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Pre-Construction
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Search Vibrationdamage.com
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To the extent possible, the safest approach to impending construction is to try to prepare for and avert any possible damage to your home or building before it occurs. This is far less time-consuming and expensive than it is to get damage costs reimbursed and carry out the repair after the damage is done. Here, you'll find some tips about how you might get ready for significant planned construction using heavy equipment in your area. The CVDG chapter, CVDG Homeowner Checklist has a highly condensed list of steps for the homeowner facing such construction or for ones already having damage. I strongly advise that you read the CVDG in its entirety, but the checklist is a handy way to help you get the needed things done quickly in an appropriate order. Contractors can find a sketch of pre-construction preparations for their own work in the CVDG chapter, Avoiding Damage. Know the Distance There is no need to be worried over every proposed or ongoing construction job in your general area. Some jobs will be sufficiently far away that the risk of damage is very low. You will need to know the distance from your home to the proposed work, to understand the damage potential. It is also essential when you talk with an attorney or correspond with us about any damage which occurs. While the distance of concern can vary, depending on many factors (see Vibration and Distance for an extensive discussion), if you are more than about 500 feet (about 150 m) away from any construction vibration source, save perhaps blasting, you are very unlikely to experience damage to your home from the construction vibration. Most construction heavy equipment-caused vibrations have very low damage probabilities at distances over 250 feet (about 75 m). Conversely, heavy equipment use within 50 feet of a timber-framed home represents a still low, but real probability of damage, increasing rapidly with decreasing distance. The Vibration and Distance chapter of the CVDG provides a graphic showing calculated "safe distances" for various standard PPV's for construction operations. These rules of thumb do not completely exclude the possibility of damage under some circumstances, since they assume typical values for the vibration attenuation in your soil and the source velocities (intensities) of the vibrations. The safe distances may need to be increased by a factor of four or more in low attenuation (i.e. damping of vibration velocity) environments like much of the U. S. state of Florida. Nonetheless, these rough rules give you a sense of whether damage is sufficiently likely to be a real concern. You can easily determine the distance from your home to the proposed work by using Ruler feature of the free program, Google Earth, or Google Maps online. If you prefer, you can also get an estimate of the distance simply by stepping off the distance from your home to the closest point of approach of the work. You should probably make multiple determinations (point of closest approach to the property, point of closest approach to the closest home wall, distance from most distant wall of home, etc.). Even if you determine that your home is further away than the guidelines given here, you may still want to proceed with some or all of the documentation steps discussed later in this chapter. Such documentation can be valuable outside of construction vibration damage issues, e.g. if you need to make an unrelated claim against your home insurance for a fire or flood damage loss. Once you have the distance, you can approximate the likely PPV of the vibration and the safe distance (to within a factor of two) using our free Vibrationdamage.com Ground Vibration PPV and Safe Distance Calculator. Check Your Home Insurance Policy Most home insurance policies include exclusions (i.e. statements of what kinds of losses the policy will not cover) for anything the insurance company deems as "earth movement". Majority opinion in the courts seems to be that general "earth movement" exclusions, as opposed to specific ones, apply only to natural events (e.g. earthquakes). Your insurance company will almost certainly deny any claim you make for vibration damage under an earth movement exclusion. See Pursuing a Claim for more on "earth movement" exclusions. Most home insurers offer coverage endorsements (additions to base policy coverage) for earth movement that you can add to your policy to protect yourself during the construction. It may be a small price to pay, relative to the cost of repairing damage yourself or suing the contractor, sponsor and your insurance company to get them to pay for the damage for which they are responsible. I suggest that homeowners facing construction in their area using heavy equipment consider carefully whether to add the "earth movement" endorsement to their homeowner's policy - for the time of the construction and a reasonable period (say, 6 months) after completion of construction. Be sure to read the endorsement carefully before you put down money to make sure that vibration damage isn't excluded in the endorsement. Such endorsements often carry large deductibles (tens of thousands of dollars), so be sure to check the deductible language in the endorsement, too. Pre-Construction Documentation of Your Home If you are aware of planned construction in your area, i.e. within about 500 feet of your home in areas of reasonably "normal" vibration attenuation, take an hour or so and document on video the pre-construction condition of every room in your house, the exterior and any other structures on the property. Narrate the video with the facts of the locations seen and whatever other information you believe is important. If you don't have a video camera or smart phone capable of video and can't easily borrow or rent one, photos can also be used for this purpose, though you will have to have an accompanying written log detailing the locations of the photos, etc. If damage occurs, these records will greatly strengthen your claim that the construction is responsible for it. This is especially important. In the event of damage to the home or building, it is a virtual certainty that experts for the opposition will allege that all the damage was "pre-existing" to the construction. In my long experience, such allegations are often made with little or no reliable supporting evidence and sometimes directly in the face of documentation to the contrary. Such a record can have the additional benefit of providing evidence of the contents of the house in case of a fire or other insured loss. Just make sure you videotape or photograph the walls, wall penetration corners, door frames and other elements of the house structure while you are also recording the contents, as these areas constitute the ones where vibration damage is most often evident. Record