From the first day, the cracks in the house, especially at the rear concerned me. Several builders and architects looked. What was obvious was that at some point in the past, most if not all the lintels at the back received curious treatment.

A slice of the lintel was removed to reinforce it with metal and hid behind cement/concrete. Over the years the metal corroded with water freezing and melting, breaking off the cement/concrete.

Finally, Mark and his colleagues had a closer look and recommended replacing just one of the lintels. Why? The crack meant that nothing was preventing the lintel from falling except the window frame.