Houses built for a growing suburb

In the years after the Second World War, Sunshine and the suburbs around it grew fast. Families moved in to work at the factories, and builders put up modest weatherboard homes as quickly as they could. The same story played out in Braybrook, Albion, St Albans, Ardeer and Altona North.

Most of those homes were built on timber stumps. Many still are. After seventy-odd years in reactive basalt clay, most of those stumps have given about all they have to give. Here are the signs to watch for.

The floor leans one way

A noticeable lean is the most common sign. Put a marble on the floor, or just notice the way your feet feel walking down the hallway. In postwar weatherboards, the lean often runs toward the shaded side of the house, where the ground stays damp longer and stumps rot faster.

Doors that will not behave

Doors that swing open or closed on their own, rub on the floor or will not latch are classic signs of a house that has moved. Windows that stick or will not close properly are another.

Cracks in plaster or fibro

Look for cracks above door frames and at the corners of windows. In homes with fibro or plaster linings, sheets can crack along joints. Cornices may pull away from the ceiling.

Soft spots underfoot

Bathrooms and laundries in older homes often had small leaks for years before anyone noticed. That water rots the stumps and bearers underneath, and the floor goes soft or spongy.

A sagging addition

Many postwar homes in the west have been added to over the years: a rear room, a sleepout or an enclosed verandah. These were often built on lighter stumps than the original house. If the floor drops as you walk into the addition, the stumps under it may have sunk.

Gaps under skirting boards

When a floor drops, the skirting boards stay attached to the wall and a gap opens underneath. A coin-sized gap along part of a room is a common sign.

What you see under the house

Shine a torch through a vent or lift the hatch, without crawling anywhere unsafe, and check for:

Stumps leaning or out of line.
Rot at ground level, where the timber looks soft or crumbly.
Bricks, pavers or offcuts wedged under bearers.
Wet or pooling ground.
Bearers that sag between stumps.

Why it happens here

Two things combine in the west. First, the basalt clay is highly reactive, swelling in winter and shrinking in summer, so stumps are pushed and pulled every year. Second, many postwar stumps were simple timber posts that were never expected to last this long. Put those together and it is no surprise so many houses now need reblocking.

Do not confuse these with stump problems

Some things look like stump trouble but are not:

A single crack above one door after a hot week can just be the frame drying out.
A sticking window in winter may simply be swollen timber.
A soft board in one spot could be a split floorboard rather than anything underneath.
Roof spread, where an old roof frame pushes the top of the walls outward, can crack cornices on its own.

That is why we look at the pattern as a whole and measure, rather than reading too much into one symptom.

Additions, verandahs and carports

Postwar homes in Sunshine and St Albans often have a carport or verandah roof tied into the house. If the stumps under that side drop, the attached roof can drag on the frame and add to the cracking. During a reblock, we check how these structures connect so they come back into line with the house.

What to do next

One sign on its own is not always cause for alarm. Several together usually point to the stumps. The next step is an inspection. We take level readings, check the stumps and framing, and tell you whether the house needs a re-level, a partial reblock or a full reblock. Many postwar weatherboards have sound frames and plenty of life left in them once they are back on solid stumps.

Signs Your Sunshine-Era Weatherboard Needs Reblocking