# Foundation cracks - should I worry? (+ pics)



## GeezerFoo (Sep 12, 2010)

It's not quite a DIY job, but I wondered if any of you knowledgeable sorts could help out with a bit of repair advice.

We're about to buy a house in North Carolina, but have discovered something's wrong with the foundations. The seller described it as 'a small crack' - but a better description might be 'a very large crack in the corner and several slightly smaller cracks along the side, some of which are visible from both inside and outside the house'.

The major crack (see picture) is at the corner of the (long) rear of the house, and the (shorter) side of the house. 

The other cracks (hairlines and diagonals) are almost equidistant along the rear of the house. 

These are all external views. But several of the cracks are visible inside: nearer the big crack in the corner, they are 'straight through' cracks in poured concrete (in a garage built on the slab). Further from the corner crack, one of the cracks has cracked inside also (visible from the crawl space) - here, the foundation wall is of concrete block, with the cement joints cracking and a hairline crack shearing one of the blocks vertically.

Any help you can offer is very much appreciated. We're obviously going to get a structural engineer in if we decide to buy, but wanted to know whether this was even worth bothering with. The owner says it will be repaired, but doesn't specify how. 

He's also a builder and developer, and apparently built the house for his daughter (who no longer lives there), if that adds any background.

Thanks in advance,

Geezer Foo


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## oldognewtrick (Sep 14, 2010)

Geezer, can't see the pic only a red X.


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## itsreallyconc (Sep 16, 2010)

while i'm an expert at repairing crack'd conc, even i can't see the pictures, either  :

therefore my best advice is don't bother w/the house,,, 1 or 2 crks wouldn't bother me that much however:  1, you mention many more; 2, owner/bldr who's either lying, sleazy, ignorant, or hustling you; 3, expansive soils in the area.

you don't even know IF these crks are static OR moving - are they settling, shrinkage, or from lack of steel reinforcement ?  was the fnd backfilled too soon & soil pressure caused them ?

its only a house, fergawdsake, but, IF your heart's set on it, get a pe to give you a good report,,, i'm also an investor & pick up many bargains due to crack's & wet basements - i'd probably pass on your dream home  :banana:


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