Wall ties and cavity insulation
A grid of filled holes matches the look of a wall-tie replacement. Has the survey tested the ties that were put in?
No. A grid of filled holes that matches the look of a wall-tie replacement is not a test of the ties that were put in. The survey has recorded the pattern. It has not found the new ties in the cavity, pulled one, or checked their length and embedment. Replacement work often leaves a grid of filled holes on the outer leaf. That appearance is what was seen. A test of the ties inside is a different visit, and this inspection did not make it. The holes are not a pass, and they are not a failure.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
New cavity ties are commonly installed to a spacing and the drill holes are then filled, so a regular grid is the usual scar. The scar does not show whether the tie reached both leaves, whether the fixing held, or whether the old ties were isolated. A home survey does not pull-test ironmongery it cannot see. If a guarantee exists, it is a paper about a contractor's work, not a result of this visit.
Ask the surveyor to confirm no tie was tested and that the note is the look of the grid. Ask the solicitor whether any guarantee or specification names this elevation and these holes. Do not tell a lender the ties have been certified by the home survey. If you need the new ties checked, that is a specialist inspection with access to test them, not a harder reading of the filled holes.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you only record a grid that looks like a tie replacement?
- Was any new tie tested, seen in the cavity, or pull-checked?
- Are you leaving a pass or a fail out of this note?
What are the typical next steps?
- Record the grid as the look of a tie replacement.
- Do not say the survey tested the ties that were put in.
- Ask the solicitor for any guarantee that names this wall.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the holes are capped in a fresh mortar, were the ties proved?
No. Fresh caps show the holes were filled, perhaps recently. They do not show the tie, its length or its hold. The survey matched a look. It did not test the ties that were put in. That is as far as the recorded facts about the tie-replacement grid can be taken.
Does an old crack still open beside the grid mean the new ties failed?
Not by itself. An open crack beside a grid is a crack the survey can describe. It is not a pull-test. Failure of the new ties has not been shown, and success has not been shown either. The report leaves the tie-replacement grid where it is, without a second finding.