Cracks may be caused by settling of the soil below the wall. The wall may have been built on land that was not compact enough for it. Or, the soil may have shifted because of groundwater, cycles of freezing and thawing, or other reasons and carried one part of the wall with it. If the crack continues to open even a small fraction of an inch over many months, the structural problem must be solved before the wall is damaged to the point where it must be replaced.

Block cracks are explained in Section G of The Home Waterproofers Manual – Home Waterproofing A to Z. What looks like a very serious and expensive problem may not be and may be relatively easy to fix.. Once they are explained, seeing what’s happening and why, makes common sense. Knowing what’s going on can save thousands of dollars and many headaches. Don’t put yourself at the mercy of high priced waterproofers.

You can save thousands of dollars and many headaches by learning what is going on first. Often what looks like an expensive and serious problem may not be. Once the problem is explained, solving it is just common sense. I’ve used the knowledge I’ve put in The Home Waterproofers Manual – Home Waterproofing A to Z every day to fix water problems. It will work for you too.

But remember, when dealing with salesmen, in the waterproofing business it’s “buyer beware”. Most get a percentage of the sale and don’t consider it their job to save you money. They charge as much as they can. If they see a problem that can be fixed at low cost, or one that has a simple solution, they won’t mention it, but will only talk about “preventing serious damage” and try to scare you into signing a big contract.