Woke up this morning and noticed a crack in my basement wall that i swear wasnt there yesterday. Its about 3 feet long and runs diagonally from a corner of the window. The house is only 12 years old and we've never had foundation issues before. Is this normal settling or should i be calling someone immediately? Im kind of freaking out here
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First things first - take a deep breath. Diagonal cracks from window corners are actually pretty common and often not structural. That area is a stress point. How wide is the crack? Can you fit a credit card in it or is it hairline?
its pretty thin, maybe like the thickness of a dime? definitely cant fit a credit card
thats good news. anything under 1/8 inch is usually cosmetic. monitor it for a few weeks - put a piece of tape across it and mark the date. if the tape tears or the crack grows significantly, then get an inspection. but dont panic yet.
Had the exact same thing happen last year. Turned out it was just from the ground freezing and thawing. The crack showed up in February and by summer it hadnt gotten any bigger. Filled it with hydraulic cement and its been fine since. Hasnt come back.
One thing to check - is there any horizontal movement? Put your hand on both sides of the crack and feel if one side is pushed in more than the other. Thats what you really want to watch for. Diagonal cracks that are just separation are one thing, but if the wall is actually moving inward thats more concerning.
just checked and both sides feel flush. thats good right?
i know exactly how youre feeling. when i found my first crack i barely slept for a week. got 3 different foundation companies to come look at it and they all said it was nothing to worry about. sometimes houses just crack a little, especially in climates with freeze thaw cycles.