Is there an official document on acceptable crack tolerances... 1

Is there any official documents on what is an acceptable amount and size of cracks in residential foundation walls and floors. If so, could you forward a .DOC or .PDF or the like to me at DeveloperWatch@usa.com

I have a basement full of 1/4" cracks !!!

 

[Ingenuity]

Maybe check out American Concrete Institute (

http://www.concrete.org)

and particularly document ACI 224R-90, "Control of Cracking in Concrete Structures," where table 4.1 lists tolerable crack widths for reinforced concrete under various exposure conditions. BUT it does not address slabs-on-grade or basement walls specifically.

You have 1/4" cracks in your basement walls too? I guess it CMU/concrete block walls.

But, best to call a local structural engineer to review your situation and make some recommendations on repair etc.

Good luck.

 

[jheidt2543]

I agree with Ingenuity, ACI is the place to look. In addition to his suggestion, look at ACI 332R-84 "Guide to Residential Cast-in-Place Concrete" and ACI 346R-90 "Recomendations for Cast-in-Place Nonreinforced Concrete".

I looked at a badly cracked residential basement wall recently. The workmanship was fine, but when they backfilled the wall they didn't brace it or have the floor framing in place. It was a disaster! The guy replaced a 1/3 of the basement wall and then turned around and did the same thing! The final result was to install a membrane waterpoofing system to prevent leaks.