Floor joist repairs in Alton

Postcodes: GU34
Population: about 19,000
Area: Hampshire
Pricing region: South East

Is Hampshire prone to ground movement?

With roughly 19,000 people, Alton spans postcode districts GU34 in Hampshire. Nearby places we cover include Bordon (5 miles), Farnham (9 miles) and Basingstoke (9 miles).

Hampshire is one of the parts of the UK where clay soils are most likely to move with the seasons. Ground movement here is more often linked to soils, drains and trees than to mining. Housing stock in Hampshire: Victorian terraces in Portsmouth and Southampton, 1930s semis, and large post-war and new-build estates.

Symptoms that point to floor joist repairs

Floor bouncing, or ornaments rattling, when someone walks across
A musty smell, or fungal strands showing between the boards
A gap opening up between the skirting board and the floor

Guide prices for floor joist repairs in Alton

The ranges below reflect typical South East costs for floor joist repairs, including VAT. Scaffold, access and making good can push a job to the top of the range.

Guide prices inc VAT on South East rates. Items marked est. are our estimates.
Item	Guide price	Per
Splicing or sistering a damaged joist	£280 – £450	per joist
Whole room of joists and boards	£2,250 – £6,700	per room
Sleeper wall rebuild and ventilationest.	£450 – £1,700	per room

Methods for floor joist repairs

Splicing ends and fitting hangers

Where only the end has rotted, it is cut back to sound timber and a new piece is fixed alongside, bearing on the wall or on a new joist hanger. Missing or under-nailed hangers elsewhere are replaced at the same time. The damp in the wall must be fixed too.

Best for: Rotten joist ends in damp solid walls

Replacing joists and boards

When rot or woodworm runs through most of a floor, it is usually cheaper to replace the joists, strutting and boards together. Where joists run parallel to an outside wall, restraint straps tie the new floor back to it so the wall keeps its lateral support.

Best for: Widespread rot, or a whole floor that has dropped

From first photo to finished repair

Lift boards and inspect
On site we lift a few boards where the floor is worst and check the joist ends, sleeper walls and void with a moisture meter. Outside, we look for high ground, blocked vents and leaks keeping the timber wet.
Written quote
You get a no-obligation written quote listing which joists are sistered, spliced or replaced and any sleeper wall or ventilation work. It becomes a fixed price in writing once the repair is specified.
Repair the structure
Boards are lifted and numbered if they are going back, and rotten timber is cut out. New treated timber is fixed and checked with a level before strutting, hangers and any restraint straps go in.

Rules for floor joist repairs in England

Like-for-like repairs such as crack stitching and repointing do not usually need building control approval in England, but anything that changes or strengthens the structure, such as underpinning or rebuilding a wall, does. If the work touches a party wall, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 may apply.

Frequently asked questions

What is the price of floor joist repairs in Alton?

Guide prices for floor joist repairs in Alton start from about £280 per joist, including VAT, on South East rates. Your fixed written price follows photos or a survey and depends on the extent of the work and access.

Do you carry out floor joist repairs in Alton?

Yes, Alton is covered, along with postcode districts GU34. We also cover nearby Bordon and Farnham.

Does the ground around Alton cause cracking?

Central Hampshire is chalk, while the south around Portsmouth, Southampton and the New Forest fringe and the north-east around Farnborough sit on London Clay, Reading Beds and other clays and sands. The clay areas see seasonal movement near trees. Only an investigation can say why a particular building has moved.

Why is my floor bouncy?

A bouncy floor usually means the joists are deflecting too much, often because they span too far, have lost their strutting or have been weakened by notches. It rarely means imminent failure, but it is worth checking, especially if the bounce appeared after work in the room.

Can floor joists be repaired without taking up the whole floor?

Yes, in most cases only the boards over the affected joists need lifting, and three or four boards are often enough to sister a joist or splice a rotten end. Widespread rot is the exception, because the whole floor must come up to remove the decay.

More repairs we carry out in Alton

Floor joist repairs near Alton

Each joist, sleeper wall and air brick at your Alton property is itemised in the written quote, then fixed in price once the repair is specified.