Underpinning Melbourne

Many homes in Melbourne’s east are built on reactive, deep clay soils where movement is typically caused by changes in the moisture of the ground, including periods of drought, established trees drying out the soil, or old earthenware pipes cracking and leaking excessive moisture into the ground. These factors can all contribute to subsidence issues. Drain repair and drainage solutions may also form part of the soil improvement recommendations, before re-levelling the home. Areas affected by these conditions include Bayswater, Knoxfield, Boronia, Scoresby, Wantirna, Ferntree Gully, Rowville and Lysterfield.

With homes often more than 80 years old in this part of Melbourne, it’s not uncommon to see symptoms such as cracking in brickwork and gaps starting to appear in between brickwork and the frames of windows and doors. These are indicators that the property may require resin injection underpinning, to effectively raise the foundation, re-level the home and stabilise the ground beneath the building. Areas commonly affected by these conditions include Hawthorn, Hawthorn East, Mont Albert, Balwyn, Surry Hills, Brighton, Flinders, Mount Eliza, Mornington, Malvern, Glen Iris, Camberwell, Canterbury, Caulfield, Carnegie and Kew.

Built on marshy, sandy, silty soils on beachfronts or manmade rivers, this area is affected by weak soils that are prone to high settlement. Excess water from plumbing leaks can also contribute to soils washing out beneath the footings, potentially leading to house movement causing cracks. Additional Mainmark solutions are available to address sandy soil stabilisation before lifting the home using Teretek. Areas affected by these conditions include Carrum, Carrum Downs, Patterson Lakes, Seaford, Frankston.

With homes often built on highly reactive clays, homeowners will see evidence of seasonal movement. Significant problems may occur following lengthy periods of extreme weather like droughts and floods. Many large native trees in these areas, with wide-spreading roots, can impact the water content of foundation soil, causing footings to shift. This is when re-levelling may be required, which can simultaneously treat the effects of subsidence, including brick wall crack repair. Suburbs affected include Croydon, Ringwood, Mooroolbark, Mitcham, Vermont.

Fixing cracks in walls may not be the only issue affecting these inner-city dwellings. Older brick and stone foundation materials, such as bluestone, typically need special attention as they may become brittle and are therefore considered less suitable for treatment with traditional, invasive house underpinning and ‘slab jacking’ methods. Generally built before engineering codes were commonly used, these homes will experience footing movement and failure more easily. Large tree plantings alongside footpaths can also impact this densely populated area. Mainmark has completed hundreds of jobs in locations including Richmond, Collingwood, Abbotsford, Fitzroy and Carlton North.

This area includes traditional blocks with many older single or double-storey homes, featuring old brick and stone foundations. With buildings constructed on silty clay soils overlying natural clay, further impacted by some sites being located on reclaimed land, footings can experience noticeable movement when soils react to tidal canal water and flood events. Often traditional concrete underpinning would be too invasive a process for remediation. Larger blocks may also be affected by moisture drawn from the mature plane trees in the surrounding area, which can have a significant impact on foundation soil stability. Areas to watch include Elwood, Middle Park, St Kilda, Albert Park, South Melbourne, Williamstown / Newport, Spotswood, Yarraville and Footscray and the wider Brimbank region.