Fine 3ft crack in tile grout (Houston, Howe: 2015, new home, inspector)

[hulio82]

just noticed a fine crack in the grout of our living room tile. The crack extends to about 3ft. Is this something i need to be concerned with (for foundation issues)? It originates from the wood trim/base board and since its long, i wanted to check.

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by hulio82

just noticed a fine crack in the grout of our living room tile. The crack extends to about 3ft. Is this something i need to be concerned with (for foundation issues)? It originates from the wood trim/base board and since its long, i wanted to check.

A tile grout crack can be caused by various different issues besides foundation movement. Some questions that answers may help the readers reply better.

• Is the baseboard it originates from on an outer wall?
• If yes to above are there any cracks along the visible exterior foundation, brick, or separation of siding pieces on that outer wall?
• Are there any drywall cracks inside around this wall (typically at openings like windows, doors, archways, etc.)?
• If this is an outer wall origination point look at the extreme opposite side of the home and are there any interior or exterior cracking there?
• Are there any other interior or exterior cracking signs around the remainder of the home?

Hopefully this is just a unfortunate but minor issue. Is this a new home still under warranty or existing home?

[texas7]

My tile grout cracked in an upstairs bathroom.. Poor install and subfloor issues.

[hulio82]

Thanks so much for responding. here's the additional info you requested:

• Is the baseboard it originates from on an outer wall? Yes
• If yes to above are there any cracks along the visible exterior foundation, brick, or separation of siding pieces on that outer wall? So i walked outside and did see a crack in the approximate location outside. Not 100% sure if the crack on the exterior wall aligns with this one, but my guess is they do. See picture below.
• Are there any drywall cracks inside around this wall (typically at openings like windows, doors, archways, etc.)? No, don't see any
• If this is an outer wall origination point look at the extreme opposite side of the home and are there any interior or exterior cracking there? Can't tell. the extreme opposite is our master bath and there's a sink connected to the exterior facing wall. I did walk outside and didn't see any cracks on the foundation outside though.
• Are there any other interior or exterior cracking signs around the remainder of the home? There are some cracks on the outside on the side of the foundation (similar to this one), however they don't follow through to the brick. when we did our inspection, the inspector told that was normal and to keep an eye on it incase it got bigger.
• Is this a new home still under warranty or existing home? new home- built last year so yes, is under warranty
  

Originally Posted by escanlan

A tile grout crack can be caused by various different issues besides foundation movement. Some questions that answers may help the readers reply better.

• Is the baseboard it originates from on an outer wall?
• If yes to above are there any cracks along the visible exterior foundation, brick, or separation of siding pieces on that outer wall?
• Are there any drywall cracks inside around this wall (typically at openings like windows, doors, archways, etc.)?
• If this is an outer wall origination point look at the extreme opposite side of the home and are there any interior or exterior cracking there?
• Are there any other interior or exterior cracking signs around the remainder of the home?

Hopefully this is just a unfortunate but minor issue. Is this a new home still under warranty or existing home?

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by hulio82

Thanks so much for responding. here's the additional info you requested:

• Is the baseboard it originates from on an outer wall? Yes
• If yes to above are there any cracks along the visible exterior foundation, brick, or separation of siding pieces on that outer wall? So i walked outside and did see a crack in the approximate location outside. Not 100% sure if the crack on the exterior wall aligns with this one, but my guess is they do. See picture below.
• Are there any drywall cracks inside around this wall (typically at openings like windows, doors, archways, etc.)? No, don't see any
• If this is an outer wall origination point look at the extreme opposite side of the home and are there any interior or exterior cracking there? Can't tell. the extreme opposite is our master bath and there's a sink connected to the exterior facing wall. I did walk outside and didn't see any cracks on the foundation outside though.
• Are there any other interior or exterior cracking signs around the remainder of the home? There are some cracks on the outside on the side of the foundation (similar to this one), however they don't follow through to the brick. when we did our inspection, the inspector told that was normal and to keep an eye on it incase it got bigger.
• Is this a new home still under warranty or existing home? new home- built last year so yes, is under warranty
  

This would be a bit of a tough one to make a good judgment on without seeing the whole house and looking for other signs. Here are some observations from your pictures and notes. These are a couple of handy docs to help explain better some of what I have below.
http://www.foundationperformance.org...PA-SC-06-0.pdf
http://www.foundationperformance.org...PA-SC-03-1.pdf
The second publication is a real handy chart form.

• The first pic displays the exterior crack at the location of a foundation corner. This can potentially be movement but more likely the formation of a corner crack.
• Note in all your pictures I see no evidence of a bond break material between the brick mortar and the top of the foundation brick ledge. The bond break is a typically a black plastic used as a flashing for the base of the framing and is allowed to drape over the top of the foundation wall. The first course of brick and its mortar under the brick are placed directly on the plastic. This plastic prevents the mortar from bonding to the foundation (hence "Bond Break"). If the brick expands and contracts the plastic allows the brick to move slightly on the foundation brick ledge to prevent the very type of brick and mortar damage you see in these photos.
• When foundations are poured the corners tend to be weak spots. When brick does expand and contract, and no proper bond break is present, the force is capable of causing corner cracks like seen here.
• As for the tile grout crack in this area they can potentially be linked to the other potentially "less than foundation movement" issues. Won't get into detail here but it is very possible.
• The other cracks you are seeing along that section of foundation wall, with no corresponding brick/mortar cracks or interior drywall cracks, could quite possibly be other common and minor concrete issues rather than movement.
• The reason I asked about any cracking at the extreme opposite side of this is to correlate those cracks, if present, with these to point to potential flab flexing but you are not seeing any so it is expected that whatever the issue is it is local to that side of the home.

Right now without a full review of the home for other pertinent signs of foundation distress this would be very to call as foundation movement. However your home is a large dollar investment and well worth the builder reviewing this and providing their written opinion in case it is needed later. Also read your warranty closely because many builders do limit tile crack repairs to the first year.

If you are not comfortable with the situation then by all means I would contact a Professional Engineer that is well trained and experienced with residential foundations, their design, and their issues. Even if they tell you it is minor and nothing to worry about that is worth the money for piece of mind. Also when they are there I would have them perform a Level B analysis (see first link above) with the slab level analysis diagram in case you need it later.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[cheryjohns]

OP, get Jericho Foundation out there now to get a professional opinion. They will do it for free, and seem to be the most honest. Call now because they get booked in advance.

[hulio82]

Thanks a lot for the info guys. I also reached out to my home inspector and also sent a message to my builder.

May also give a call to Jericho foundation. Thanks.

[usc619]

Originally Posted by cheryjohns

OP, get Jericho Foundation out there now to get a professional opinion. They will do it for free, and seem to be the most honest. Call now because they get booked in advance.

^^Agreed^^ you can also give these guys call Foundation Repair Services: Houston, TX they will also give you an honest opinion