Setting Up My Tracking System
I spent one Saturday afternoon building a system I've used for five years.
The Crack Map
First thing I did was sketch a floor plan of my basement. Drew each wall, marked each crack with a number. Crack 1, Crack 2, Crack 3. I have four total. My sketch isn't pretty, but it's been the same reference document for five years.
The map helps me remember which crack is which. They all look kind of similar. Without the map, I'd waste time figuring out which one I was supposed to measure where.
Measurement Points
For each crack, I picked a specific spot to measure width. Usually the widest point. I put a tiny piece of blue tape above each measurement point so I could find it again. Some of that tape is still there five years later, faded but visible.
Consistency matters more than precision. Measuring the same spot with slight error is more useful than measuring different spots perfectly.
The Spreadsheet
I'm not fancy, but I made a simple spreadsheet. Columns: Date, Crack 1 Width, Crack 2 Width, Crack 3 Width, Crack 4 Width, Notes. One row per measurement session. Looking at it now, I have 47 entries over five years.
The spreadsheet lets me graph the data. A flat line showing no change is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen on a computer screen.
Photo Protocol
Every time I measure, I photograph each crack. Ruler in frame, same angle every time. I have folders named "2019," "2020," and so on. Within each folder, subfolders for each measurement date. "2024-12-crack-photos."
Looking back at photos from 2019 compared to today is incredibly reassuring. Identical. Absolutely identical.
What I Track
Width is most important, but it's not the only thing.
Crack Width
My primary metric. I use a $15 crack gauge card. Match the crack width to the printed lines. My widest crack has been 1/8 inch since I started. Sometimes it looks like a hair wider in winter. Thermal contraction. But the trend over years is flat.
Rick told me a crack that stays the same width forever is dormant. Growing cracks are the ones that need attention. My data shows mine are dormant.
Crack Length
I have pencil marks at the ends of each crack, dated. If a crack grows past my mark, it's extending. None of mine have. My marks from 2019 are still at the crack ends in 2024.
I check length less precisely than width. I just look to see if the crack extends past my marks. Yes or no. The answer has always been no.
Appearance
Fresh cracks look clean and new. Old cracks get stained, dusty, weathered. My cracks look old. Paint flakes in them. Mineral deposits. They look like they've been there forever because they have been.
If I ever saw fresh-looking edges on an old crack, or concrete dust that wasn't there before, I'd know something was moving.
Related Symptoms
I also note if doors are sticking or if I've noticed anything else weird in the house. The answer is always "everything normal" but I write it down anyway. If something changed, the pattern would show up in my notes.
Understanding Seasonal Patterns
Year one taught me that cracks breathe with the seasons.
The Winter Scare
First January, my widest crack looked bigger. I panicked. Measured it. Came out to maybe 1/8 inch plus a hair. Was it growing? I checked my November measurement. Same thing. But wait, July had seemed tighter...
I called Rick. He laughed. Concrete contracts in cold. Cracks open in winter, close in summer. It's thermal expansion and contraction. Normal.
Cyclical vs. Progressive
The key distinction Rick taught me: cyclical movement that repeats the same pattern every year is fine. Progressive movement where each year's maximum is bigger than last year's is the problem.
My cracks are cyclical. Winter 2020 looked like winter 2021 looked like winter 2022. The pattern repeats. No progression. That's what stable looks like.
Why You Need a Full Year
You can't understand a crack with three months of data. You need to see all four seasons. You need to see the winter maximum and summer minimum. Only then can you separate seasonal variation from actual growth.
I tell everyone who asks: monitor for a full year before drawing conclusions. Anything less and you're just guessing.
Year Over Year Comparison
Now I compare winter to winter, summer to summer. Is January 2024 the same as January 2023? Yes. Is this winter's maximum width the same as last winter's? Yes. That year-over-year comparison is what proves long-term stability.
How Tracking Helped Gary
My system caught his problem when his eyes couldn't.
His Initial Denial
When Gary first showed me his horizontal crack, he wanted me to tell him it was fine. I could see it wasn't fine, but I didn't want to scare him without evidence. I suggested we measure and track it for a few months.
He resisted at first. Didn't want to know. But I convinced him that data is better than guessing. We set up the same system I use. Pencil marks at the ends, width measurement at the widest point, photos.
Three Months of Bad News
His first measurement was 3/16 inch wide. A month later, still 3/16. I started hoping maybe it was stable. Month three, closer to 1/4 inch. His pencil marks were definitely inside the crack ends now. Growing.
The photos were even more obvious. Side by side, you could see the crack opening. No denying it.
The Data Made The Call
Without tracking, Gary might have convinced himself it was fine for another year. He wanted to believe that. But three months of objective data showing growth made the decision for him. He called an engineer.
The engineer looked at Gary's tracking records and said they were more useful than anything else Gary could have provided. Three data points showing progressive failure told the story clearly.
The Contrast With My Cracks
My five years of flat-line data versus Gary's three months of increasing width. That's the difference between a dormant crack and an active one. You can't see that difference by just looking. You need numbers over time.
Interpreting Your Data
What do the numbers actually mean?
Stable Is Stable
If measurements stay essentially unchanged for a year or more, accounting for seasonal variation, the crack is dormant. It's history. It formed in the past and stopped. My cracks fall in this category. Cosmetic. Not a problem.
Slow Growth Is Warning
A crack that grows 1/16 inch per year isn't an emergency, but it's a trend. That pace means it doubles in width over a decade or so. Worth getting a professional opinion if you see slow but steady growth.
Fast Growth Is Urgent
A crack that's noticeably bigger every few months needs immediate professional attention. Gary's three months of visible growth was fast enough to be concerning. He didn't have time to wait and see.
Sudden Change Is Emergency
Any dramatic change over a short period, like a crack doubling overnight or a new horizontal crack appearing, warrants immediate attention. Foundations move slowly. Fast changes mean something serious is happening.
Making Tracking Easy
The system only works if you actually use it.
Set Calendar Reminders
I have recurring calendar reminders. First Saturday of January, April, July, October. When the reminder pops up, I go to the basement for fifteen minutes. No thinking required. The calendar tells me when.
Keep Tools Together
My flashlight, crack gauge, and notebook live in a kitchen drawer. When it's time to check, I grab everything at once. No hunting for tools. The easier you make it, the more likely you'll do it consistently.
Make It Quick
My quarterly checks take fifteen minutes. Walk around, check marks, measure widths, snap photos, write a line in my notebook. If I tried to make it a big production, I'd skip it. Quick and simple keeps me consistent.
Review Annually
Once a year, usually in January, I look at all my data from the past year. Graph it if I haven't lately. Compare to previous years. This annual review is when I'd catch any concerning trends. Five years running, the review just confirms stability.