Expert: Bruce E. Johnson - 3/20/2011

Question
Hi Bruce,

We have a 2 story wood frame house in New England.  We had a trememdous amount of snow (record ever) in January.  As a result of the weight of smow on the roof our house "settled" about 1/8 to 1/4 inch.  I know this because I have some interir and exterior doors along a center partof the structure that neet to be planes; and also one aluminum storm window that now slodes open with difficulty and that I'll probably replace.  No other obvious damage including supports in the attic.  IS there anything else I need to inspect?  Is this settlement a big problem?  House is 50 years old.  Thanks!

Answer
Hi Peter, this was an abnormal year for snow fall in your area.  
But regardless, an eighth of an inch is minimal considering the weight your structure bore.  Fortunately your  structure handled the excess weight without a lot of movement.  Regarding your window..unless you want to replace a worn out or broken window you can reset the existing window fairly easily.  If you are going to remove the window anyhow..why not remove it so that it can be reused? You might only have to loosen up one side of the window frame and pry it up so that the frame is square..rescrew that side, caulking and reinstall trim..  Most windows have their installation screws in accessible places located along the sides of the jambs. The same with your door jambs, you might be able to raise one side to square it up..pry it up vertically with a flat bar after removing the fasteners or driving the finish nails through with a small punch or mail set.

As far as other things to look for? If you are energetic and your crawlspace is navigable you can string line or laser your floor system to see if the supporting structure moved enough to warrant shimming of the support posts.  But to be honest with you unless you really need the doors and windows in question to operate fully at this time you might be prudent to wait until the ground has had a chance to lose some of it's moisture and return to normal.  You might just find that your problems have mysteriously disappeared.  

I hope this helps please feel free to write again regarding this or other matters, sincerely bruce  e johnson..bejohnsonconsulting.com