Displaced Concrete Wall Crack, Bournemouth

The problem

A commercial client had a concrete wall with a crack roughly 15–20mm wide where one side had moved forward slightly relative to the other — genuine structural displacement. The client arrived with written repair instructions from a surveyor specifying the method of repair.

The cause

One side of the wall moving forward relative to the other meant the crack wasn’t a simple surface split. The wall itself had shifted, and the repair needed to physically reconnect both sides and restore the structural bond across the break.

What we did

1. Slot cutting. Slots were cut into the concrete wall across the crack at the correct spacing and depth to accept the helical bars.
2. Bar installation. Four 6mm stainless steel helical bars, each 1 metre in length, were installed across the crack. Stainless steel was specified for strength and longevity.
3. Two-part masonry resin. A two-part masonry resin was used to bond the bars in place and fill the crack — chosen over cementitious grout for its strength and durability in concrete.
4. Making good. The repair was made good with a sand and cement render mix to restore the wall face.

The result

Completed by one person in a single day. The repair fulfilled the surveyor’s instructions and once rendered and finished is not visible. Two-part masonry resin bonded with stainless steel bars gives a repair that will outlast the surrounding material — the right specification when a commercial client needs confidence in the longevity of the work.