You won’t find many houses without a few cracks in the walls here and there. It’s a natural part of the aging process – think of these cracks as the building equivalent of wrinkles! They’re bound to appear, and there’s not a lot you can do to prevent them. That’s where the similarities end in this analogy. Wrinkles cause nothing more than aesthetic confidence problems for us humans, but a crack in your wall could be a sign of something more sinister. At the same time, some cracks are visual problems and nothing else, so how do you tell the difference?
Today’s post will guide you through the process of knowing when a crack in the wall is something that can be papered over or a serious issue that demands immediate attention and repair.
Key Signs Your Wall Cracks Are Aesthetic Issues
Let’s start with the cracks that shouldn’t send a jolt of fear through your body. It’s extremely common to find different types of cracks in your walls or other structures that a quick repair can fix. Whether it’s a lick of paint or a spot of filler, these cracks won’t have an underlying bearing on your home’s structural integrity.
How do you spot cracks like these? They’re usually characterized by the following features:
Only Appear On The Outer Surface (Hairline Cracks)
A hairline crack is barely scratching the surface of a wall, ceiling, or door frame. It’s not gone deep into the physical foundations of your property, so it should be a cause for concern. These cracks are the most common, especially in new homes. That sounds crazy, but new homes will settle, which means drywall or plasterboard shrinks and cracks.
If you ever spot cracks like these, then you can fix them with a bit of filler. Paint also works in some cases, but there’s no reason to be alarmed as they’re merely aesthetic issues.
No Moisture Is Present
Dry cracks don’t tend to be a major concern. Again, it’s usually just a sign of aging – or your home settling – so there’s no need to worry. The lack of moisture means the crack isn’t caused by a serious foundational problem, which is always good news. It still helps to monitor the crack after filling it in, though most of them will be fine.
Tend To Be Small & Vertical
You know a crack is just a visual problem when it’s small and appears vertically. By “small,” we’re talking about anything that’s a quarter-inch or less in size. Take a look around your house, and you’ll probably find dozens of these cracks everywhere – particularly if the property was built decades ago. Small cracks like these often appear in exterior brickwork. The mortar between the bricks will wear with time, so you see tiny little vertical cracks. It might look worrying, but it’s just a sign of old age. Fix it with some repointing, and the problem will go away.
Do Not Get Worse With Time
The most critical thing of all is that the crack does not get worse with time. That’s why you should keep an eye on any cracks – even the small ones – and take photos of them. You don’t need to do this every day and freak out over it; simply take an initial photo and then go back in a few months.
If a crack stays the same and doesn’t deepen or widen with time, then there’s nothing wrong with it. It will only ever be a surface-level crack that causes aesthetic concerns.
Key Signs Your Wall Cracks Are Serious Issues
In a perfect world, all of the cracks in your walls will fall into the above category. Nobody wants to deal with a serious crack because it can be extensive home repairs. Still, spotting a serious issue early on can prevent even worse things from happening.
With that in mind, let’s look at the big signs your wall cracks are sinister:
Moisture Comes Through The Crack
Simply put, if water or moisture seeps through a crack, then there’s a problem. This is a big indicator of a foundation leak, which happens when your foundation starts to collapse. As you can imagine, that’s a pretty major issue! Spotting the crack early will mean you only have to deal with foundation leak repair rather than completely refitting your foundations. This will save you a fortune and prevent your home from being unliveable.
It’s Deep & Wide
The deeper and wider the wall crack, the worse it is. Deep cracks penetrate multiple surfaces and can be caused by something much deeper within your home’s physical structure. Hairline cracks are on the surface, but a deep one could show a problem with the interior workings of a wall, etc.
The Crack Is Horizontal, Diagonal, Or “Stair-Step”
Horizontal cracks are always a massive concern. They immediately look unnatural, and they’re usually a sign of foundation problems. You need to get an expert to assess your home’s structural integrity ASAP. You may also need to call out a soil removal to properly expose your foundation and see if the damage goes any deeper than the crack you can see. Indeed, there may even be excess soil that’s starting to build up, which is a common sign subsidence has taken root. It might turn out that there’s a serious issue that needs to be addressed, but catching it early can prevent a catastrophe. Diagonal cracks are also pretty scary – they show that something has either broken or lost its support within the walls. A “stair-step” crack goes horizontal, then vertical, then horizontal, etc. It looks like a set of stairs and is one of the worst cracks to see because it means there’s definitely a big structural problem.
It Keeps Getting Worse
As you can imagine, cracks that get deeper and wider will be problematic. If you notice a small crack starts opening up and getting a lot worse, then it’s time to call the experts. It means something is forcing the crack to open up, which could eventually lead to the whole wall splitting in two.
To sum things up, most of the cracks in your home are nothing to worry about. They’re minor aesthetic issues that a bit of filler or paint will fix. However, be aware of the signs of severe cracks, as they cause serious home issues. Spot the bad ones early to prevent devastating property problems.
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