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Specific Structural Inspection: Oxfordshire Country House

Following below ground works by a water company, we were asked to provide recommendations and calculations for structural supports.

Brief: To inspect structural alterations that were made to the property during below ground works, and provide a report recording our observations with supporting calculations to detail the remedial works and lintels required

Property: Large luxury property just outside Oxford.

Instructed by: Property manager for a refurbishment scheme.

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Project Specification

  • During refurbishment, the project team identified areas where works to below ground water services had potentially affected the structural stability of the building.
  • We were asked to inspect an area where the introduction of pipework had undermined the bearing of the brickwork on the property’s foundations, and to provide calculations for a replacement lintel.
specific structural engineer lintel inspection

Our Findings

  • An opening had been made in the external cavity wall below ground level, to allow for the new pipework to enter the building.
  • Concrete lintels had been installed to span over the opening to support the outer leaf brickwork and base plinth of the cavity wall; however, no lintel had been installed to span over the opening to support the internal leaf of brickwork.
  • We therefore recommended that a new 100×140 pre-stressed concrete lintel should be installed to span over the opening. This should be supported by the existing foundation and below ground brickwork each side. 
  • The existing ground floor slabs also needed to be infilled and we provided a detailed specification for this, including the depth and type of fill.
  • We also recommend that the foundation depth either side of the new pipework should be confirmed as being greater than the base of the pipework so that foundations loads are not transmitted onto the pipes and so the excavations for pipework does not undermine the existing footings.
specific structural inspection oxfordshire

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