Originally Posted By: Heath Brier Johns This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
These vertical cracks were in a poured concrete wall. The cracks did not run down to the floor. They originated where the rusted metal (what are they called?) in the wall was located (possible rusted lintel concept?). Thanks for any help.
Originally Posted By: Kyle Kubs This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
Heath,
The rusted metal bar you are talking about is called a "form tie" (what they use to hold the two sides of the concrete form together when they pour the wall.
???'s
Is the other side of that wall at the height of the form tie under ground or above?
How do you know the crack originated at the form tie and did not just happen to pass through it?
How old is this home?
If it is under ground level but not below frost level water may seep into this space (if the form tie was not properly sealed, as they must be to prevent this) and allowed freeze/thaw cycles to start their jackhammering...
The diagonal nature of the crack worries me more... Could be due to differential settlement of the footings... Especially if this is a newer home...
Kyle Kubs
Benchmark Home Inspection Services
Norht NJ
-- Those that say it cannot be done should stop interupting those of us who are hard at work, doing it...
Originally Posted By: ckratzer This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
Heath,
Those cracks look alot like they were formed at the time of backfill when the home was being built.It looks as though it was either backfilled too soon,( before the concretes 28 day strength) or it was backfilled before the walls were supported by it’s framing members,(rim joists and floor joists) . They could eventually leak or may never leak but the worst thing that usually happens is expansion in hot weather and contraction in cold weather.It looks scarier than it really is . It doesn’t look like a settlement problem at all. I would note the presence of the cracks in your report and recommend a struc. engineer just to cover your bases.
Originally Posted By: Kyle Kubs This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
I tend to disagree about the backfill causing these cracks. If you look at where the corner (strongest point) plays into this, your saying that the crack started near the corner and on the bottom where, again, the wall is reinforced by the connection to the footings. Also, most cracks that I’ve seen that I know for a fact were caused by backfilling have been much more vertical in nature, and almost always have lateral displacement (not flush at the wall surface) due to being pushed from the outside. - No lateral displacement, crack is mostly even in gap all the way through, and travels in an erratic diagonal fashion… Most likely cause is shrinkage… Have it repaired/sealed and monitor for any future movement indicating a possible need for reinforcement.- Look around the wall, are there any sparkly areas, something that looks like a salt vein? This happens a lot in winter pours when a catalyst is used to force the concrete to dry more quickly due to cold…
Off course this is all guess work, none of us where there when this happened and this kind of story only reveals itself over time…
Kyle Kubs
Benchmark Home Inspection Services
North NJ
-- Those that say it cannot be done should stop interupting those of us who are hard at work, doing it...
Originally Posted By: lewens This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
I think I am inclined to agree with Kyle. These look like shrinkage cracks to me. I see a lot of this when the foreman on the job decides he is in a hurry and asks the concrete company to add too much quick dry to the mix. Common problem up here especially in winter when they want the stuff to cure before it freezes. Always get small cracks though.
Originally Posted By: mcyr This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
Hi. to all;
The photos do not show the whole picture necessary to provide accurate data.
From what I can see, the cracks visible are mostly shrinkage and stress cracks caused by the weak links within the foundation wall itself.
Most likely, reinforcement is at a minimum as usual and the form tie holes were not patch on the exterior, allowing water intrusion. The first picture appears to have some sort of pipe that may be partially embedded at the top of the foundation. If this is the case, it appears that this recesses caused the shrinkage crack to follow the weakest links, the form ties.
I see a horizontal joint in the form panels that would indicate that the wall is more than eight feet in height, is this the case?
Any bond-outs, pipe penetrations, or sleeves in a foundation wall is enough to initiate the cracks seen in these photos. Since most penetrations, are not addressed to proper additional reinforcement to counteract the bond-outs in the concrete wall, cracks like these will appear.
There is nothing alarming of the cracks in these photos, structurally, but would report further investigation by a structural engineer and also monitor for any further movement.
