Horizontal Cracks In Concrete Block Walls

We rarely see cast in place concrete foundation walls which have developed a horizontal crack because of lateral or inward soil pressure.

Horizontal cracks in concrete block walls.

Vertical vertical cracks in your concrete block tend to appear as your concrete cures. Causes of horizontal cracks. Vertical movement is being caused by settlement frost or a sink hole or expansive clay soils under and near the. Horizontal if the supports in your walls aren t strong enough to hold up to the weight of concrete you may notice.

This is usually evident as the basement area may be wet. Do cracks in walls indicate a structural problem. Diagonal diagonal cracks can form for. Concrete walls containing horizontal cracks are serious issues.

Measure the width of cracks with measuring tape. Sometimes the soil pressure may shear the first course of concrete block above the basement floor slab and the wall slides inward. This type of movement will have horizontal cracks that may occur near the center of the wall or nearer to the top of the wall. Horizontal cracks in concrete walls however indicate poor wall designs or pressure buildup behind the wall.

Horizontal cracks in concrete block or cast in place concrete foundation walls are rarely an indication of foundation settlement. Unfortunately the curing process causes the concrete to shrink slightly often resulting in hairline cracks. The process will bring the. Horizontal foundation cracks located in the upper third of a concrete block wall presuming most of the wall is below grade are most likely to have been caused by vehicle loading or in freezing climates by surface and subsurface water combined with frost.

If the crack is horizontal or runs at a jagged 45 degree angle it might mean there s a more serious problem such as severe foundation shifting or water damage. In concrete block foundation walls horizontal cracks are typically caused by the foundation wall being forced and bowed inward under the lateral or inward pressure of the soil. Concrete consists primarily of cement sand gravel and water. Like bulging walls horizontal cracks are typically caused by hydrostatic pressure and even if the wall isn t bulging it s time to call in the pros.

As the water in the slurry evaporates the remaining ingredients cure into a hard monolithic slab. Stabilizing a foundation with structural. The most common cause of horizontal cracks in concrete block foundation walls is excessive unbalanced soil pressure.