2nd year Settling
Hey everyone,
First-time North Phoenix homebuyer here dealing with settlement issues on a new build completed in 2024. Multiple interior doors have shifted out of alignment and no longer lock, and we have pending drywall and window sill cracks.
An independent foundation specialist just ran an electronic manometer survey on our post-tension slab. The attached heat map shows a vertical deflection reaching down to -2.5 inches (dark red zones) in the front section of the house.
Key variables:
The Lot Profile: The area showing the worst -2.5" drop correlates perfectly with a section of the lot that was built up with an elevated mason retaining wall and a thick additional layer of sand to meet grade during site prep.
Community Context: Neighboring homes, community roads, sidewalks, and neighborhood retaining walls are showing similar cracking/shifting due to known regional expansive clay.
The Builder's Stance: The builder wants to wait until after this year's summer monsoon season ends to reassess a community-wide gameplan, arguing they want to avoid a temporary fix that settles further.
The foundation company quoted us $41k for structural polymer void-filling and 6 helical piers to stabilize the perimeter.
For the engineers and geotech experts here:
How severe is a 2.5-inch drop on a 24-month-old post-tension slab?
Doesn't this significantly surpass standard performance thresholds like L/360 or a 1% tilt limit?
Does the precise correlation with the built-up sand layer indicate a failure in the original structural fill compaction?
Is the builder's strategy to wait out the monsoons technically sound for a slab this unstable, or should I be pushing for immediate structural intervention?