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Cracked Foundation Walls - New Construction Walk-out Basement

A

alias1fan

Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2012
Messages
1
Hi,

I purchased a new construction home in NJ. The foundation of the home is a poured concrete floor and walls (3 concrete wall sides since it is a walk-out basement).

I have not closed on the house yet, but have noticed several vertical hair-line cracks on the outside walls. I didn't think anything of it until I noticed one that is both inside and outside, from top to bottom (about 8') and was wet along parts of it. I would say about 4' of the wall is above ground outside due to it being a walk-out. The crack appears to begin at a basement window and zig zags to the left down to the foundation floor (please see pictures).

Since this crack is so long and wet AND there are numerous other cracks on the foundation walls, would it be smart to hire a Structural Engineer to look at the foundation prior to closing? I know our town inspected the foundation after the pour and approved it, but this crack happened after the fact.

Pictures can be found here: Flickr:pictures of the crack

Any guidance here is greatly appreciated. Thank you!
 
rleibowitz said:
Don't buy it...it willl never be right. Imagine what those cracks will look like in 5 or 10 years.
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Jump to conclusions much?

These appear to be minor shrinkage cracks from the concrete curing process. How old is the house? Are there other issues that make you think there are structural problems?

Best to have an expert evaluate the WHOLE situation before making assumptions

mj
 
With cracks like that(small), but are already showing signs of moisture(which shouldn't be happening), I would bail and buy something else OR have contractor dig and verify proper drainage, damp or water proofing, grading, etc.

If it's like that now, freezing and thawing of NJ weather will not be kind.
 
mjesse said:
Jump to conclusions much?These appear to be minor shrinkage cracks from the concrete curing process. How old is the house? Are there other issues that make you think there are structural problems?

Best to have an expert evaluate the WHOLE situation before making assumptions

mj
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It is a new house. It takes an expert to evaluate the cracks? I don't think so. I think that the way this works is: Hey there's a bunch of cracks in the walls that keep out the aqua and support the building. Do we need to know more. This isn't a driveway and it can't be fixed without tearing out the basement walls. Well I suppose simpson straps and epoxy in the cracks is a fix for some but I wouldn't buy a new house that needs a bunch of work.
 
alias1fan said:
would it be smart to hire a Structural Engineer to look at the foundation prior to closing?
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Alias1fan,

Welcome to the forum!

to answer your question it would be wise to have a structure engineer to evaluate the foundation. the engineer should be able to provide you with guidance on what needs to be performed. once you have this information you can make a more informed decision on whether to purchase or not. You can always ask the seller to pay the cost of the evaluation.

at least in my humble opinion

Good luck!
 
ICE said:
It takes an expert to evaluate the cracks? I don't think so.
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Obviously, the OP is not savvy enough to make a determination. A short cropped pic of a hairline crack leaves us in no position to make a determination.

Someone who knows something about construction (i.e."expert") should be the one making the evaluation. There are plenty of situations that would make this post a non-issue, such as;

1- What does the outside look like, is the ground graded properly,

2- How long has the window been open, was it open during a rainstorm?

3- Is there a downspout or sump discharge nearby, what is making that crack the path of least resistance?

4- Did somebody just pressure wash the basement before the buyers came through? (I've seen it) Concrete is a sponge, and any crack will dry slower as it releases moisture.

A hairline crack like that could very well exist unchanged for 50 years. Just because you see a crack now, doesn't mean it is going to keep growing until the whole building collapses.

Or.....The whole thing may fall into a California style sinkhole tonight.

mj
 
Typically vertical cracks do not indicate structural issues. The water infiltration can be easily fixed by a qualified contractor who will by digging up the cracked section of the wall and apply a water proofing membrane or epoxy into the area (or both if you want to be extra careful). Concrete window cutouts crack all the time because it is the weakest portion of the wall (as indicated before this is a shrinkage crack). Ideally you would install a saw cut to control the crack and provide a waterproofing system on the exterior to account for it, but unfortunately most contractors will not do this.
 
mjesse said:
Or.....The whole thing may fall into a California style sinkhole tonight.

mj
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You can bet that he made up his mind when he read that. :eek:

alias1fan, Ask yourself if you will ever feel good about spending a few $100K on a building with busted walls.

rleibowitz, Welcome to the forum.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
If you are still thinking of buying the home you should have the seller pay for the services of a qualified structural engineer of your choosing. Depending on the outcome of this evaluation either repairs should be made or you should walk away. If repairs are required they should definitely be paid for by the seller.
 
Sounds like someone added too much water to the redi-mix, typical and all too common shtinkage crack exactly where you would normally find one.

Worthy of note, worthy of a closer look, likely easily repaired, likely not a structural concern, probably not a deal breaker.

Welcome to the board...
 
JBI,

My thoughts too, extra water added to the mix.

Other thoughts, normal crack that you see from a basement window corner. See the same crack on a foundation wall when the wall is stepped down, sometimes a crack appears at the I/S corner. One of the pictures shows the crack following the form joint which is common.

Other reasons a crack could form would be backfilling too soon while the foundation is green, frozen soil like a bolder or dirt clod banged the foundation or heavy equipment vibration. Just my own thoughts, nothing to use in court.

pc1
 
As a NJ inspector may I offer the following. It appears that you have had your framing and insulation inspections to this point but not your final yet. If it is a recent crack, or not obvious until after Sandy, it may not have been observed during those prior inspections. I would bring it to the attention of the local enforcing agency, they would most likely pick up on it at the final anyway. They would then note it and ask for the contractor to have it evaluated by a design professional who would then submit signed and sealed corrections. After the sale it would be covered under your homeowners warrenty. Hope this helps.
 
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