Questions after getting a Survey done on a House

EmoCourt

Hi folks, I've received the results of an engineers survey on a house, which has brought back some points of concern for me.

I intend to talk to the engineer to get some more details on his findings, but i wanted to get peoples thoughts on the following:

1) Engineer wasn't able to ascertain the existence of felt or plastic membrane under the roof tiles because rafters have been clad with timber planking. Engineer noted 'minor evidence of moisture penetration at certain locations' of the attic rafters.
- Does anyone know what the chances are of a late-1950's house not having such a membrane? Would his recording on minor moisture penetration in the roof beams be out of the ordinary? The rest of the house looks solidly built, but given the age of the house i'm wondering if a waterproof membrane was a standard back then... or perhaps it was, and some of it is just leaking?

2) Some water staining on a portion of the original oak floors (under carpet) in one room was noted. This is a suspended timber floor throughout the house, with no insulation. Engineer noted increased moisture reading here, and thinks a recent or ongoing leak might be causing this. What do you think could have caused this leak if there's no evidence of it from the ceiling? Could it be evidence of rotting joists underneath? Would you recommend the floors need to be lifted here to investigate further?

3) Is it possible to lift and insulate the solid floors without having to replace them completely? or would they be damaged during the lift.

4) Engineer noted 'minor settlement cracks' on an external wall. He suggested these are historical cracks, but said they'd have to be monitored for 6-12 months to offer an opinion on whether movement is ongoing. What's the difference between a settlement crack and subsidence? How can we know if this is a structural issue based on the above findings? Waiting 6-12 months isn't an option, because it's not our house


any feedback is much appreciated!

godtabh

In relation to Item 4 if its a 1950s houses what ever settlement was going to happen has happened unless there has been recent work carried out.

EmoCourt

In relation to Item 4 if its a 1950s houses what ever settlement was going to happen has happened unless there has been recent work carried out.

No sign of work carried out where the cracks appear, but there has been some re-configuring of the house over the years, including a new water tank installed in the attic, near/above where the wall cracks have been noted. Also, a new internal wall was built at one stage, maybe 40 or 50 years ago, to add an extra room inside the house, and a dreadful rear extension of the same vintage, but the extension is nowhere near the cracks.