By XAVIER SMERDON
WESTERN suburbs residents buying or building a new home have been warned about the risks of their house potentially falling down around them.
Noel Spooner from Werribee built his dream house in 2008 but because it was built on a “waffle slab” foundation, the house is now twisting and cracking as the soil moves.
“This was our dream house, it was supposed to be the last house we would ever live in,” Mr Spooner told Star.
“The movements were evident since day one and now we can’t even close a door in the place because all the frames have shifted.”
Commercial Litigation lawyer Robert Auricchio from Slater & Gordon said that the firm had been contacted by a number of home owners whose homes were becoming distorted as the waffle slabs underneath the house moved with the soil.
The waffle slabs concerned are designed as a concrete grid, with polystyrene cubes inserted into the spaces left by the concrete lining.
Mr Spooner is considering legal action against the company that built his house but said that was a last resort.
“We’re still negotiating with the builder,” he said.
