Realizing that you have a foundation crack in your home can be a costly problem and if you don’t tackle the issue head on you can be stuck with a bigger repair bill than initially planned. We spoke with Tony Romanelli, President of RCC Waterproofing – a family operated business since 1920, about how you as a homeowner should tackle a foundation crack repair and how his team at RCC Waterproofing can give you a hand.
Majority of common foundation cracks occur around basement windows and doors because there’s a “void” in the foundation wall. Romanelli dove further into the subject and states, “Cracks can form from the day the concrete is poured. They happen when the water leaves the concrete and shrinkage [in the material] occurs. Cracks can even strike when the foundation has been settling over time, or from freeze thaw cycles, earthquakes or if heavy construction is happening in the area.” He continues, “When you find a crack in your foundation, it can become a serious problem very quickly. Sometimes the problem can sit for a week but on the other hand, the crack won’t even last day.”
If you find a fracture in your foundation, it’s best to call your local waterproof company or the team at RCC Waterproofing to come by and take a look right away. The team at RCC Waterproofing offers free estimates and consultation, and will provide you with help as soon as you need it.
In some cases, small hairline cracks can occur on drywall, ceilings, or foundation walls due to minor settlement of the home or seasonal expansion and contraction. This may not seem like a big issue at first, but when we asked Romanelli about hairline cracks, he states, “all cracks will become a problem at some point, it’s just a matter of time.”
Fixing a crack is crucial to ensure flooding will not occur. We asked Romanelli what he recommends when fixing a crack and if cracks in foundation could be patched internally, he states, “all internal [repair] methods work to various degrees but none are a long term solution [and need to be looked at quickly].”
From the most minuscule of cracks to the most aggressive, Romanelli told us that a foundation structural repair can take a day to a week to repair, depending on the intensity of the problem and costing starts at approximately $500 including a lifetime warranty of 50 years. A foundation repair will save you from a full-blown basement flood and lifetime of stress.
