Some homeowners are less proactive than others when it comes to repairing foundation cracks. Their attitude is, if it ain’t leaking, why should I repair it? But that’s faulty logic. In this episode Adam explains the importance of fixing foundation cracks before they start leaking.
Narrator: It's time once again for the CrackMan podcast, hosted by A1 Foundation Crack Repair. I'm Darren Kincaid and I'm here with the crack daddy himself, Adam Tracy. Adam has 20 years of experience in the construction industry and, as a civil engineer, is A1 Foundation's resident engineer on staff, solving a plethora of unique foundation problems every day. This podcast provides expert basement waterproofing, concrete repair, and preventative maintenance tips for homeowners and businesses. A1 Foundation's viable insight will help prevent the disaster of a flooded basement, health problems due to water infiltration, and protect your biggest investment, your home. The topic of today's podcast: The importance of being proactive in repairing your home's foundation cracks.
Narrator: So, Adam, some homeowners are less proactive than others when it comes to repairing foundation cracks. I mean, if it ain't leaking, why should I repair it? But that's faulty logic, am I right?
Adam: Yeah, we get this question all the time. And usually when you're in a house, you'll have one primary crack that everyone's concerned about because it may be leaking, it may be bigger, they may be standing on it, it might be an area that people catch their eyes on it quite a bit, and it gives them concern.
And oftentimes, there's one or two other cracks that we usually bring out as attention, "Hey, by the way, there's another one over here," and a lot of times people say, "Yeah, we'll fix it today," or they say, "No, I don't really want to do that one. It's not an issue today."
Well, we had a case in the Worcester area where it was a project that we had done for a gentleman who was owning a single-family home, and there was a concrete foundation, and he had one wall crack that was leaking, and it was one that was a pretty standard settling or shrinkage crack that we did our warranty service to.
It worked out great, had no issues from the day we did it and beyond up to this date. But there were other cracks that we had noted in the foundation. One in particular was on the side of a garage.
And at the time, the customer said, "No, I'm not worried about that one. It's not leaking. There's no basement under there."
We said, "Okay, well, you know, you're the customer, you decide." And that's how this works here. We don't force any work on you that you don't want to do.
He actually called in this morning and four years later said, "Hey, you know that crack that you guys pointed out? It's gotten a lot worse."
And so he sent over some photos, and it did. It got worse. It spread open, and it had that seam happen.
I said, "Well, because we didn't seal it at the time, the freeze-thaw damage occurred over several winters, and we had a pretty harsh winter this last year. And even though it's not going to leak into any basement, water does get in there, and it freezes and thaws and freezes and thaws, and it starts to open up the foundation cracks and causing a twisting motion."
So what could have been dealt with a bit cheaper in 2022 is now a more expensive project because the crack was a lot worse, and we had to reinforce it a little bit more structurally than in the previous one, where we would just be able to seal it off entirely.
So, it just comes to show you that even though these smaller issues, they've been there forever, quote-unquote, they don't leak, it's not really a problem, it's more cosmetic, they do tend to change over time.
And unfortunately, for this homeowner, he didn't get ahead of it early, and we had to come back in and take care of that and make sure it doesn't get any worse from here on out.
But be proactive. Be proactive about your foundation because there will be a point of no return where the cost of the repairs jumps significantly and the structure becomes compromised.
So in the early stages, it's usually cost-controlled and very simple repairs, but as you let it go for years and years, it can become quite the issue.
So just keep that in mind as you're looking at foundation issues around your house.
Narrator: Thanks, Adam, for explaining the importance of fixing foundation cracks before they start leaking.
Narrator: If you have a basement water problem and think you need a professional, or if you'd like more information on foundation crack repair and basement waterproofing topics, please visit A1foundationcrackrepair.com or call Adam at (866) 929-3171, or you can email Adam at info@a1foundationcrackrepair.com. Thanks for listening and keep that basement dry.