at the highest resolution of which your camera or video camera is capable. Once you have recorded the home condition, transfer it to DVD (if possible) and place the DVD and the original tape or photographs in a safe place outside the home, where you can get to it in time of need. Many infrastructure projects (roads, water mains, etc.) are funded by governmental entities (towns, cities, states, Federal government). These days, virtually all such projects are announced in some form on the web site of the sponsor. Large private development projects often have web sites, too. Such announcements may take the form of Request for Proposal (RFP's) and Information for Bidders (IFB) documents, public comment meeting announcements, minutes of governing body meetings, budget documents and others. You can often find what you're looking for fairly quickly just by searching the sponsor site for the name of your street and nearby streets. When you become aware of work ongoing or planned in your area, one of the first things you should do is visit the web sites of the project sponsor, the chosen contractor and any site for the project itself to find out everything you can about the project as it is intended to be done. Print the pages so that you have a permanent record, making sure that the printed pages show at least the URL of the pages being printed and the date printed.[4] Any documents offered in downloadable formats (e.g. PDF, DOC, XLS) should be saved on your computer. Information which you may need from the online site includes:
and just about anything else you can find.[5] The project contractor may later cite the availability of this information online, but will be less thrilled to talk about any examples where it violated the rules and plans laid out on the public site. If the contractor has a web site, you should find and check this out, as well. If either web site has a comment section about the project, make factual comments about any special concerns you may have and keep a hard copy of your comments. Of course, if you are litigating against those parties, say nothing whatsoever on the web sites. Using Public Information
or a potential host of other issues. If the contractor and sponsor fails to adhere to the terms of the contract, including any terms appended by reference, any claims the paid contractor might make about the innocent by-stander homeowner will pale in the light of the contract violations. The CVDG Pro chapter, Researching a Claim, has much more information about how to use information from public sources to best advantage in a damage claim. Most governmentally-supported construction projects are announced in advance.
The public is often given a chance to comment about the upcoming work, both in
writing and orally in meetings prior to start of work. Such public meetings may be videotaped; if so, make a note of it so that you can get a copy of the tape later, if necessary. Use your smart phone to take a photo of the recording setup in the context of the meeting, so you can prove recording was done later. If the meeting is not videotaped by someone else, and you have specific concerns, you may want to video the meeting yourself, unless forbidden to do so. Take written notes of the names of and topics discussed by every speaker or questioner, unless you are video or audio taping the meeting. In such a meeting, one would want to ask if any blasting is contemplated, or if vibratory compactors, pile drivers or other equipment with significant vibration potential (e.g. any equipment or operations causing ground impacts) will be used in the project. The FTA Noise and Vibration Manual indicates that such activities could be problematic in "sensitive areas".[1] If any such equipment is to be used in the project, ask for the manufacturer and model numbers of the compactors and pile drivers. This allows you to get the specifications for these pieces of heavy equipment online; just do a search for "compactor [manufacturer and model number] specifications". Pay particular attention to planned use of vibratory compactors with nominal vibration frequencies under 40 Hz and hammer (impact) pile drivers. If you have an older house with plaster-on-lath walls, a historic home[2] or any other special concerns about vibration sensitivity, you should voice such concerns specifically at public comment meetings. You could download a copy of and take with you the FTA Noise and Vibration Manual or the CVDG to bolster any objections you may have. It would also be wise to ask if any ground vibration monitoring (example setup just below) is required by the contract and set to be done in connection with the project, either prior to or during the construction. If there is no monitoring expected, ask why not. If monitoring is being done, find out when, where, by whom, and to what purpose. Your goal here is to learn whether any such monitoring will be done meaningfully and in accord with industry standards and whether the information gained will be made accessible to the public.
You should inquire about what kind of "pre-construction surveys"[3] are required or expected as part of the contract and how they will be done. If interior video or photos of residences are planned, make sure you exercise some control over the visit conditions and that you get copies of the video and/or photos generated as a condition of interior access for pre-construction surveys. See our Conditions Documents (CVDG Pro) page for some example documents you can use to control such visits. Also find out the name of the responsible person at the sponsor for the upcoming work. The goal here is not to find out how to file a claim, but to determine who to contact in the event of problems. If there are problems, you will not want to spend hours on hold waiting for someone willing to admit some responsibility. Get full contact information for the responsible person. Find out what the process is for making any complaints or comments about the work after it starts. Learn how the sponsor intends to supervise the work. Will there be an occasional "look-see" or will someone representing the sponsor visit the site(s) everyday? The better the supervision, the more likely it is that things will be done correctly, without damage. There is no guarantee that the sponsor will pay any attention to your concerns, no matter how many you raise. However, your position will be strengthened immensely in a damage situation, if you have a record of voicing concerns/objections at public comment meetings. Ask whether any "experimental" or non-standard procedures will be used in the work. When faced with indisputable vibration monitoring evidence at trial that the contractor had exceeded virtually all U.S. construction vibration standards in a paving operation, one of its executives put forward the previously completely unheard argument that the paving operations in question were "experimental". If anything unusual is going to be done, you need to know about it in advance.
