Put a soaker hose around the house.
House cracking...Settling? Low humidity?
- Thread starter HawkeyeScott
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Here is a link to picture of one of the window frames on the front of the house. This is representative of what is showing up with the molding too. (Sorry for just the link. Best I could do.)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46679730@N08/4277351233/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46679730@N08/4277351233/
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take some photo's. i can't really make out if it is just aesthetic fittings or actually your structure that is cracking from what i've read.
if you've recently had a very wet or dry few months this may make the soil shrink and swell and cause cracking, especially on a thin slab. usually the slab would have been engineered to accommodate these movements.
if the cracking is in your structure around the perimeter of the building, where the most moisture changes in the soil would occur, then you have a foundation and reactivity issue.
what kind of ground do you have there? if it is sandy, the above is unlikely; if you're on fatty clays that is probably your problem.
if you've recently had a very wet or dry few months this may make the soil shrink and swell and cause cracking, especially on a thin slab. usually the slab would have been engineered to accommodate these movements.
if the cracking is in your structure around the perimeter of the building, where the most moisture changes in the soil would occur, then you have a foundation and reactivity issue.
what kind of ground do you have there? if it is sandy, the above is unlikely; if you're on fatty clays that is probably your problem.
Hawkeye,
First, nice to meet another North Carolinian on here!
A lot of your problems are most likely coming from geology. I'm not sure of your location, but I'll bet you are in the Piedmont somewhere given the age and type of home. Geology gives us lots of problems in this state. Clay soils have tremendous shrink/swell, and we sit on one of the most extensive landslide areas in the country - but our landslides tend to be the slower type instead of the dramatic ones you see in California or other places.
Clay soils as I mentioned are very responsive to moisture. As you know we had been in a drought for almost a decade, with the most severe part being in 2007. Now, in 2009, the heavens doused us with a fire hose. Our soils went from extremely dry to quite wet very quickly, and the actual change in size is pretty dramatic. Clay soils also tend to "slump" as you can see on almost any hillside - if you are built on or above a hill you'll be seeing this too. (I know back about 10 years ago, a big shopping center moved in up here and several large retaining walls were built to hold up the parking lot. Now the walls are bulging and leaning horribly from the soil pressure.)
Chances are a lot of people are experiencing the same problems you are but aren't observant enough to notice. There's not really a lot you can do but be aware of what's going on and alert someone if you notice any dramatic changes. We're not at risk for a sudden landslide unless we get a big hurricane or something, but our soils do move and shift around a lot. Settling, cracks, and movement are inevitable, but not necessarily destructive.
Take care.
First, nice to meet another North Carolinian on here!
A lot of your problems are most likely coming from geology. I'm not sure of your location, but I'll bet you are in the Piedmont somewhere given the age and type of home. Geology gives us lots of problems in this state. Clay soils have tremendous shrink/swell, and we sit on one of the most extensive landslide areas in the country - but our landslides tend to be the slower type instead of the dramatic ones you see in California or other places.
Clay soils as I mentioned are very responsive to moisture. As you know we had been in a drought for almost a decade, with the most severe part being in 2007. Now, in 2009, the heavens doused us with a fire hose. Our soils went from extremely dry to quite wet very quickly, and the actual change in size is pretty dramatic. Clay soils also tend to "slump" as you can see on almost any hillside - if you are built on or above a hill you'll be seeing this too. (I know back about 10 years ago, a big shopping center moved in up here and several large retaining walls were built to hold up the parking lot. Now the walls are bulging and leaning horribly from the soil pressure.)
Chances are a lot of people are experiencing the same problems you are but aren't observant enough to notice. There's not really a lot you can do but be aware of what's going on and alert someone if you notice any dramatic changes. We're not at risk for a sudden landslide unless we get a big hurricane or something, but our soils do move and shift around a lot. Settling, cracks, and movement are inevitable, but not necessarily destructive.
Take care.
Houses go up fast nowadays,and a few years down the road, settling occurs. 10 years of changing seasons takes it's toll.
Scores of 'nail pops' in the drywall, cracks, etc.
Repair what you can - it's all fixable.
Consider it normal.
Scores of 'nail pops' in the drywall, cracks, etc.
Repair what you can - it's all fixable.
Consider it normal.
The photo seems to indicate wood shrinkage from lack of humidity. Winter conditions tend to dry out homes unless an alternative moisture source (humidifier) is available. However, that can cause condensation issues on windows in cold climates. I just deal with the dry conditions. It's much less of an issue than mould developing on your window frames due to condensation.
Yes Byrd, I am in the Piedmont. (Not too far out of CLT.) And before I lived here I'd never thought much about sinkholes and settling. But I know they can be a real part of life here. (Did you ever hear about the one in Hickory a few years ago? Basically ruined a new restaurant. Swallowed up a Corvette when it happened!)
The more I think and read about this, the more I feel I'm dealing with the effects of dry air. There is no cracking where the ceiling and walls come together. If a wall was moving, it sure seems like there should be cracks there and not mid-wall. The caulking around the molding - which is in the middle of the wall - has poppoed the most. I am not a carpenter but foundation settling or sagging lumber in the attic don't seem like they should affect chair rail molding hung in the middle of a wall in a 3rd story bedroom.
Maybe I am naive but I think I'd see cracking in different areas if it was a structural issue.
Hopefully.
Thanks for weighing in everyone. This forum is invaluable for the great advice and insight I get anytime I post. I hope someday I can be as useful to you.
The more I think and read about this, the more I feel I'm dealing with the effects of dry air. There is no cracking where the ceiling and walls come together. If a wall was moving, it sure seems like there should be cracks there and not mid-wall. The caulking around the molding - which is in the middle of the wall - has poppoed the most. I am not a carpenter but foundation settling or sagging lumber in the attic don't seem like they should affect chair rail molding hung in the middle of a wall in a 3rd story bedroom.
Maybe I am naive but I think I'd see cracking in different areas if it was a structural issue.
Hopefully.
Thanks for weighing in everyone. This forum is invaluable for the great advice and insight I get anytime I post. I hope someday I can be as useful to you.
If the doors on the third floor are indeed not sticking due to movement, and the only minor cracks you are seeing are at window and door openings. I would tend to agree with your optimism.
When you started talking about heavy traffic and the house moving, coupled with the door frames on the third floor possibly shifting, that concerned me. But you sound like you are looking at the right things. Keep an eye on the drywall at all levels at all openings and at the corners of each room.
When you started talking about heavy traffic and the house moving, coupled with the door frames on the third floor possibly shifting, that concerned me. But you sound like you are looking at the right things. Keep an eye on the drywall at all levels at all openings and at the corners of each room.
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