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My husband and I just purchased a house in GA about 6 months ago (built in 1982). The home inspection we paid for only return cosmetic problems & the foundation expert signed off on the foundation, so we went ahead with the purchase. Well, here we are 6 months later and I have a hairline crack in my hallway ceiling the goes across the full 6 ft. We keep hearing a LOUD popping noise from the wall in the living room near the crack and from up by the front door (no cracks appearing near the door though). There's also a crack that has appeared underneath one of the windows in the master (it doesn't start at the corner of the window but about 5 inches in).
We have a certificate from the foundation expert where he says the foundation is stable and I was wondering if we find out that the foundation is in fact NOT stable, if he would be the one to fix it since he signed off on it? This is our first time owning a home - we've always rented apartments - and we're both at a loss. Any help with be appreciated.
It's a one story. I haven't been able to get in the attic because I'm disabled at the moment and my husband can't squeeze through where the only entrance to the attic is. It's a really small space and he's too tall. =( What exactly could it be in the attic? It's founds like the popping is coming from the front door and the wall connecting the living room to the hall. I looked at the frame to the front door and it looks like it's cracking (you can see it when you open the door). It wasn't like that a month ago. The only thing I see with the living room/hallway is that crack in the ceiling. It looks like a hairline crack.
It seems like there is a board in the middle of the living room that is higher than the rest and creaks when we get anywhere near that section. It was all flat when we moved in.
Did the previous owners have soaker hoses put down. It might be that your foundation is moving because of moisture change in the soil. I would suggest putting soaker houses down around your house about 8 or so inches away from the foundation and put it on a timer.
Another issue is you could possibly have a leak under your slab putting excess water under the slab causing foundation upheaval. you would need to have a leak detection done to rule this one out. A cheap way to do that would be make sure all water sources at the house are turned off take a look at your meter and give it an hour or so and see if the dial numbers goes up. The meter might also have a leak detection dial but you would have to Google or call your water department.
Did the previous owners have soaker hoses put down. It might be that your foundation is moving because of moisture change in the soil. I would suggest putting soaker houses down around your house about 8 or so inches away from the foundation and put it on a timer.
Not needed here in GA.
"Georgia red clay" is some of the most stable soil you can build on- as compared to "Texas black gumbo" or Colorado's Bentonite.
This is a shot in the dark but it could be changes in humidity and temperature. Cracks tend to open up in the winter and close up in the summer. Now I don't know if that would be the case in Georgia but up here in New England it's a fact of life.
The first few months after we moved in, we never heard popping or saw cracks. This has been in the past few weeks to a month this has popped up. Temperature doesn't seem to affect it because it will pop when it's both hot and cold outside. =/ We checked under the house to make sure there wasn't a leak. It's dry under there and there wasn't a difference in the meter when we turned the water off and back on. We've noticed a few more of the boards seem to be popping up - mostly where the door frames are and there's a new crack in the bedroom. It's a straight, vertical line. Someone told me this may be because of bad drywall?
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