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FOUNDATION DIAGNOSIS
EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS
FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION TYPES
FOUNDATION INSPECTION METHODS
FAILURES by FOUNDATION TYPE & MATERIAL
  Block Foundation & Wall Defects
  Brick Foundation & Wall Defects
  Brick Thermal Expansion Cracking
  Concrete Poured Foundation Wall & Slab Defects
  Concrete Pre-cast Foundation Defects
  Stone Foundation Defects
  Wood Foundation Defects
FAILURES by FOUNDATION MOVEMENT TYPE
  BULGED vs. LEANING FOUNDATIONS
  COMBINATIONS OF FOUNDATION MOVEMENT
    Bulge & step cracks
    Earthquake Damage to Foundations
    Flood Damage to Foundations
    Foundation Movement During Collapse
    Other Foundation Step cracks
  HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS
    Bulging, Leaning & Sliding Wall
    Horizontal Foundation Creep
    Horizontal Movement & step cracks in brick
    Impact Damage to Foundations
    Thermal Expansion Cracking in Brick
  VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS
    Diagonal Cracks in Concrete Foundations
    Diagonal Step Cracking in Masonry
    Differential vs. Uniform Settlement Cracks
    Leaning or Tipping Buildings
    Uniform Width vs. Tapered Foundation Cracks
    Vertical Cracks
FLOOD DAMAGE TO FOUNDATIONS
FOUNDATION DEFECTS OF OMISSION
FOUNDATION CRACK EVALUATION
  DIAGONAL FOUNDATION CRACKS
  HORIZONTAL FOUNDATION CRACKS
  SHRINKAGE vs EXPANSION vs SETTLEMENT
  Sinkholes & Building Damage
  VERTICAL FOUNDATION CRACKS
FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS
FOUNDATION DAMAGE SEVERITY
FOUNDATION DAMAGE REPORTS
FOUNDATION INSPECTION STANDARDS
FOUNDATION MOVEMENT ACTIVE vs. STATIC
FOUNDATION REPAIR METHODS
  Bulged foundation Repairs
  Crack Repair Methods
  Horizontal Movement Repairs
  Shrinkage Crack Repairs
  Vertical Movement Repairs
SITE FACTORS AFFECTING FOUNDATIONS
SLAB CRACK EVALUATION
  Control Joint Cracks in Concrete
  Freezing & Water Damage
  Frost Heave/Expansive Soil Cracks in Slabs
  Seal Cracks by Polyurethane Foam Injection
  Seal Cracks in Concrete, How To
  Settlement Cracks in Slabs
  Settlement Cracks vs. Frost Heaves
  Settlement Cracks vs. Shrinkage Cracks
  Shrinkage Cracks in Slabs
  Shrinkage Cracks Along Foundation Walls
  Standards for Repair of Cracks in Floors
WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS
  SUMP PUMPS GUIDE
ADDITIONAL READING
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How to Identify Building Foundation Construction Methods, Materials, Type, Sequence
StructAPedia ^©

How to identify types of foundation construction, methods, materials as an aid to diagnosing foundation damage

Photographs of foundation crack patterns

Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at inspect-ny.com/appointment.htm.

Here we discuss How to identify types of foundation construction, methods, materials as an aid to diagnosing foundation damage. This document describes how to recognize and diagnose various types of foundation failure or damage, such as foundation cracks, masonry foundation crack patterns, and moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building foundation walls. © Copyright 2008 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

2. FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION -Identify Foundation Construction Type, Materials, Sequence
StructAPedia ^©

The photo above shows a concrete block foundation wall which had been damaged by water and frost, exacerbated by construction very close to bedrock which sloped to the foundation wall from the surface, trapping roof runoff against the building. A thick concrete laminate wall has been added inside to stabilize the wall (but no proper steps had been taken outdoors to redirect water away.) At this website we explain how it is sometimes possible to be confident about the cause of foundation damage which in turn helps assess the risk presented to the building.

Photographs of types of foundation cracks and other foundation damage: we have a large library of photographs which continually add to this website. Pending completion of that work, contact the author if assistance is required.

