Settling garage leaning. Fix or replace?

[KillNThrill24]

I'm not sure where to start with this. So I'm hoping someone here can at least help point me in a direction on who to call/what to do.

My house was built in 1920, this was, I'm guessing, the original garage that was built with the house. I use it to store my gt500 and cobra in, as well as my mowers and a few other odds and ends. I have a 30x30 that was built in 2010 that I mainly use.

Last year I noticed I was having to hit the garage door button at the bottom of the track to override it, otherwise it would send the door back up. This year, I looked a little closer at it and started to see some things I was less than thrilled with.

The brick foundation was shifting when I moved in a couple years ago, but it's definitely looking worse now. It's shifting the entire front of the garage to the right. You can see the insulation panels on the ceiling starting to buckle, the walls starting to lean on the outside, and the front siding buckling. I'm not sure how much time I have to get this under control, but I'd like to have a plan sooner rather than later.

Should I contact someone to repair this? If so, who? Or does the whole thing need to come down and a new garage put up in its place?

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[The Tool Tyrant]

Not much you can do if the problem is due to poor soil condition. Looking at the first photo, judging by the slope it appears it may have been built on fill soil. If it was not properly compacted, it can and will settle and eventually lead to issues like this.

 

[wrenchguy]

What's the floor look like along the terraced grade wall?

 

[jives]

So, after about 100 years, the foundation is starting to crumble? Not sure why that would suddenly be a soil issue unless there is a new drainage problem. Nonetheless, a bit more info is in order.
1. What is the size of the garage and general condition? Is it worth saving?
2. Can it be jacked up and supported to fix the foundation, that is, what is the foundation -- stem wall or monolithic slab with block knee wall?
3. If a footer/stemwall, what is the depth of stem wall, foundation material (looks to be a combination of concrete block and red brick blocks)
3. Condition of sill plates?

There are a variety of fixes depending on the cause. Support wall, dig out stemwall, replace stemwall. Or piers, or mudjacking, etc.

 

[firebirdparts]

I suspect from the pictures that there isn't any foundation at all, so I would just assume that going forward. I don't really see the movement, though, in your pictures, so I'm not appreciating that part of it. I think that is a pretty lovable building, and so I might be tempted to try to hang onto it just for its looks and location. Feel free to tear it down if that doesn't appeal to you.

Those red clay blocks are not really suitable for much of anything. I'm not sure what they were intended for, but I've seen them used to create voids in old reinforced concrete buildings, and that was one job they seemed qualified for. So it might be tempting to lift the building, remove all the trashy blocks and build a foundation ex nihilo.

Anyway, you've got a challenge there for sure. I don't think you can hire people to fix this sort of thing. I could be wrong.

 

[KillNThrill24]

Not much you can do if the problem is due to poor soil condition. Looking at the first photo, judging by the slope it appears it may have been built on fill soil. If it was not properly compacted, it can and will settle and eventually lead to issues like this.

Good to know. I do hope that's not the case.

What's the floor look like along the terraced grade wall?

I'll have to get some pictures after work if I remember. The concrete looks fine, but the wall looks like it's coming off of it, if that makes sense. I don't know the proper terminology with this stuff unfortunately. But looks like I'll be learning real soon.

So, after about 100 years, the foundation is starting to crumble? Not sure why that would suddenly be a soil issue unless there is a new drainage problem. Nonetheless, a bit more info is in order.
1. What is the size of the garage and general condition? Is it worth saving?
2. Can it be jacked up and supported to fix the foundation, that is, what is the foundation -- stem wall or monolithic slab with block knee wall?
3. If a footer/stemwall, what is the depth of stem wall, foundation material (looks to be a combination of concrete block and red brick blocks)
3. Condition of sill plates?

There are a variety of fixes depending on the cause. Support wall, dig out stemwall, replace stemwall. Or piers, or mudjacking, etc.

You know, that was my thought process on this as well. My buddies dad was the one who mentioned the settling... And I too was a bit confused by that, considering it's roughly 100 years old. And even if it's not, it's still substantially older than my other garage.

1: it's roughly 18x18 from wall to wall inside. I only measured that much to make sure my cars fit. It's definitely a nice like building, I'd really hate to take it down.

Beyond this question, my lack of general knowledge on the subject will make answering the rest of the questions difficult. I can try to get better pictures, but I'll need to research what you're asking in order to answer correctly. Just bring honest!

I suspect from the pictures that there isn't any foundation at all, so I would just assume that going forward. I don't really see the movement, though, in your pictures, so I'm not appreciating that part of it. I think that is a pretty lovable building, and so I might be tempted to try to hang onto it just for its looks and location. Feel free to tear it down if that doesn't appeal to you.

Those red clay blocks are not really suitable for much of anything. I'm not sure what they were intended for, but I've seen them used to create voids in old reinforced concrete buildings, and that was one job they seemed qualified for. So it might be tempting to lift the building, remove all the trashy blocks and build a foundation ex nihilo.

Anyway, you've got a challenge there for sure. I don't think you can hire people to fix this sort of thing. I could be wrong.

Yeah after looking at the pictures, I noticed that you really can't see much of the lean at all in them. Unfortunate for sure, but at the same time I guess that means it's not THAT bad yet, right? Wishful thinking of course.

That's a good thought about lifting it and replacing the bad stuff underneath. I really like this little garage. I'll have to get some better outside pictures, but it's got some character. I don't want to lose it, if possible.

I'm going to call my dad later and see what he thinks about it. I'm also going to have my wife ask her dad, who works on job sites all the time and would know better than me.

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[KillNThrill24]

This is a pic I took in the fall when I put my gt500 away. Ignore the cobra that's growing into the garage. That's a 6 year long project that hasn't gone far. Just to give people a little view of the inside.

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[theoldwizard1]

Should I contact someone to repair this? If so, who? Or does the whole thing need to come down and a new garage put up in its place?

The good new is, this repairable. The bad news is, if you hire it out it will probably cost almost as much as tearing it down and rebuilding.

DIY costs what probably be < $2500, but it would be a HUGE amount of labor !

 

[nadogail]

What are the "Bragging Rights " worth?

 

[Lightning rod]

maybe getting a foundation repair company to come in a get you
some professional advice might be in order
cost may not be so bad
then you can decide to fix or rebuild

 

[duneslider]

Look at a helical pier company and see what they can do. Fairly affordable from what I have seen.