Totton · Hampshire
Floor joist repairs in Totton
If a plumber or electrician has recently had the boards up at your Totton home, the joists they worked around are worth a look. Deep notches and holes in the wrong place weaken joists quickly, and sistering them is usually a short, tidy job.
Guide price from£280per joist inc VAT
- Postcodes
- SO40
- Population
- about 34,000
- Area
- Hampshire
- Pricing region
- South East
Is Hampshire prone to ground movement?
We cover Totton and its postcode districts SO40, part of Hampshire, with a population of roughly 34,000. We also take enquiries from nearby Southampton (4 miles), Romsey (5 miles) and Hythe (6 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. Typical buildings in Hampshire: Victorian terraces in Portsmouth and Southampton, 1930s semis, and large post-war and new-build estates.
Which repair method suits a home in Totton?
Sleeper walls and ventilation
Settled or damp sleeper walls are rebuilt on a sound base with a damp-proof course under new timber plates. Blocked air bricks are cleared, extra ones added where the void has dead spots, and soil or paving heaped against the outside wall is lowered.
Best for: Damp ground floor voids or joists on poor supports
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
What happens when we carry out floor joist repairs in Totton?
Photos and a call
Send photos of the dip or soft area, the outside wall at ground level and any air bricks. A short call about when it started, and any recent plumbing or heating work, tells us whether the problem is local or widespread.
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.
Relay and ventilate
Boards are relaid or replaced, skirting refitted and air bricks cleared or added outside. We point out anything that would let damp back in, such as soil heaped against the wall, so the repair lasts.
Signs you may need floor joist repairs
- Ceiling cracks below that follow the line of the joists
- A musty smell, or fungal strands showing between the boards
- Floor dipping towards an outside wall or in the middle of the room
How much will floor joist repairs cost in Totton?
Prices in Totton are worked out on South East rates. They include VAT and are a starting point: access, the extent of the damage and whether an engineer or building control is involved all move the figure.
| 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 |
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.
Floor joist repairs in Totton: questions and answers
What is the price of floor joist repairs in Totton?
Guide prices for floor joist repairs in Totton 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 Totton?
Yes. We take enquiries from across Totton, including SO40, and from nearby places such as Southampton and Romsey. Send photos for a free initial view and we will tell you what happens next.
Does the ground around Totton 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.
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.
Do I need building control for floor joist repairs?
Usually not for like-for-like repairs to a few joists, but replacing a whole floor structure can be building work. In Scotland that generally needs a building warrant, and in Northern Ireland council building control applies. We deal with building control where the work needs it.
More repairs we carry out in Totton
- Boundary and garden wall repairs
- Wall tie replacement
- Structural crack repairs
- Bowing wall repairs
- Roof structure repairs
Floor joist repairs near Totton
Each joist, sleeper wall and air brick at your Totton property is itemised in the written quote, then fixed in price once the repair is specified.