I am describing my parents house, 2 levels and a basement in Western Pennsylvania built ~1960. In 1991 we noticed cracking and bowing of an 8ft section of the basement wall. I dug up the water supply line and fixed the leak. In the subsequent 20+ years, the wall has not moved.
The bow measures 1/2" out of plumb at the top and bottom. The wall is ~7' tall and supports a single level section of the house. The area over that wall formerly had wood paneling that we changed to drywall 5 yrs ago. It is not cracked.
They are now planning to sell their house. I am considering just sealing those cracks and repainting the whole wall. I've had Carbon fiber straps installed at my home, but there was more warping in that situation with cracking walls.
What do we do with this? I'm confident that professionals will either say that straps aren't necessary b/c they don't want to be involved in such a small job - 3 or 4 straps. OR they will say that they are absolutely necessary, although that may not be the case. I do suppose that I could break the concrete and sink an I-beam for support. Any ideas welcomed.
The bow measures 1/2" out of plumb at the top and bottom. The wall is ~7' tall and supports a single level section of the house. The area over that wall formerly had wood paneling that we changed to drywall 5 yrs ago. It is not cracked.
They are now planning to sell their house. I am considering just sealing those cracks and repainting the whole wall. I've had Carbon fiber straps installed at my home, but there was more warping in that situation with cracking walls.
What do we do with this? I'm confident that professionals will either say that straps aren't necessary b/c they don't want to be involved in such a small job - 3 or 4 straps. OR they will say that they are absolutely necessary, although that may not be the case. I do suppose that I could break the concrete and sink an I-beam for support. Any ideas welcomed.
