I wasn’t home when the inspector came. Soule gave him the tour for me. She said he walked around the house and took a look at every detail. He even pointed out things we hadn’t particularly associated with what we now thought of as “the sinkhole.” I really had thought the cracks in my tile were due to the previous owner’s selection. I hate those tiles, white with black grout – I live on the grid for sure.
The leak that had just started in “The Redlands” room was defiantly sinkhole damage he said. (All the rooms in my house are named after parts of Florida which somehow seems even more suitable since it is suffering from this very Florida event) He pointed out how the walls were separating from the ceiling. (Yes, I did say that. The walls are separating from the ceiling.) That crack we just noticed on the outside of the garage wall – not good the inspector said.
While taking pictures of the driveway, the cracks and change in level – another sure sign of a sinkhole according to the inspector – he was pointing out that my neighbor’s drive way was worse. Looking in that direction caused him to see beyond my privacy fence at the wall of my neighbor’s house. This would be the wall full of crazy cracks and missing a chunk about 2 feet by 10 inches and 3 inches deep. (No you can’t see in the house yet, but I’ve told Soule when I touch that wall I feel like a good shove from little ‘ole me would take it down.) (The neighbor who lives like I do, in a concrete house, had told me it was termite damage when I noticed it. Huh?) Standing there on my drive way looking at the home next door the Insurance Man said to Soule, “Well I usually don’t go looking for work but that’s pretty obvious.” He took some shots from my yard over to the neighbors. My western wall is about 14 feet from her easternmost wall, the wall that stopped the inspector dead in his tracks.
He left giving the verdict that he was reporting it to the insurance company as a for sure sinkhole.
FYI I do live a block away from a reservoir pond where little gators have been known to come and go – kinda passing through. (The pond, or Lake Euclid, as it’s called on the map, connects to several large water pipes going off in different directions. The neighbors to the back of my house face it.) I’ve had a few turtles stop in my koi pool for a month or so before moving on to wherever wandering turtles go. Are they journeying to the reservoir or away from the reservoir? They say turtles can smell water.
With so much Florida karma happening maybe I should be watching the koi pool for alligators?
I am a Geologist. I have worked in geotechnical and environmental engineering for over 10 years and have done 100s of sinkhole evaluations during my career.
I am absolutely stunned to hear that he determined it to be a sinkhole without any sort of soil investigation? He just walked around and viewed the damage and made the determination? There are other possible causes of sinking (expansive clays, decaying peat, etc…)
This guy doesnt have a clue. You need to drill soil borings in order to make that determination. The data from the borings is also necessary for recommending repair options.
As I sit here today I can really understand what you are saying.
Which of course is why there is an issue as to whether I have a sinkhole or not.
Also explains why the lawyer’s sent engineers to drill in a very different location then the insurance company’s fellas did. (And in my case that would be the side of the yard with the 6″ incline.)
Thank you very much for reading and caring enough to respond.
Please feel free to bring in any other information you’d like to share.