Foundation Construction Types

Slab-on-grade
Monolithic slabs - resist to problems over sink holes / clay
Supported slabs - on footing/foundation/pins hairline step cracks in block walls above (FL-mc) hairline to 3/16 common at top of slab elevation (FL-mc)
Floating slabs - not connected to foundation
Crawl spaces - wall height is a key factor in predicting crawl space failures. Special crawl space wall and knee-wall reinforcement is required in earthquake areas.
Basement - wall height vs block width/reinforcement
Additions - connection to original, varying materials, varying footing depths
Actual footing/foundation type usually not visible

Foundation Construction Materials

Masonry block for building foundations
Poured concrete for building foundations
Brick for building foundations
Stone for building foundations
Wood for building foundations
Pre-cast Concrete for building foundations

Our photo at left shows a poured concrete foundation wall.

Foundation Construction Sequence Considerations

Our photo at left shows a reconstructed concrete block foundation after a collapse. The original construction included in-slope grade at the rear of this building, combined with poorly-drained soils and runoff which was trapped against the building.

he collapse occurred more than twenty years after construction and might have been avoided by proper handling of roof runoff, the immediate failure cause, but the site shape and failure to provide proper surface and subsurface drainage were important factors in this failure too.

Below we list site factors to be considered when evaluating foundation damage.

Site preparation, construction on fill
Excavation-errors
Forms and Footing errors
Foundation errors
Backfill errors
Site Drainage errors
Modular construction concerns
Site blasting
Adjacent Site Blasting

FOUNDATION DIAGNOSIS Chapter Index

Use links just below or t the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

FOUNDATION DIAGNOSIS - how to inspect and diagnose foundation problems, in-depth diagnosis, and evaluation of all types of structural and non-structural cracks in residential foundations [Brick, Concrete, Masonry Block, Stone]
EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS - examples of earthquake-damaged building foundations
FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION TYPES - identify different foundation types, construction materials, effects of sequence of construction
FOUNDATION INSPECTION METHODS - what to look for when inspecting any building foundation
FAILURES by FOUNDATION TYPE & MATERIAL- unique failure characteristics of each foundation material
  Block Foundation & Wall Defects
  Brick Foundation & Wall Defects
  Brick Thermal Expansion Cracking
  Concrete Poured Foundation Wall & Slab Defects
  Concrete Pre-cast Foundation Defects
  Stone Foundation Defects
  Wood Foundation Defects
FAILURES by FOUNDATION MOVEMENT TYPE -recognize & diagnose types of foundation damage by the nature of foundation movement
  BULGED vs. LEANING FOUNDATIONS - distinction of foundation bulging from foundation leaning has important implications for stability
  COMBINATIONS OF FOUNDATION MOVEMENT - the real world of foundation cracks and movement: often more than one force is at work
    Bulge & step cracks
    Earthquake Damage to Foundations
    Flood Damage to Foundations
    Foundation Movement During Collapse
    Other Foundation Step cracks
  HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS - detection, causes, effects, evaluation of horizontal or lateral foundation movement; hillsides
    Bulging, Leaning & Sliding Wall
    Horizontal Foundation Creep
    Horizontal Movement & step cracks in brick
    Impact Damage to Foundations
    Thermal Expansion Cracking in Brick
  VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS - detection, causes, effects, evaluation of vertical foundation movement, differential settlement
    Diagonal Cracks in Concrete Foundations
    Diagonal Step Cracking in Masonry
    Differential vs. Uniform Settlement Cracks
    Leaning or Tipping Buildings
    Uniform Width vs. Tapered Foundation Cracks
    Vertical Cracks
FLOOD DAMAGE TO FOUNDATIONS - examples of flood damaged foundations, flood damage case analysis: were these cracks due to flooding?
FOUNDATION DEFECTS OF OMISSION - recognize things that were left out, like footings, reinforcement, soil compaction, during foundation construction
FOUNDATION CRACK EVALUATION- recognize & diagnose types of foundation cracks, movement, damage, by the size, shape, location, pattern of cracks
  DIAGONAL FOUNDATION CRACKS - causes and significance of diagonal foundation cracks, varies by foundation type & material
  HORIZONTAL FOUNDATION CRACKS - causes and significance of horizontal foundation cracks, varies by foundation type & material
  SHRINKAGE vs EXPANSION vs SETTLEMENT - which foundation materials shrink, which expand, & their characteristic crack patterns
  Sinkholes & Building Damage - sinkhole recognition, significance, cause, underlying geology, areas where sinkholes are worst
  VERTICAL FOUNDATION CRACKS - - causes and significance of vertical foundation cracks, varies by foundation type & material
FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS - procedure for documenting the amount of lean or bulge in a foundation or other building wall
FOUNDATION DAMAGE SEVERITY - rules of thumb for deciding how much foundation movement requires further action
FOUNDATION DAMAGE REPORTS - how to report foundation inspection results and damage
FOUNDATION INSPECTION STANDARDS - definition of scope of what a foundation inspector
FOUNDATION MOVEMENT ACTIVE vs. STATIC - determine if foundation movement was a one-time event or an ongoing problem
FOUNDATION REPAIR METHODS - catalog of methods used to repair damaged foundations and masonry building walls
  Bulged foundation Repairs
  Crack Repair Methods
  Horizontal Movement Repairs
  Shrinkage Crack Repairs
  Vertical Movement Repairs
SITE FACTORS AFFECTING FOUNDATIONS - drainage, rock, soil compaction, slope or grading, bedrock, sloping bedrock, proximity to roads
SLAB CRACK EVALUATION - recognize and diagnose different types of slab or concrete floor cracks and movement
  Control Joint Cracks in Concrete - what are control joints, why they are needed, what happens when they're omitted; are they structural?
  Freezing & Water Damage - recognize frost and water damage to concrete slabs, distinguish from other crack types
  Frost Heave/Expansive Soil Cracks in Slabs - distinguish between frost damage and expansive clay soil damage to slabs
  Seal Cracks by Polyurethane Foam Injection - stop basement or crawl space leakage
  Seal Cracks in Concrete, How To - products and methods used to seal or repair cracks in poured concrete walls, foundations, floors, & slabs.
  Settlement Cracks in Slabs - recognize slab settlement, assess risk, assess potential impact on structure
  Settlement Cracks vs. Frost Heaves - how to tell the difference between frost heaves and foundation settlement; does it matter?
  Settlement Cracks vs. Shrinkage Cracks - critical identification of shrinkage cracks (non-structural) compared with foundation movement
  Shrinkage Cracks in Slabs - causes, prevention, assessment of concrete slab shrinkage cracks
  Shrinkage Cracks Along Foundation Walls - why do we see a gap between a poured concrete slab and its abutting foundation wall?
  Standards for Repair of Cracks in Floors - when does a floor or slab crack need to be repaired? why?
WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS
  SUMP PUMPS GUIDE - how a sump pump can avoid foundation damage and reduce building water entry
ADDITIONAL READING

