Another (slightly) leaning garage

[Stucco]

Hi, my new-to-me garage is leaning a bit, and I assume it's better to fix this sooner than later.

You'll see that it's moved only slightly, but I think it's still moving and I want to stop any progress.

If I get it back to square before bracing, I'd like to start by "pushing" it back (as opposed to using come-alongs). The pushing method was briefly described here as:

He suggested just putting some long 2x4s up against the side, leaning on em to bow em towards the ground a little and putting a stake in the ground to put some pressure on the side to help it along. I did that and it moved another half inch. He told me the longer 2x4s the better - more bow.

So for now the questions might be:
1. Can anybody dumb-down the "pushing" method described above? I'm not sure I understand how the bowing and staking works.
2. Stupid question, do I really need to square it up first, or could I just add lots of bracing and call it good?

Thank you for any ideas!

The corner of the garage attaches to the house:
View media item 53483
Opposite side of the crack above:
View media item 53487
The far end of the garage (the "leaning-towards" or downhill side):
View media item 53486
Opposite view of the corner above:
View media item 53490
And finally, the other corner on the downhill side:
View media item 53489Some guys doing some work on the floor (which was all busted up) had extra Quikrete and wanted to help patch things up... Also it looks like somebody had patched this before the last time it was painted maybe?

 

[CNGsaves]

By looks of garage (ie no insulation and stucco), I'm guessing you're in California ??

Update GJ Profile with City / State.

Not sure you've found Root Cause of the crack. Is the slab of garage settling away from house, which is causing it to pull away ??

You may be better off to reinforce the wall structure to prevent any further damage and just repair the stucco. At same time, improve/secure that slab and tie all the concrete together. Did you have a big earthquake that you slept through ?? Good luck.

 

[Stucco]

Good question - I'm in Southwest Colorado (very small town so I'm hesitant to put that specifically in the profile because I'm weird about the internet... but I'll PM anybody who wants to know). Relatively dry climate, but the ground is clay and there's lots of heaving and settling around here.

The slab did crack and settle, and there's a gap between the slab and sill plate of about an inch (maybe 2) at the worst of it. Apparently the neighbor used to have a tree that lifted part of the slab as well, but that tree is gone.

I haven't been in many earthquakes, but I'm a light sleeper and the one I experienced was LOUD. I don't know how people do it...

Edited to add: that gutter used to just drain right next to the garage with no extension, plus the gutters leaked when I got the place. No idea how long that was going on but the house was built in 1940. I assume that's contributed to settling.

 

[Stucco]

So I'm wondering if this picture is more or less the idea: I bend the boards and somebody (that's my wife in this picture) secures the 2x4 so it pushes on the garage? I'm guessing 2 or 3 2x4's might do for a garage that's 10 feet across.
View media item 53521

 

[nine4gmc]

I can't help but thanks for the laugh.

 

[sublimate]

Your wife is hot, can you post more pics of her?
(and after saying that I can't understand why you're uncomfortable posting your location on the internet )

Why do you want to push instead of pull? Pulling seems easier.

If you're set on pushing you could try the bending trick, but I think you might have more success using a cheap hydraulic bottle jack, depending on how far you need to move it.

 

[Stucco]

Good thing I covered her up in a modest dress...

Main reasons for not wanting to pull are:

• Since the garage is partly attached to the house, I can't get around the edges on the outside like I've seen others do (and I'm not sure how strong I can rig it up inside the garage)
• I don't have come-alongs or chains/straps to do it, but I can get some 2x4s and safely use those

It really only needs to move an inch or 2, but I don't know how I'd get a jack to push sideways up high like that (not that I'm the handiest guy... I'm sure there's a way). I'm more than happy to try a jack.

 

[lilredex]

Had a similar problem with my garage. The rear wall needed to be pulled over about 4-5 inches to bring it into square. That was done with a turnbuckle and a chain on the diagonal. The rear is square now, but the front is still off very slightly....very hard to notice.

Outlined here, in post#11

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=52456

 

[Stucco]

I had not seen that thread - thank you. Didn't realize you could use turnbuckles, and that's a good discussion about maybe "pulling" safely. But it still scares me...

I'm partly tempted to just brace it and deal with any straightening later (if that ever happens)

 

[fergus]

Hey. So what I did was get some 10 or 12 foot 2x4s and put them up against the top plate, or top of the wall where it meets the eaves.
Then, when jammed up tight against the wall, drive in a stake in the ground at the other end of the 2x4. Driving the stake in at an angle will put some pressure on the wall.
When you do this to four or five 2x4s in a row (sequentially) against the wall, you will start to make some progress.
I had a slab next to the garage and just wedged the studs against the concrete. Then, I would drive them against the wall by hitting the bottom with a 4 lb sledge. PM me if you have more questions.

 

[johnbennetch]

Try a hillbilly trick. Take a spare tire. Let out the air. Prop it at an angle to place the 2x4 on the side wall. Then begin inflating the tire. You can get several inches of stroke. You should be able to bring two of you boards together to one pushing point. Maybe 4x4 would be best so it don't buckle in the center.

 

[hh76]

Try a hillbilly trick. Take a spare tire. Let out the air. Prop it at an angle to place the 2x4 on the side wall. Then begin inflating the tire. You can get several inches of stroke. You should be able to bring two of you boards together to one pushing point. Maybe 4x4 would be best so it don't buckle in the center.

I like this, seems like you would have a lot of control using air pressure.

 

[nadogail]

Pushing or Pulling, it's all just relative motion against a Deadman. Cars, Trucks, Tractors and Trees have all served as Deadmen.

Using a turnbuckle to adjust the diagonal of a rectangle and bring the verticals into parallel seems to have permanent positive possibilities.

Good luck with this opportunity to not only square the building but improve it.

 

[theoldwizard1]

2. Stupid question, do I really need to square it up first, or could I just add lots of bracing and call it good?

That's what I would do, with the addition of some way to tracking if the crack is expanding or not over time. Don't spend a lot on fixing the stucco unless you are really going to fix the problem.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Good question - I'm in Southwest Colorado (very small town so I'm hesitant to put that specifically in the profile because I'm weird about the internet... but I'll PM anybody who wants to know).

Add "SW" to your location. (Note my location.) CO climate differs quite a bit depending on what region you are in.