or will know who can do this for you. Expect for some of the Gib board to blow/crack when the house is lifted. Consider also if the house is fully piled. Many are on a mix of slab and piles (Often the fireplaces are slabs), and when you lift the house the slab will stay behind, and may mean that you have more redecoration to consider. Also consider if you have a brick chimney, which again may need rebuilding after lifting for re-piling.
Having said that, any house old enough to need re-piling is probably not built to the best of modern standards, and you will probably be risking fragile plastic pipes, mouse chewed wires, rot, borer, poor insultation, etc., that will stretch your budget. As the piles may have failed unevenly over the years, the house may have developed a "tilted floor", and the doors etc. may have been eased to adjust for this. When set "right" on piles the house may come true, with consequential problems. Then again, the house may refuse to come true, and may then have a flat floor and leaning walls. This is particularly the case if there has been any alterations after the floor has moved.
Most of this happened to a Kiwi work colleague, but he went in prepared and parked the family for 2 months with relatives while the worst was fixed. He now has a very nice house in a an area he couldn't otherwise afford.
It may be a good idea to look at some of the relocated houses in the sale yards. You can see the effect of lifting (and transporting) houses. They will be in a much worst state, but you will learn a lot about older buildings and how they will behave when lifted.
I recommend you get a builder to talk you through the job, explain how he is going to do the job, and what he will include and exclude. If this task becomes significant, personally I would walk away unless you are in the building trade or are very well financed and motivated. There will be other properties with less risk. The piling company will be unlikely to offer you substantial guarantees, and you may be paying for any unexpected work.
Alternatively, you could make it a condition of sale that the seller has this done, with the right of inspection of the interior after the job is done. This also has risks, and I owould discuss this carefully with your lawyer.
Good luck.
Steve
How quickly will the rest need attention?
Can new piles be inserted without lifting the house, so you can build structual timber down to the piles? Or is the clearance so small that the house must be lifted to drive the new piles in?
Do you need to live in while the work is done, or will the house be vacant?
Maybe this is minor, but it has the potential to be significant. You need professional advice from people who can actually assess the task.
Lots of houses in NZ are on piles. Some are designed to be "transportable" and are mainly rectangular, and have fixed dimensions (these are often called units). They have a strengthened sub-frame which holds the house true when its lifted, and the width is limited to what's allowed to be carried on a low-loader. Others are built on site or modified, and don't have as-deep timber sub-frame, or mabe the timber joists are not contnuous. I believe lifting them could be a more delicate operation and in extreme cases might involve adding angled bracing inside the building.
You could try speaking to the house relocation companies. They have the equipment to jack the house up, rip out the piles and replace them, or will know who can do this for you. Expect for some of the Gib board to blow/crack when the house is lifted. Consider also if the house is fully piled. Many are on a mix of slab and piles (Often the fireplaces are slabs), and when you lift the house the slab will stay behind, and may mean that you have more redecoration to consider. Also consider if you have a brick chimney, which again may need rebuilding after lifting for re-piling.
Having said that, any house old enough to need re-piling is probably not built to the best of modern standards, and you will probably be risking fragile plastic pipes, mouse chewed wires, rot, borer, poor insultation, etc., that will stretch your budget. As the piles may have failed unevenly over the years, the house may have developed a "tilted floor", and the doors etc. may have been eased to adjust for this. When set "right" on piles the house may come true, with consequential problems. Then again, the house may refuse to come true, and may then have a flat floor and leaning walls. This is particularly the case if there has been any alterations after the floor has moved.
Most of this happened to a Kiwi work colleague, but he went in prepared and parked the family for 2 months with relatives while the worst was fixed. He now has a very nice house in a an area he couldn't otherwise afford.
It may be a good idea to look at some of the relocated houses in the sale yards. You can see the effect of lifting (and transporting) houses. They will be in a much worst state, but you will learn a lot about older buildings and how they will behave when lifted.
I recommend you get a builder to talk you through the job, explain how he is going to do the job, and what he will include and exclude. If this task becomes significant, personally I would walk away unless you are in the building trade or are very well financed and motivated. There will be other properties with less risk. The piling company will be unlikely to offer you substantial guarantees, and you may be paying for any unexpected work.
Alternatively, you could make it a condition of sale that the seller has this done, with the right of inspection of the interior after the job is done. This also has risks, and I owould discuss this carefully with your lawyer.
Good luck.
Steve
© emigratenz.org. All Rights Reserved
vBulletin®
Copyright © Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
vBulletin®
Copyright © Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.