When Good FHA Inspectors Go Bad

I was called out to an inspection in Provo today. It was cool because this little development was originally built by Geneva Steel as a company town. I've grown up in Utah County, and my dad worked for all of my childhood at Geneva steel, but I never knew that this little area existed, or that it was a Geneva Steel town. All the homes were identical and small, but were fairly well maintained as viewed from the street.

Quaint

So I was paid to go take a look at a structural question. It seems the foundation had moved in this old house, resulting in a crack. The foundation wasn't bowed out. There were no water issues, just an old foundation doing what old concrete foundations do: they crack a bit and move around somewhat.

There's Two Kinds of Concrete: What's Cracked, and What's Gonna Crack

It was sad charging this guy for the inspection. Here's a thought that may take some money out of my pocket, but so be it: Foundations support a vertical load. Concrete cracks. If the concrete cracks are vertical, it usually has more to do with the concrete than with structural stresses. The structure is fine - usually - when the cracks are vertical. This foundation was still more than capable of bearing the structural load. I passed it.

Now, there's a big red flag going up in my head. Please don't assume from reading this that any and all foundation cracks are meaningless. I can look quickly and determine what's happening, but that's because I'm a structural engineer and a very experienced home inspector (being in the biz since 1993 gives a guy some background, but it also makes you an old dude).

 Moral of the Story

Foundation cracks are like dog donations on your lawn. It happens. The trick is to prevent the cracks from resulting in indirect but related problems, like water entry, termites, rot and mold. Keep the water out and you'll be in much better shape.

 www.crossroadsengineers.com