Terence McCann Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Hello All: Will be doing a home inspection on Tuesday afternoon. During our phone conversation the client spoke about numerous cracks in the basement floor. He stated that there were "many" cracks in the floor however, they were not uneven (high & low spots). The home was built in '98. Bad mix, dried out to quick? Any thoughts before I go out? TIA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Morrison Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Terry, It's tough to find an uncracked concrete floor slab in my area, regardless of when it was placed. Chances are good that your client is just a bit nervous over nothing. Bring a camera along and post some pics if you like, but my guess is, it's nothing. Unless control joints are cut strategically into the floor, they'll all crack. Most people just seal 'em and forget 'em -or just forget 'em. Good Luck, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisprickett Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Terence, Check out this site: http://www.concretenetwork.com/concrete ... index.html Good stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terence McCann Posted December 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Thanks guys. Chris, that link goes in the live well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 It's part of the continuing downward spiral of trade competency. The guys pouring bsmt. floors are usually the dog troops, & have never been schooled in what concrete is or how it behaves. To make slurrying the mud to the corners easier, they soup it up w/ WAY too much water; too much water = crappy concrete. Couple that w/ the usual uncompacted subgrade soil & other crappy installation practices, & the stuff cracks. Contrary to Jim's post, they don't all crack; I could show you lots of concrete floors here in Chicago that were done in the 50's w/ no control joints whatsoever, and no cracks. These are floors that pitch 1/8" per foot to floor drains over the entire bsmt., and are finished so nicely the concrete doesn't "dust" even a tiny bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisprickett Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Originally posted by kurt It's part of the continuing downward spiral of trade competency. The guys pouring bsmt. floors are usually the dog troops, & have never been schooled in what concrete is or how it behaves. To make slurrying the mud to the corners easier, they soup it up w/ WAY too much water; too much water = crappy concrete. Couple that w/ the usual uncompacted subgrade soil & other crappy installation practices, & the stuff cracks. Contrary to Jim's post, they don't all crack; I could show you lots of concrete floors here in Chicago that were done in the 50's w/ no control joints whatsoever, and no cracks. These are floors that pitch 1/8" per foot to floor drains over the entire bsmt., and are finished so nicely the concrete doesn't "dust" even a tiny bit. That's when a "smoke was a smoke". These days, you can't find a slab that doesn't crack. At least no in AZ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Morrison Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Originally posted by kurt Contrary to Jim's post, they don't all crack; I could show you lots of concrete floors here in Chicago that were done in the 50's w/ no control joints whatsoever, and no cracks. These are floors that pitch 1/8" per foot to floor drains over the entire bsmt., and are finished so nicely the concrete doesn't "dust" even a tiny bit. Shit, Kurt -that comparison aint fair. In 1950's Chicago they were pouring basement floors over an 18 inch layer of compacted teamsters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusty Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Originally posted by Jim Morrison Originally posted by kurt Contrary to Jim's post, they don't all crack; I could show you lots of concrete floors here in Chicago that were done in the 50's w/ no control joints whatsoever, and no cracks. These are floors that pitch 1/8" per foot to floor drains over the entire bsmt., and are finished so nicely the concrete doesn't "dust" even a tiny bit. Shit, Kurt -that comparison aint fair. In 1950's Chicago they were pouring basement floors over an 18 inch layer of compacted teamsters. LMAO! ROFL![:-bonc01][:-bonc01] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted December 14, 2004 Report Share Posted December 14, 2004 Originally posted by Jim Morrison Shit, Kurt -that comparison aint fair. In 1950's Chicago they were pouring basement floors over an 18 inch layer of compacted teamsters. That's good stuff; I'm stealing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted December 15, 2004 Report Share Posted December 15, 2004 My wife's grandad was a teamster in Chicago, and he independently confirmed those rumors to her. Remember too, that those specs apply to residential as well, and don't forget the added reinforcement of random firearms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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