Technical Content Reviewers

For Foundation Crack and Movement Damage Evaluation, Diagnosis, & Reporting

Daniel Friedman - ASHI (1986-2006) - author of this website and article, building failures researcher.
"Concrete Slab Finishes and the Use of the F-number System", Matthew Stuart, P.E., S.E., F.ASCE, online course at www.pdhonline.org/courses/s130/s130.htm
Sal Alfano - Editor, Journal of Light Construction*
Thanks to Alan Carson, Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, for technical critique and some of the foundation inspection photographs cited in these articles
Terry Carson - ASHI
Mark Cramer - ASHI
JD Grewell, ASHI
Duncan Hannay - ASHI, P.E. *
Bob Klewitz, M.S.C.E., P.E. - ASHI
Ken Kruger, P.E., AIA - ASHI
Aaron Kuertz aaronk@appliedtechnologies.com, with Applied Technologies regarding polyurethane foam sealant as other foundation crack repair product - 05/30/2007
Bob Peterson, Magnum Piering - 800-771-7437 - FL*
Arlene Puentes, ASHI, October Home Inspections - (845) 216-7833 - Kingston NY
Greg Robi, Magnum Piering - 800-822-7437 - National*
Dave Rathbun, P.E. - Geotech Engineering - 904-622-2424 FL*
Ed Seaquist, P.E., SIE Assoc. - 301-269-1450 - National
Dave Wickersheimer, P.E. R.A. - IL*
*These reviewers have not returned comment 6/95

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