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Memo to Dan Mathews <br />Red Canyon Mine Structure Examination <br />page 3 <br />(3) The minor repetitive drywall cracking may be the result of cyclic heaving and collapse of <br />the foundational level bearing wall, riding on the slab-on-grade. As an alternative the <br />cracking may result from roof beam deflection due to wind lift or snow loading. While <br />cosmetically displeasing, none of the cracking appears significant enough to be <br />structurally threatening. Flexible taping and patching systems are available, which should <br />remove the necessity for repetitive crack repair. <br />None of the distress I observed at the Hudson residence appeared symptomatic of ground <br />subsidence phenomena. <br />The Truitt Structure <br />As I mentioned in my earlier memo, my geotechnical experience with log structures is limited. <br />suspect that the mechanical characteristics of log strucwres are significantly different than those <br />of conventional frame and drywall structures. For this reason I concentrated my field <br />examination on the more conventional aspects of the Truitt residence. <br />If ground subsidence caused by underground mine workings impacts a structure, it must pass <br />through the structure's foundation before it can impact the upper stories. The Truitt log home is <br />constructed upon a conventional concrete foundation. The concrete foundation of the Truitt <br />residence is cosmetically faced with artificial rock, pointed with conventional sand mortar. <br />Mortar pointing is extremely fragile, and commonly exhibits significant response to any major <br />strain due to either subsidence or shrink/swell soil and bedrock phenomena. The mortar pointing <br />of the Truitt foundation demonstrates little, if any, distress. This suggest that little strain is being <br />transmitted from the subsoil through the foundation walls [o the superstructure. I did point out to <br />Mr. Ttvi[t [hat portions of the cosmetic rock and mortar system were never completed. Spaces <br />exist between the top of the facing and the bottom of [he log structure, and between the bottom of <br />the facing and the concrete which were never mortared or sealed. I suspect [his could allow <br />moisture invasion which might deteriorate the finish system. I suspect a contractor familiar with <br />this finish system could provide appropriate remedial advice. <br />As in the case of the Hudson residence, the Truitt residence is founded on colluvial soils of the <br />Williams Fork formation, with entrained erratic basaltic boulders weathered from the cap rock of <br />nearby Grand Mesa. Maturity of the Truitt landscaping made it more difficult to observe soils <br />immediately adjacent to the structure. However, the predominantly clay to silt soils exposed fifty <br />feet from the structure evidence "pop-corning", indicative of swell-shrinkage potential. The <br />foundation appears to have been placed on a concrete slab-on-grade. Within the basement, the <br />concrete slab-on-grade floor of the basement level shows some non-offset micro cracking. <br />Hairline cracking in the basement floor suggest a slight opening resulting from a slightly convex <br />