Weepholes vs mortar deterioration?

lukazi · May 10, 2024 9:08 pm

Hi guys,

We recently purchased a villa and B&P inspector said how mortar between bricks has deteriorated and we need to repoint it. He marked this as a major structural defect. Along one side of the house (10m long) there is a gap between each brick in the first row of bricks. See some pictures below.

I have contacted a couple of bricklayers and they said how this is not a problem. Could someone please confirm whether this is ok? Are these gaps weepholes or deteriorated mortar?

Also, is it ok that these gaps are so close to the soil?

Thanks!

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lukazi · May 10, 2024 9:11 pm

One more pic.

https://ibb.co/MR01KJS

SaveH2O · May 11, 2024 9:05 am

They do strange things in the west...like covering their weep holes with soil. Plenty of posts on H1 about that one.

The gaps look too smooth to be deteriorated mortar and why only in those spaces??? Also, weep holes shouldn't be 1 brick apart but again, it is WA.

Will wait with high interest to see if an opinion comes from someone in the Wild West on this one.

lukazi · May 11, 2024 10:29 am

SaveH2O

They do strange things in the west...like covering their weep holes with soil. Plenty of posts on H1 about that one.

The gaps look too smooth to be deteriorated mortar and why only in those spaces??? Also, weep holes shouldn't be 1 brick apart but again, it is WA.

Will wait with high interest to see if an opinion comes from someone in the Wild West on this one.

Thanks so much! Is this a risk for termite infection (proximity of soil to weepholes)? The house is 40 yrs old and it passed termite inspection 6 mnths ago. Not sure if I need to get it inspected for termites again or do anything else in regards to it.

As per the picture below, the south elevation of the house has weepholes that are covered by bricks. Any issues here?

https://ibb.co/Rz31Hsm

Lastly, the whole west side of the house doesn't have any weep holes, as per the picture below. Any issues here?

https://ibb.co/Rz31Hsm

The b&p inspection was recently completed and no issues were noted about any of this.

SaveH2O · May 11, 2024 10:41 am

The paving covering most of the weep holes would be a huge red flag in the other States but it's not uncommon in the west for reasons I have never understood as it is not compliant with the building codes that require a minimum 150mm space between the bottom of the weep hole and the unfinished ground level. Do you have wooden frames?

I am really looking forward to input from a credentialled building person from the west on this one.

lukazi · May 11, 2024 11:14 am

SaveH2O

The paving covering most of the weep holes would be a huge red flag in the other States but it's not uncommon in the west for reasons I have never understood as it is not compliant with the building codes that require a minimum 150mm space between the bottom of the weep hole and the unfinished ground level. Do you have wooden frames?

I am really looking forward to input from a credentialled building person from the west on this one.

Sorry what do you mean by wooden frames? The house has double brick walls and tile roof (jarrah frame in the roof).

Who would be the WA expert on this forum?

lukazi · May 11, 2024 12:29 pm

SaveH2O

The paving covering most of the weep holes would be a huge red flag in the other States but it's not uncommon in the west for reasons I have never understood as it is not compliant with the building codes that require a minimum 150mm space between the bottom of the weep hole and the unfinished ground level. Do you have wooden frames?

I am really looking forward to input from a credentialled building person from the west on this one.

Did this standard apply (150mm) 40 yrs ago?

chippy · May 11, 2024 1:30 pm

Nothing to see here, move along.
Only joking. What you have is standard build in WA.
The gaps are definitely weep holes and not fretted mortar, although I must admit they have put in a lot of weep holes for some reason.
WA (Perth coastal plain) has the advantage of being built on sand so drainage is not an issue unlike much of the east coast that is built on clay. The outer bricks will sit 2 courses below the internal floor height and the side of the slab is parged to prevent damp penetration. Any water that may end up in the cavity will drain out of a weep holes at footing level and the sand next to the slab is not reactive so there is no issues in that regard.
Just about the entire housing stock in Perth is built like this and it is not an issue. The fact that your unit is 40 years old and doesn't show any moisture issues speaks to the fact that it's fine
The biggest issue in Perth builds as far as I'm concerned has been the poor waterproofing if wet areas. Many older places if you check the wall on the back side of the shower will show water damage due to in adequate or failed waterproofing.
If the bathroom has been renovated hopefully that has been rectified.

lukazi · May 11, 2024 2:27 pm

chippy

Nothing to see here, move along.
Only joking. What you have is standard build in WA.
The gaps are definitely weep holes and not fretted mortar, although I must admit they have put in a lot of weep holes for some reason.
WA (Perth coastal plain) has the advantage of being built on sand so drainage is not an issue unlike much of the east coast that is built on clay. The outer bricks will sit 2 courses below the internal floor height and the side of the slab is parged to prevent damp penetration. Any water that may end up in the cavity will drain out of a weep holes at footing level and the sand next to the slab is not reactive so there is no issues in that regard.
Just about the entire housing stock in Perth is built like this and it is not an issue. The fact that your unit is 40 years old and doesn't show any moisture issues speaks to the fact that it's fine
The biggest issue in Perth builds as far as I'm concerned has been the poor waterproofing if wet areas. Many older places if you check the wall on the back side of the shower will show water damage due to in adequate or failed waterproofing.
If the bathroom has been renovated hopefully that has been rectified.

Amazing, you have definitely put my mind at ease, so thank you for that!

With weep holes being in contact with soil, is this an issue when it comes to termites? Anything in particular I need to do here?

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