While individual entities will have their own contract provisions, many will incorporate by reference the Standard General Conditions of the Construction Contract of the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee. This is a widely used boilerplate document which has many provisions and lays out many responsibilities for the contractor, including ones for adjacent property protection. You have to pay to get a copy, but, because so many contracts incorporate it, you can usually find a copy for free on the Internet as part of a published contract, if you search for it by name. It would be useful to know if this has been made a part of the contract for the proposed construction; if so, you should get a copy of the whole contract, including addenda and attachments. You might also want to find out how much insurance coverage the contractor is carrying for the job and the contact name and number at the insurer for the contractor. Research the Contractor If you are particularly concerned, it would be desirable to spend a little time on the Internet digging around to find out what you can about the contractor's record (see Researching a Claim in the CVDG Pro for much more information on finding and using such information) before the job start. If it has worrisome aspects (lawsuits, records of complaints, etc.), bring copies and broach the subject at the comment meeting. Don't expect the contractor to admit openly anything unfavorable in its record, so take copies of any documents you find with you. The CVDG Pro page, Researching a Claim, has more information on how to find out about a contractor's record in previous jobs. Section 106 Review for Impact on Historic Structures Over a million historic structures and locales exist all over the United States. Projects done by agencies of the U.S. Federal government, funded with Federal money, or requiring Federal permits usually require a pre-construction review of potential impacts on historic structures under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended in 1992. Any properties likely to be affected by a proposed construction project, whether in the 90,000 individual locations listed in the National Register of Historic Places, in the one million general locales included in the Register,[7] or even an unlisted site which could qualify for inclusion in the Register, can trigger the Section 106 review. The regulations, specifying actions Federal (and local) agencies must take to meet their legal obligations, are published in the Code of Federal Regulations at 36 CFR Part 800, “Protection of Historic Properties." Since historic structures require lower vibration PPV limits (see Vibration and Damage and Vibration and Distance for more information) than structures of more modern construction, protection of historic structures can cause a project to be done in a much more careful manner than non-historic structures would require. Thus, requesting a Section 106 review can be a valuable way to assure that damage isn't done in the project to any of the surrounding, perhaps non-historic, structures. It can also be used as a way to force more thorough consideration of the costs and benefits of a proposed project. In some cases, you may be able to make changes in the way the project is done, or even stop it for a while, by requesting a Section 106 review. Requests for Section 106 reviews are usually made through your state or tribal historic preservation officer.
Many states and municipalities have their own laws and ordinances relevant to historic preservation; many are patterned after the Federal ones. The local ones may be a quicker source of help than the Federal laws and regulations. Proper Perspective Keep in mind as you make your inquiries that no damage has been done to you or your property yet and none may ever be done. Make sure your tone is friendly and non-challenging, even if you have to be persistent in getting your questions answered. Make it clear that you are just trying to understand what will be done and what consequences can be expected from the work. Chances are that the contractor and the sponsoring entity would like to do a professional and timely job, while taking into account the rights and comfort of homeowners. Of course, once construction starts, your hard work in getting your questions answered may come to nothing. The contractor might be determined to cut corners, ignoring the people affected by the work. At the very least, you will have documented things in case you have to get work stopped or moved - or if damage occurs.
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E-mail to drzeigler@vibrationdamage.com or send online questions or comments about Vibrationdamage.com.
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Often, contractors will attempt to blame the homeowner - for failure to attend public meetings or to express concern about the project - as a means
of shifting some of the responsibility for damage to the homeowner. All this project-related information provides a defense for you against such spurious charges in the event that damage is done. The documentation might show that the contractor or the public sponsor of the work did not:
Of course, you will not know in advance if you
will have any damage, but you would be well-advised to attend such meetings, voice
concerns and ask questions related to the vibration potential of proposed
work. These meetings are announced in the legal section of the newspaper and may
also be publicized by flyers or on the web site of the sponsoring entity. 
To the extent possible, you will also want to ask about the requirements
of the construction contract, including expected dates and times of work,
whether work will be done on weekends, whether vibration monitoring is required, traffic control measures, etc. In most cases, the construction contract will
already have been let; the winning contractor bidder may be represented at the meeting.
