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What could cause a home's floor to sag?

Q. The house we are buying has a sagging floor in the living room and dining room. When we asked the Realtor about this, she said that settlement is common in homes that are this old (built in 1944). This doesn't sound right to us because our current home, built in 1904, has no such flaws. The rest of the house we're buying seems to be level, and there are no foundation cracks in the basement. So what could be causing the sagging floor?

A. Many old homes have floors that are sagging or sloped, and many do not. So blaming the bowed floor on age is too simplistic of an answer. The other mistake your agent made was to render an opinion on the structure of the building without being professionally qualified to do so. Instead, she should have recommended an evaluation by a qualified home inspector or a licensed structural engineer.

Actually, there are a number of possible causes for a sagging floor. For example:

• The floor joists could be over-spanned for their dimensions

• The piers that support the framing may have settled

• There could be soil erosion at the piers caused by faulty drainage

• Piers could have been washed out by an old plumbing leak

• Framing members could have been damaged by termites or dry rot

• The house could have been built on expansive soil

• Gophers could have excavated the soil at some of the piers

• Someone with insufficient construction experience could have modified the floor framing

Who knows what else?

The only way to find the answer is to hire a qualified professional to inspect the crawl space under the building to determine what is wrong and what should be done to correct the problem. If you haven't already hired an experienced home inspector, be sure to do so.

Q. I rent a home in Michigan. Last month the home was inspected by the city so my landlord could renew her rental license. The furnace in the house is from the 1950s. It has been running for years without an air filter and did not pass the inspection, so I thought they'd hire a contractor to look at it. Instead, my landlord's son is going to clean out the system, and the city inspector says this is OK. Does this sound right to you?

A. This definitely does not sound right. The primary issue here is the age and condition of the furnace. If it was installed in the 1950s, then it is nearly double the life expectancy for a forced air unit. The likelihood that it has more serious issues than deferred cleaning is not a minor concern. After 60 years of use, the heat exchanger could have cracks or holes, which could contaminate your home with carbon monoxide. There are also fire-safety issues that should be considered with a fixture of this age.

Without question, this furnace should be thoroughly evaluated by a licensed HVAC contractor to make sure it is free of any functional or safety-related defects. Furthermore, if all that is needed is cleaning, that should be done by a qualified, licensed contractor, not by the landlord's son, unless of course he is a licensed heating contractor.

• To write to Barry Stone, visit him on the web at www.housedetective.com, or write AMG, 1776 Jami Lee Court, Suite 218, San Luis Obispo, CA 94301.

© 2015, Action Coast Publishing

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