Chimney is Separating From a House 3

[cap4000]

Does anyone have any structural experience on inspecting a chimney which is separating badly from a house. Typically it is a settlement or undersized footing related issue when the gap is very large say 3/4 to 1 inch. Perhaps storm drainage runof in the chimney area and lumber framing from a gable roof may also be contributing to the chimney leaning. Any tips or feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

[jike]

Could it be that the chimney is not fastened to the structure?

I could not resist posting this photo.

 

[SlideRuleEra]

Last year, a client's house had numerous problems including a chimney separation. The cause turned out to be a combination of the house's foundations heaving because of expansive soils and tree root intrusion in addition to chimney settlement caused by an overloaded footing.

In this photo the chimney is seen "falling away" (toward the right). Notice that even though this chimney is connected to the brick veneer, it is taking that part of the wall with it.

http://www.SlideRuleEra.net

http://www.VacuumTubeEra.net

 

[msquared48]

Might look into installing pin pile under the chimney and jacking it up to level.

Whatever the reason, most likely related to downspouts or foundation drains though, the problem causing the separation needs to be identified and remedied.

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[msquared48]

Jike:

Looks like you took a page from the new Ebay bestseller "How to Remove Your Chimney in One Easy Lesson".



Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[concretemasonry]

Since the masonry veneer was strong enough to remain intact and distribute the lateral chimney displacement the length of the wall, there may also be a problem with the connection of the veneer to the back-up. Since masonry theoretically has little tensile or flexural strength, the ties may be inadequate. - This could also be a typical builder practice that is on all of the walls.

Dick

 

[hokie66]

Dick,

The OP did not include a photo. I think your comment is about SlideRule's photo, which I think he posted just for interest.

 

[concretemasonry]

I admit the mistake. SlideRuleEra's photo is certainly a classic problem for uncontrolled residential construction.

Sorry for cluttering up the site/problem.

Dick