HEAVE help 😊

[1j1o1n1o1]

Evening all! 
 

ive been reading through a fair bit of the forum today. To give context I’ve just brought this lovely house in Nottingham, hucknall to be exact so ng15. 
 

it has some massive oak trees in the garden, one with a TPO which is to the front on the road and one to the rear of the house. Both are really mature however they are damaging the house, there is visible subsidence from them both. We also believe the drainage has been impacted by their roots. I’ve spoken to the council and have already got a chartered surveyor to provide me with the report and letter needed to apply for the one with the TPO to be cut down. I just wondered Is there anything else I will need to do as part of the planning application?

with the trees being that close to the house the surveyor mentioned that heave could occur unless they are cut down in stages etc. What does that actually look like and how can it be done. I mentioned it to a guy I use to cut trees down and he brushed it off. 
 

pics attached for info 😊

 

you can clearly see the one at the front with its canopy covering the road, the one at the rear is literally 2 meters away the last 2 photos show that sort of. 

 

[monkeybusiness]

A shame to take those down - nice trees that look to add a great deal to the street-scene…

I bet that was a cheap house - how bad is the subsidence (nothing obvious in the pics)?

If you take those down and they have been responsible for subsidence then there is a very good chance that the ground will re-wet over time and possibly lead to heave. 
Not a great deal you can do about it other than install an engineered solution (better footings not affected by subsidence/heave) - if you are going down that road anyway then you could save yourself the expense of removing the trees in the first place. 

[Mick Dempsey]

First thing to ascertain is the soil type.

[Mark J]

Have you informed your house insurers of your concerns? 

It is unlikely that you will get consent to remove an apparently healthy TPO'd oak(s) without proof that they are the cause of suspected subsidence. The investigations needed to determine subsidence and any tree/building/drainage works which might arise from them will cost far more than paying the excess on your insurance (usually about 1K). 

Heave is only a consideration when trees predate the house and/or parts of the house. 
Phased reductions will do nothing to mitigate the risk of heave.
 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Mark J

[tree77]

10 hours ago, Mark J said:

Have you informed your house insurers of your concerns? 

It is unlikely that you will get consent to remove an apparently healthy TPO'd oak(s) without proof that they are the cause of suspected subsidence. The investigations needed to determine subsidence and any tree/building/drainage works which might arise from them will cost far more than paying the excess on your insurance (usually about 1K). 

Heave is only a consideration when trees predate the house and/or parts of the house. 
Phased reductions will do nothing to mitigate the risk of heave.
 

Yep, would be best to go though your home insurance provider as you need to provide supporting evidence that the damage is vegetative Subsidence.

 

Paying for a tree report isn't going help you much

[Mark Bolam]

The insurance provider will always blame the trees, and come up with as much shite as the surveyor has done.

MB, Mick and Mark J are spot on.

[tree77]

20 minutes ago, Mark Bolam said:

The insurance provider will always blame the trees, and come up with as much shite as the surveyor has done.

MB, Mick and Mark J are spot 

Unfortunately if the tree owner is looking to removed the tree as its causing subsidence the local authority will need supporting evidence to confirm this, I'm sure they could  instruct and pay for the reports/investigations etc or go just  through your home insurance.

 

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

On 18/11/2021 at 16:33, 1j1o1n1o1 said:

Evening all! 
 

ive been reading through a fair bit of the forum today. To give context I’ve just brought this lovely house in Nottingham, hucknall to be exact so ng15. 
 

it has some massive oak trees in the garden, one with a TPO which is to the front on the road and one to the rear of the house. Both are really mature however they are damaging the house, there is visible subsidence from them both. We also believe the drainage has been impacted by their roots. I’ve spoken to the council and have already got a chartered surveyor to provide me with the report and letter needed to apply for the one with the TPO to be cut down. I just wondered Is there anything else I will need to do as part of the planning application?

with the trees being that close to the house the surveyor mentioned that heave could occur unless they are cut down in stages etc. What does that actually look like and how can it be done. I mentioned it to a guy I use to cut trees down and he brushed it off. 
 

pics attached for info 😊

 

you can clearly see the one at the front with its canopy covering the road, the one at the rear is literally 2 meters away the last 2 photos show that sort of. 

 

How many houses do you own?

 

Must be 100’s or even 1000’s?

 

Can’t be just the 1 surely?

 

An odd question you might think - given the topic of discussion. 
 

Reason I ask is that I can only imagine someone that buys and sells 1000s of houses as an everyday, routine, Laissez-faire, sort of process might fail to notice the public visual amenity, exceptional presence and ‘qualities’ of a significant tree - subject to a TPO - in their front garden. 
 

It’s just too unimaginable a state of carelessness to even contemplate such an oversight might have been made by someone (if like the majority of the UK) engaged in probably the largest single purchase of their life. 
 

Words fail me...  (not really, it’s just that they are not allowed 🚫)

[Mick Dempsey]

Jesus, he’s off and running.

Edited November 19, 2021 by Mick Dempsey

[Mark Bolam]

19 minutes ago, tree77 said:

Unfortunately if the tree owner is looking to removed the tree as its causing subsidence the local authority will need supporting evidence to confirm this, I'm sure they could  instruct and pay for the reports/investigations etc or go just  through your home insurance.

 

With you now mate.