I discovered it when repairing damaged plaster after June's heavy rain.
2006-09-05 11:29:05 · 7 answers · asked by Daisy 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
If the crack is in the upright load bearing wall, then yes it needs a professional to repair it. At minimum they would need to expose that whole side to see what caused the crack to begin with. You say it may have been caused by heavy rain. If the rain has washed away the underpinning soil, then that problem definitely needs to be taken care of, before any repairs can start. You wouldn't really want the crack continuing up into the structure of the house itself? Yet, this is exactly what could happen if you only fix it cosmetically.
2006-09-05 11:41:19 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Cracks in foundations are normally due to settling. If this crack appeared 'suddenly', then youve lost some support under the foundation. If the crack has appeared, and widened over the course of years, and seems fairly stable... then you can repair the crack using one of the many epoxy repairs available. Anything else, most likely, is going to mean the foundation itself will need to be leveled up, and more support put in place. Any company that does "mud jacking" can handle this kind of repair, with very little mess to your yard, or digging around the foundation, etc. What they will do, is dig down deep enough to install some hydraulics, and they will lift the foundation back into place, and then pump in a concrete slurry, or mix, under the foundation, and let it cure. This provides the best type of repair for a foundation crack, because it actually fixes "why" the crack appeared in the first place.
If you do a Yahoo Search for "mud jacking", and your location, you should find a company nearby that specializes in this type of repair work. This is often much less costly, than digging out around the foundation, and replacing the damaged section. Faster too.
Good Luck!
2006-09-05 19:33:42 · answer #2 · answered by thewrangler_sw 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cracks in basement walls are common. However, a 5/8" wide crack is wider than the typical one. A fix called epoxy injection is normally used. This is best done by a professional who will also look at possible reasons this happened in the first place.
Good luck.
2006-09-05 14:06:03 · answer #3 · answered by duke1414 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You have a major settling issue. You need Professional repairs, with a warranty.
2006-09-05 11:51:24 · answer #4 · answered by uncle bob 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Seek the advice of a professional inspector with engineering certification. You don't want to mess around with something this important.
2006-09-05 11:35:34 · answer #5 · answered by Magic One 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
anthing over 1/4" maybe a prob in the foundation, check to see if the floor slopes on one side and if it transverses to the walls.
2006-09-05 11:34:34 · answer #6 · answered by cliffy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a crack that big will cause problems is a tree close by roots on a tree give foundations hell. if not just a weak spot in foudation
2006-09-05 12:36:32 · answer #7 · answered by jackofalltds 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