If you notice a small crack in your foundations or basement wall it could be a sign of potential problems and even something little more than a hairline crack could be a warning sign that should certainly be heeded if you want to avoid some potentially eye-watering bills further down the road.
The warning signs
All homeowners should work on the principle that spotting and acting upon any early-warning signs of problems with the foundations will be easier and less expensive to fix the sooner you deal with them.
There are several fairly basic warning signs to look for inside your property that could indicate that unwelcome changes are taking place and may require further investigation and a property report from a company like Environmental Data Resources.
It should be pointed out that all houses settle over a period of time and whilst spotting a little unevenness is not the trigger for a full-scale panic, it should alert you to the possibility that potentially more dramatic changes could be underway.
If you notice cracks starting to appear in walls and especially over the doorways, windows or where the wall and ceiling adjoin, this should prompt further investigation. Cracks that appear in ceramic or vinyl tiles that are laid over a concrete floor are another warning sign together with issues such as a door that has started to jam or fails to latch and a window that does not open and close like it used to.
Check outdoors
You should also conduct a visual inspection of the outside of the property and pay particular attention to whether the foundation is sitting straight by sighting down the length of your foundation wall, starting from each separate corner.
The walls should be almost straight when you check them with a level and if you spot a bulge or a curve on either a block foundation or a concrete wall, this could well be a sign that the foundations have shifted or that the soil may be expanding or contracting, which will put added pressure on the walls, causing them to bulge.
Clues in the cracks
Reading and interpreting the different foundation cracks for clues is your first line ofdefense and depending on what you find, it may be the time to get a professional opinion.
Hairline cracks that appear in the mortar between the concrete blocks are often the least worrying problem and should be monitored for any worsening without causing alarm that something more serious is happening.
If cracks appear at an L-shaped section such as where the height changes, these may simply be shrinkage especially if they simply taper down to a hairline at the end and should not be signs of a structural issue.
A cause for concern would be if stair-step cracks appear in masonry joints and especially so if the wall is subsequently bulging or the crack has become larger than about a ¼ inch in size. This could be an indication of a moisture problem such as a plugged gutter which is then causing undue exertion on that part of the wall.
The most serious sign of a potential problem is when horizontal cracks appear. One of the causes of this would be when water-saturated soil froze and subsequently expanded or maybe you have soil that is able to expand when it is damp and contract when it is dry. Horizontal cracks could result in new foundations being required to solve the problem and a structural engineer will be needed to full assess the extent of the damage.
The best advice would be not to ignore any cracks or problems that you find and get them checked out or fixed as soon as possible, which could save you from a big financial headache further down the line.
Peter Samuels is an experienced housing contractor. He often blogs about common questions and concerns homeowners have about maintenance and crisis care.