Expert: Dan Griffin - 9/16/2011

Question
Hi Dan,
My husband and I are considering buying a 75 year old house that we have looked at.  It seems to be solidly built and there is no cracking in any of the walls, also the area has no history of subsidence.  However, there are a couple of points that give us concern, we think the two may be related.
1) the upstairs landing and one of the bedroom floors has a slight slope towards the back of the house.  I'm sorry I can't give you precise figures, but if we put a spirit level on it, there's a very slight deviation from true.
2) the treads of the stairs have a slight slope (similar in extent to the floors) from one side to the other.  This is not in the same direction as the floor.
3) the stairs, when you walk up them, seem "bouncy".  I'm not sure how else to describe it, but if you watch someone walk up the stairs you can see that the tread sinks a little as they put their weight on it.

My question really is do these things sound like they would be a major problem given the unlikelihood of it being subsidence?  Does it sound like something we would be able to fix ourselves with a reasonable level of DIY skills or would we need to call someone in?

Many thanks in advance,

Jo

Answer
Jo, if the slope was noticeable to you, it would make me want to discover why.  There are many reasons.   Is there a chance that the area was once an exterior porch that was enclosed?  It seems as if you tell it is sloping two directions.  Flexing treads might indicate they are just undersized, flexing stringers would indicate that they are undersized, not adequately supported, or that there should have been more of them.

If you are sure that the foundation hasn't settled it would almost tell that the structure was never level - yes, it does happen.

The big issue is whether this is a deal killer for you.  If you will notice it every time you move through the house, you will need to either decide that it is OK or open up bearing walls, etc to discover and correct the problem(s).  Most jacking, shoring, and shimming type work is within the scope of serious DIY efforts.  Be prepared to remove drywall, etc.

I hope this helps.