Structural inspections are inspections a structural engineer performs to validate the structural soundness of a property. This includes the property’s load-bearing components like the joists, beams, foundation, trusses, posts, and columns.
Besides knowing if your property is safe and well-built, the structural inspection also provides the property owner the opportunity to ask questions about the building’s structural integrity. With that, you get a full analysis of the property’s structure and its components.
Seeing as your property’s structure is extremely important and shouldn’t be taken for granted, it’s only right that you work with reputable home inspection engineers to look into your home’s structure and ensure that you won’t be experiencing any problems.
When Should I Get a Structural Inspection?
As mentioned earlier, getting an engineer to conduct a structural inspection is crucial to know whether you’re buying a property or moving into a place that’s safe and has good structural integrity. But besides that, a property may experience some settlement as well. With that being said, when should you conduct one?
There are several times when a structural inspection is needed, like when you’re living in a new home and experiencing settlement, you’re living in a home that’s more than a decade old and showing signs of settlement, or when you install additional weight in your property.
- Foundation, Bowing Walls, Sinking, Cracks, and Upheaval: Usually, small cracks aren’t a cause for concern, but if you see horizontal, vertical, or step cracks that are a quarter of an inch in size or larger, then you may need to have a structural inspection to assess the condition of your foundation.
- Storm Damage: If you’ve experienced a storm and it has caused some damage, it’s best to call a structural engineer to inspect your property’s structural integrity since this may be compromised due to external factors.
- Drainage Issues: Drainage issues can cause huge problems in a property. For this reason, it’s crucial to have your home inspected if you’ve recently dealt with water issues in your home.
- Heat Loss Issues: Heat loss can cause a plethora of problems in a home, but a structural inspection can help determine where the heat loss is happening so you can better resolve the problem.
When Can a Structural Engineer Help Me?
There are several instances when a home inspection engineer can help assess the structural integrity of your home.
- When You’re Buying a Home: If you’re buying a property, one of the most important tasks you should do before closing the deal is conduct a structural inspection. This way, you’ll get to find issues with any load-bearing components that need repairs to ensure that you won’t have to worry about this in the long run. Spotting these issues can also lift future issues because the seller will have to fix this themselves.
- When You’re Experiencing Structural Movement: As mentioned earlier, a home may experience structural movement or settlement, which could greatly affect the integrity of your home. For this reason, it’s best to have an inspector assess your foundation and home’s load-bearing components right away so you can fix the issue before the damage gets worse.
The Bottom Line: Structural Inspections Can Provide You with Security and Comfort
Before buying a home or if you’re experiencing some settlement in your property, it’s always a good idea to have a home inspection engineer assess the problem and provide you with advice on how to resolve the issue. Having a structural inspection can provide you comfort and security, knowing that you’re living in a space with good structural integrity.
How Can We Help You?
With over three decades of experience in home inspection and structural engineering, AEI holds extensive knowledge and background to spot structural issues and perform tests and troubleshooting for residential homes.
If you’re looking for home inspection engineers, give us a call at (918) 251-6910 today!
