Have you noticed some cracks in your foundation or your foundation walls, and you’re wondering whether you should be worried?
While some cracks only represent a cosmetic issue, others can be a sign of a severe structural building problem. If you’re not trained or qualified to assess the gravity of the problem, you could end up missing an important issue and pay thousands of dollars to repair the damage a few months later. As a result, you should always talk to a professional to ensure you identify structural issues early on.
To help you better understand visible cracking issues, we’ve highlighted below the different types of cracks along with the main causes for cracks. We will also discuss the signs that your wall cracks may represent a serious issue.
The Different Types of Cracks
There are two types of cracks: structural and non-structural cracks.
A structural crack means that there is an issue with the home, including bowing walls, settlement, or a lean or sag in a floor. Usually, structural cracks start in a corner and come down at an angle (45 degrees). Note that they can also run horizontally. Sometimes structural cracks might also be wider on the top than they are on the bottom. They can often be fixed using wall plate anchors or steel driven push piers.
A non-structural crack (also called a shrinkage crack) can be created by adding a lot of water or cement to concrete, driving it to shrink. It is a crack, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that there is an issue with your home and can simply indicate that the concrete shrunk and separated. Non-structural cracks are usually vertical and can be fixed using epoxy injections.
What Causes Wall Cracks?
Poor Construction
If your contractor used lower quality building materials or if your building or house has been poorly designed and engineered, it can lead to cracks in the walls. As a result, a proper soil investigation needs to be carried out to ensure the designer and the engineer come up with a carefully crafted design of the foundations.
Water Damage
Wall cracks can also be caused by water damage. In fact, water damage is one of the most common foundational issues. Indeed, when water leaks into your walls and through your ceiling, it can lead to weakened structural materials. Some of the main things to keep an eye on include:
Blocked Gutter
Garden Sprinklers
Flood Damage
Blocked or leaking pipes
Unconnected or leaking pipes and poor drainage allow the water to infiltrate the soil, causing instability in the home’s foundations and cracks in the walls.
Vegetation
If vegetation is growing in the vicinity of your house, in brick masonry, or under the foundation line, your walls might be showing visible cracking. The action of growing roots can cause cracks in your walls. Importantly, if the property is built on shrinkable clay, the growing roots can soak the soil’s moisture, leading to foundation settlement and visible cracking.
Climate Changes
When the temperature drops, structural building materials tend to shrink. On the other hand, when the temperature rises, they tend to expand. Over time, these changes can cause visible cracks on your walls. While these are usually not an issue, dramatic temperature changes caused but drought, for instance, can lead to bigger cracks that will need fixing.
When is Visible Cracking Alarming?
There are a few signs that can indicate the visible cracking on your walls could be serious and require immediate attention:
Horizontal cracks, as mentioned above, often indicate structural damage such as water damage or foundation shift.
Diagonal cracks can be a sign of subsidence of footings.
If you can’t open or close your windows or doors properly anymore, your property might have severe structural issues.
Cracks above your windows or doors and sagging ceilings are all signs of structural problems.
If you notice cracks on the ceiling where the ceiling meets the wall, your home might be having some structural issues.
Have you noticed some new cracks in your walls or ceilings, and you’re unsure whether they’re posing a serious issue? We’d recommend you talk to a qualified building inspector and engineer as they’ll be able to assess the seriousness of the cracks.