They didn't always build them liked they used to, Part Deux

One another one of our projects, we are preparing to renovate and restore a ca. 1870 Mansard roofed house in Brookline. During some early site visits, we discovered that the house was spreading. Some floor joists were literally hanging on by a thread- they were barely in contact with the beams that were supposed to be carrying them. The third floor is particularly severe: the outside walls have pulled away 3-4 inches in some places.

It was later determined that not only was the house spreading, but it has settled about 5 inches towards the rear of the property. Sole borings confirmed that it was built on uncompacted fill. The best solution, it turns out, is to life the house, remove the existing foundation, build a new foundation, and set the house back down. During this process we will pull it all bactogether and try to straighten it as much as possible.

We did a similar thing to an 18th century home in Newton a few years ago, as seen in this series of photos shown below.

We're Landmark Services, the Old House Experts in Massachusetts. If you're interested in the renovation of historic homes, barns, or churches, take a look at our website. Also, please note that our blog has moved and is now located within our website here: www.landmarkservices.com/blog . All new posts will be located there. Have an addition, renovation or repair project in mind? We offer free consultations, so please contact us to set up an appointment.