Any concrete people here?

[BBA]

My new house (well, 3 years old now) has the same issues.

The garage floor had a crack all the way across before we even closed on it.

We replaced carpeting in the main room with tile two years later, and the floor all under was cracked.

Basically, the way companies are allowed to pour concrete is the cause. They used to require steel reinforcement (rebarb) and controlled curing temperatures. Now it's just dig, pour and go. Basically, cheap manufacturing and illegal alien laborers.

What will happen in your basement is if the water tables rise or if heavy rain hits, you will get water in the basement.

[BBA]

Originally Posted by no1_vern

NO. For the wall, cracking is a sign of stress on the pour. 2 months is WAY too early for cracking like that as far as I know. Get it inspected ASAP. Yesterday would have been better. NOTE: IF YOU DIDNT get it inspected, most likely it HASNT been inspected. Loose backfill MAY be the culprit but that doesnt change your situation it needs to be addressed ASAP. BTW: if you didnt get a permit for the construction(and therfor the required inspection) you may face an additional fine for not following the laws in your area.

IF you dont get it inspected, and the authorities come around, NO MATTER how far along your hous is, the Building Inspector can have THE ENTIRE HOUSE CONDEMNED and your out ALL of the money you have spent. Everything may have to be redone - at your cost.

Never never never pay a contractor for his work with out an independent inspection by the proper authorities!

If he is having a house built, he probably has not bought it yet. The builders are in cahoots with the inspectors and it probably has been accepted by an inspector.

Builders wont fix a damn thing unless you sue them, and if the house has not even been sold yet, it's a waste of time. You have to buy it to sue them and then it's a multi year process. The problem is they have a racket where every two or three years they close the business and reopen with a new name and license...meaning they dont have the same company and there is no recourse for a home buyer.

Sad but thats the way it works.

[TOAD6147]

I would not accept ANY cracks unless an inspector or building official says it's acceptable safety-wise. Even with that, I would not accept it. BTW, I can't think of any jurisdiction in Florida that would allow a slab to be poured without re-bar. It's in the Florida Building Code, for God's sake.

[Chuckiechan]

mad1: Put the project on hold until the problem is diagnosed.

Don't let the GC give you any crap. You have the right to an inspection for anything you think isn't kosher (at your expense if you're wrong).

There are a dozen thing that could be going wrong. Not the least of which involving pulling plumbing apart due to lateral movement. Then we have the issue of water leaking in, roots forcing the opening wider, undiscovered underground stream, Indian burial ground, the killer's OJ is looking for.... I could go on...

The short answer is your house in caving in and it ain't even done yet!!!

Just stop, don't let them push you out of your concern. They aren't living there, you are!

[OuTpaTienT]

Originally Posted by Pexster

Can't resist -- saw Beemer's name as the last poster and thought "Is he going to offer to blow it up?"

And here I thought Beemer was only answering the request for "concrete people" because he was stoned.

[Beemer]

I haven't smoked in a while. Looking for a job in the NWT and I may be subjected to a piss test after hiring. It's a good thing I'm only into pot. No dependency, no problem. Smoke as much as you want and back away when you want. Isn't that how it should be?

I've learned all the house building trades since 88' with the plan to build my own house some day. Going up north to drill will give me the money to build.

The plan is finally coming together. Just a few more years.

The only trade I didn't get into was plumbing. OuT may be visiting Canada in a couple of years.

[mad1]

Originally Posted by no1_vern

NO. For the wall, cracking is a sign of stress on the pour. 2 months is WAY too early for cracking like that as far as I know. Get it inspected ASAP. Yesterday would have been better. NOTE: IF YOU DIDNT get it inspected, most likely it HASNT been inspected. Loose backfill MAY be the culprit but that doesnt change your situation it needs to be addressed ASAP. BTW: if you didnt get a permit for the construction(and therfor the required inspection) you may face an additional fine for not following the laws in your area.

IF you dont get it inspected, and the authorities come around, NO MATTER how far along your hous is, the Building Inspector can have THE ENTIRE HOUSE CONDEMNED and your out ALL of the money you have spent. Everything may have to be redone - at your cost.

Never never never pay a contractor for his work with out an independent inspection by the proper authorities!

I am not a genreal contractor in this project, this is a home in a subdivision where all homes are constructed by the same builder. The isnpections are ordered by the builder at various points during the construction. The results of all inspections have been placed in the front window of the dining room, only one failed the first inspection(the radon system).Since that time the radon system has passed the inspection.

[mad1]

Originally Posted by Beemer

As far as the wall goes, if they back filled before the sub-floor was installed, the wall could get cracked. Running machinery on the back fill before the sub-floor is installed can create cracks in the foundation wall.

Cracks in the floor could be a result of the top of the concrete curing before the middle. This happens usually when poured on a hot sunny day. Properly done, a sprinkler should be setup after the final screeting to keep the concrete wet and cool so that the concrete cures uniformly throughout the thickness of the poured floor in the hot sun.

Re-bar uprights not properly spaced to be in the centre of the wall can create cracks as well if allowed to come close to the exterior of the poured wall if not tied in place.

Backtrack the time of events and you'll find the cause.

No control joints in a basement floor.

There are no control joints in the basement floor. The weather at the time of pouring was around 75 degrees. I think the backfill was done about a day after the walls were poured and the next day a 4" rain filled the basement with water. I notice the backfill settled about three inches after this rain.

[mad1]

I contacted the head of building inspections for the city where the home is being built. I stated my concers to the building inspector, they will be sending out a inspector on Monday to inspect the foundation and flooring. The inspector offered to discuss the results with me in person, I will be accepting his offer.

[no1_vern]

Thats good to hear Mad1!