Damaged Driveway Pavers
Damaged Driveway Pavers is a moderate-severity soil & foundation defect SURE inspectors have documented across 7 inspection reports.
Causes
- Builder did not make allowances for shrinkage or general movement (e.g., missing slip joints)
- Soil movement due to changes in moisture content (e.g., garden watering, drainage problems)
- Builder not making allowances for shrinkage or general movement
- Soil movement due to changes in moisture content
- Stress due to trees planted too close to paving
Symptoms to look for
- Relative surface level difference of adjacent paving elements exceeding 5mm
- Stepping (relative surface level of adjacent paving elements exceeding 5mm)
- Subsidence, heave, or slump under a 3m long straight edge exceeding 15mm
- Heave or slump (exceeding 15mm under 3m long straight edge)
- Visible cracks in concrete paving exceeding 1.5mm width
Remedies
- Assess and address underlying causes such as drainage issues or soil movement
- Engage a qualified trades person for further assessment and recommendations.
- Ensure proper allowances for concrete movement are incorporated
- Rectify if limits in the table are exceeded
- Assess cracking against AS 3727 Table 1.01
Worth asking our inspector about this specifically.
This is common across Perth stock and usually fixable without drama, but the scope of the fix varies. Every SURE inspection includes 12 months of free advice. Call out the defect by name and we check for it directly.
Curated entries in Soil & foundation
- Curated 1–4/5Trees in Close Proximity to Dwelling
Large trees within the foraging radius of the dwelling - typically any tree within 3 m for small species, or within 10 m for large eucalypts - introduce two distinct risks: root-driven soil moisture fluctuation that causes differential footing movement on reactive clay, and a direct termite foraging corridor between a timber food source in the crown or root system and the building structure. Neither defect is always present, but the proximity constitutes a conducive condition that warrants ongoing monitoring.
- Curated 2–5/5Reactive Clay Soil Movement Affecting Foundation
Seasonal expansion and contraction of reactive clay soils causing cyclical foundation movement, wall cracking, and floor level changes. Prevalent in Sydney Western Suburbs and some Perth clay zones. Severity depends on soil class (H, H1, H2, E) and footing design adequacy.