Bicester · Oxfordshire
Wall tie replacement in Bicester
On exposed sites around Bicester, the elevation facing the weather often loses its wall ties first. Remedial stainless ties reconnect the two leaves, and the old ties are isolated or removed where they are still pushing the brickwork apart.
Guide price from£2,000per house inc VAT
- Postcodes
- OX6, OX26
- Population
- about 34,000
- Area
- Oxfordshire
- Pricing region
- South East
What should you know about the ground under Bicester?
Postcode districts OX6, OX26 cover Bicester, a Oxfordshire town of about 34,000 people. Nearby places we cover include Oxford (11 miles), Banbury (14 miles) and Aylesbury (16 miles).
Oxfordshire 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. What you mostly find across Oxfordshire: Cotswold stone villages, Victorian terraces in Oxford and Banbury, and large post-war and new-build estates around Didcot and Bicester.
What happens when we carry out wall tie replacement in Bicester?
Tie survey
A metal detector locates the existing ties and shows their pattern. Small holes are then drilled at sample points and a borescope passed into the cavity to see the tie condition, type and embedment. The holes are made good afterwards.
Report and quote
You receive a written summary of what the survey found on each elevation, which walls need new ties, whether old ties should be isolated or removed, and a no-obligation written quote with scaffold shown separately.
Access
Ties are fitted across the whole of each affected elevation, so scaffold or a tower is usually needed above ground floor. We plan access around conservatories, extensions, neighbours’ land and any parking that must be suspended.
Signs you may need wall tie replacement
- The roof edge or verge lifting slightly above the brickwork
- Horizontal cracks along mortar joints, repeating every few brick courses
- Cracked render with a regular horizontal pattern
How much will wall tie replacement cost in Bicester?
For Bicester we use South East rates. Treat the table as a budget guide, inc VAT; the price you pay is the one on your written quote.
| Item | Guide price | Per |
|---|---|---|
| Mid-terrace houseest. | £2,000 – £3,900 | per house |
| Semi-detached house | £2,800 – £5,600 | per house |
| Detached houseest. | £3,900 – £7,850 | per house |
| Scaffolding where neededest. | £670 – £2,000 | per elevation |
Which repair method suits a home in Bicester?
Removing old ties and rebedding
On badly cracked elevations the old ties are cut out from the outer face, the joints raked and rebedded, and the brickwork repointed. It is more work than isolation but removes the source of expansion entirely. An engineer or the survey report usually specifies where this is needed.
Best for: Elevations with severe cracking or lifting
Partial rebuild of the outer leaf
If a section of the outer leaf has bulged too far to be tied back, it is carefully taken down and rebuilt with new ties built in as the work goes up. This is uncommon, and is usually limited to a gable top, a parapet or a panel under a window.
Best for: Outer leaf too distorted to tie back safely
Rules for wall tie replacement 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.
Wall tie replacement in Bicester: questions and answers
What is the price of wall tie replacement in Bicester?
Guide prices for wall tie replacement in Bicester start from about £2,000 per house, 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 wall tie replacement in Bicester?
We do. Bicester and the surrounding area are covered, including nearby Oxford and Banbury. A free initial assessment from your photos is the first step.
Does the ground around Bicester cause cracking?
Oxfordshire's vales sit on Oxford, Kimmeridge and Gault Clays, among the more shrinkage-prone clays in England, with Cotswold limestone in the north-west and chalk downs in the south. Only an investigation can say why a particular building has moved.
How do I know if my wall ties have failed?
The clearest sign is horizontal cracking in the mortar joints repeating every few courses, often with a bulge or a lifted roofline. Wire ties can fail with no cracking at all, so a tie survey with a metal detector and borescope is the only reliable check.
Can wall ties be replaced on a rendered house?
Yes, new ties can be fitted through render, with each drill hole made good afterwards. The repairs can show on painted render, so redecoration of the affected elevation is often worth including. Render can also hide the cracking pattern, so a survey matters more.
More repairs we carry out in Bicester
- Retaining wall repairs
- Boundary and garden wall repairs
- Gable end wall repairs
- Concrete repairs
- Subsidence insurance claim repairs
Wall tie replacement near Bicester
Send photos of any horizontal cracking at your Bicester property and we will tell you whether a wall tie survey looks worthwhile.