vertical Crack on concrete foundation--a big problem?

[KevK]

Originally Posted by hydigger

Cracks in block walls are not just common, they are inevitable as the home settels the least little bit. A poured concreat wall is a bit different, it takes more to crack it. Depends, a crack means settling in the foundation, all homes settle over time. I would pay the 175$ for a home inspection and have them pay special attention to the crack. Concreat is pourus and does not stop water leakage crack or not. but it can be a faster way for water to come in before it drains. In kansas you have long piroids of dry than flash flooding. It is druing this high rain time that these things tend to show up.

I don't believe a house that is quality built should ever have those issues. Never. It is really funny to me that the folks who fix foundation problems can promise you a "lifetime" warranty for the fix. That makes me wonder why the builders cannot do the same thing.

[kodaka]

Having education and work experience in the architectural industry I can tell you that some cracking is definitely inevitable, as hydigger says.

But whether this specific crack indicates a major problem or not is a matter of factors far too complicated for you to describe or anyone to assess over the internet.

Get a home inspection, not just about the crack but about everything.

[lifelongMOgal]

Have to agree with the advice of the inspection. Foundation cracks can be tricky and a hiring a structural engineer, while not inexpensive, is the best investment one can make when purchasing a home, IMO.

As for the inevitablility of basments cracking I cannot agree. I have a 70+ yr. old home of block construction without a single visible crack in the foundation inside or outside. I know because the soil around the exterior of the foundation was completely excavated for the installation of a new foundation drainage system & waterproofing recently. While some foundation cracking is common it is NOT inevitable.

Do yourself a favor and hire a highly qualified home inspector and/or structural engineer well within your inspection period of your purchase agreement. It will be the best money you spend during the course of your home purchase.

[TinaMcG]

Originally Posted by lifelongMOgal

Do yourself a favor and hire a highly qualified home inspector and/or structural engineer well within your inspection period of your purchase agreement. It will be the best money you spend during the course of your home purchase.

The problem with hiring a 'highly qualified' home inspector is that you don't know if he is qualified until way after the fact. At our last house, the inspector missed a glaring plumbing code violation under the kitchen sink, which resulted in the garbage disposal projectile vomiting a week after we moved in. The whole thing needed to be replumbed, at a cost of $800.

At our current house, we were at home in Chicago and couldn't be down here for the inspection. Our real estate agent was here, and she assured us that it was fine that the inspector couldn't go up on the roof because of snow cover. She was adamant that the roof was fine. Still, all the inspector would have had to do was put a ladder up to the gutters and peer over the edge of the roof. There wasn't that much snow! If he had just had a brief look, he would have seen gobs and gobs of caulk, evidence of the sellers' futile attempts at disguising a serious leak. Had we known about all that caulk, we would have walked away.

I would definitely hire a structural engineer and I would engage the services of a good plumber, a good electrician, a reputable builder -- anyone who knew anything about construction. Also, it's a good idea to call the building department for your county to get records of any building or improvement permits. This is importanat because if you see any evidence of construction, say a new deck or a room addition -- or a chimney rebuild like we had -- there had better be a permit for it, or you won't have any idea how it was slapped together.

[coopersmith]

I would not hire a SE yet, get a home inspector first then see if it is just stress cracks or something wrong with the foundation. Tina, if you paid 800 for a disposal I think you got ripped. The best disposal at HD is only about 90$ and to replumb the thing is another 100$ with an hour of labor added in, so add another 100$ then add 50$ more and you are only at 340$. You got ripped. If a person hires all the people you are saying to, the bill for the inspection alone would be in the thousands. I would say hire a good home inspector and do your home work to make sure they know what they are doing. Second the seller signed a home disclosure and they are liable to be sued if they lied on the disclosure. Third the real estate company can also be sometimes held liable, and fourth, in this day and age on older homes a warrantee would be a cheap way of having some peace of mind, and at much less than the thousands of dollars to have a home inspected by several different groups. fifth, when you buy a home that is older you are buying a home that has old technology. Insulation just 20 years ago was not as big a thing as today, hot water heaters and the like were not a big thing and energy was much cheaper. Old homes have problems, and things go bad. I love some of the old homes in college hill, but I having been in the trades for many years know that they are maintenance night mares. Old homes are many times like bed and breakfast inns, you buy because they are so quaint, but they fast become an anchor around your neck.

[watercertify]

If foundation settlement is the cause of cracks, there will almost always have to be other evidence such as sloped floors and cracks in finish materials (drywall) inside the house at or near the location of foundation settlement.

[EliteStaffingSolutions]

Originally Posted by cp1969

You can't get advice on a problem like this from the internet. You need an unbiased opinion from someone who can look at it in person and knows what they're looking at.

I agree! If it were me, I would avoid allowing emotions to cloud my logic. It sounds like a fairly big issue, so I would have the seller pay for an inspector's opinion.