By standard, digging down and setting a house’s foundation is supposed to keep it stable amid strong external forces including seismic activity. Nevertheless, it is bound to respire one year or so into its completion.
Several factors are behind this so-called breathing activity that could be the perpetual nature of any house, the first of them is varying temperature. We all know how objects expand in warmer environments and contract in cooler ones. That said, the soil underneath the house, the concrete walls, the roof, and practically the entire house expands and contracts in microscopic degrees.
After some time, although the expansion and shrinking do not stop, the structure more or less has acclimated itself with the constant movement and will tend to not get past the extents that it’s used to moving. To know if your house has reached this stage, you can check for signs. The most telltale signs include cracks on the walls and gaps on the roof that could lead to water leakage of water into the house.
Many homeowners make the mistake of making remedial actions early into the life of the house when it has not settled yet, only for these natural cracks and holes to reappear. Structural engineers are all for giving any new building structure ample time to settle onto the ground on which it was built.
Only then should you execute restorative works or else you’ll only spend double than you should have. Moreover, here are the issues that are ripe enough for you to tackle if your house is turning one:
Table of Contents
Seal the Cracks
Walls naturally develop cracks over time. As a rule of thumb, cracks should not be bothered with if the house is barely a year old, again, to allow it to settle. However, you can make exemptions.
That is if the walls develop cracks big enough that moisture can seep through. In this case, you can apply a waterproof concrete sealant, making sure that the sealant penetrates as deeply as possible into the cracks with the help of spreader tools. Once dry, apply a fresh coat of paint.
Roof Repairs
Roofs, on the other hand, could particularly be more challenging maintaining long before the year celebrates its first birthday. The reason for this is, once leaking happens, the most definitive action to take is to repair it, or else the leaking could cause irreversible damage, especially in the house’s interior. Your contractor would best recommend that you apply a waterproof sealant on any detected holes on the roof.
Later, when the house has aged a year or so, you can have the roof spot-repaired by patching on sheets of steel on the problematic areas. The gutters should likewise be checked for clogged material. In general, check for accumulated water and be as thorough as to inspect inwards into the ceiling and water catchments.
One more thing you can place remedial focus on is the way your roof is angled. Although you may have thoroughly planned your roof’s tilting during the house’s conception, the actual application may have proven this to not be the best to ensure the seamless downflow of rainwater. You might have detected puddles up there that, unless you reconfigure your roof, would only accumulate and, therefore, could lead to early decay.
Paint Job
Is there a room in your house wherein you spend a significant amount of your time, a home office or your bedroom, perhaps? A year into living in your house, it is natural to feel like you have outgrown your space. And, as moving or building an all-new house is the less practical choice, you can always look into blowing a breeze of freshness into the rooms you most frequent in.
If you are decided that you have grown tired of the dark-colored walls, consider a splash of brighter ones. Or, you can go all the way by putting wall art. You can also rearrange the furniture and add lighting accents.
Doors and Windows
Another sign that a house has settled is how different doors and windows close and open. They could permanently be on the looser or the tighter side. Sometimes, you can no longer close them at all because the frames have shrunk.
Doors and windows that are tougher to swivel could be easily remedied with several drops of industrial lubricants onto the hinges. But, in the worse case that the door or window can no longer be shut, you may need to unscrew its hinges and adjust the door or window panel so that it fits right back into the available space.
Renovation works require time and money. Before you do so, make sure to consult your house’s contractor, and so you know your hard-earned savings don’t fall on premature decisions.
Meta title: Renovations You Can Do to a Year-Old Home
meta desc: Have you been itching to renovate your new house when it hasn’t? Find out why it’s best not yet to and what to do when the time is ripe.