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Foundation Inspection & Certification

Foundation Inspection and Certification

The structural system in a home is one of the most important and potentially costly if problems exist. Our Home Inspectors and Structural Engineers are experts in identifying potential issues in your home's structural framing or foundation wall that could end up costing you thousands if not detected.

Newly-placed concrete develops tensile stresses as differences in temperature and moisture content develop in the drying concrete. These stresses are relieved by cracking. A number of factors can influence the development of such stresses.

Control of Crack Locations

Control joints are sometimes installed in an attempt to determine the areas at which concrete will crack. Control joints are grooves pressed into the concrete during the finishing process. Because the concrete slab is thinner and weaker at these grooved areas, it tends to develop cracks in these grooves first. Because of the many factors which can influence the locations at which cracks develop, they sometimes appear in areas other than at control joints.

Restraint to Shrinkage
According to the Portland Cement Association, restraint to shrinkage is the most common cause of concrete cracking. This condition is inherent in continuously-poured concrete slabs.  In applications such as concrete slabs and residential foundation walls, cracking is inevitable and expected.
As the surface of concrete dries, water evaporates from the spaces between particles. As this water dissipates, the particles move closer together, resulting in shrinkage of the concrete. Because the surface of a concrete slab is exposed to air but the underlying concrete is not, concrete near the surface dries and shrinks at a rate different from that of the underlying concrete. The underlying concrete acts as a restraint to shrinkage, resulting in cracking of the surface layer.

Factors Influencing Locations of Crack Development
  • Thermal cracking:
    Temperature differences can contribute to the development of cracks.
    The chemical hydration process through which concrete hardens produces heat which causes concrete to expand. At the same time, concrete at the surface of the slab is exposed to air and loses water through evaporation. Both of these conditions contribute to cooling and shrinking of the concrete near the surface.

    The hot, expanding underlying concrete acts as a restraint to shrinkage of the cooling, shrinking surface concrete. This condition produces tensile stresses which are relieved by cracking of concrete near the surface.

  • Plastic cracking:
    Water may sometimes evaporate from the surface concrete faster than moisture can migrate from the underlying concrete to replace it. When this happens, surface concrete will dry more quickly than underlying concrete. The resulting differences in moisture content produce tensile stresses which are relieved by cracking of concrete near the surface.

  • Shrinkage cracking:
    When concrete is mixed, more water than is needed for hydration is mixed with the dry components, such as sand, cement and an aggregate. Most of the water will eventually evaporate, causing shrinkage of the concrete slab. Since water evaporates from the surface, which is exposed to air, at a rate different from the underlying concrete, this differential shrinkage rate produces tensile stresses which are relieved by cracking of concrete near the surface.

Identifying Shrinkage Cracks
The following are visual clues which help to differentiate shrinkage cracks from other types of cracks which can appear in concrete slabs and foundation walls.

  • Vertical displacement:
    Cracks which are caused by soil settlement or heaving typically exhibit vertical displacement of the concrete; concrete on one side of the crack will be higher than concrete on the other side.

  • Linear crack continuity:
    Cracks caused by shrinkage are typically not linearly continuous. Although they make look continuous at first, if viewed closely, interruptions in the crack line can be seen.

  • Continuity through the slab:
    Shrinkage cracks are not continuous through the slab, but are actually cracks in the concrete surface.

  • Corrosion:
    When reinforcement steel is placed too near the surface, it can corrode. Expansion results as steel is converted to iron oxide through corrosion. This expansion can crack the concrete surface. When the crack is caused by corroding steel, corrosion is typically visible at the slab surface.

  • Alkali-aggregate reaction:
    Alkali-aggregate reaction is deterioration resulting from the reaction of an aggregate with alkali hydroxides in the concrete. Indications of this type of deterioration may be a network of cracks, closed or spalling joints, or displacement of different portions of a structure.

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Our Primary Office Locations in Ohio & North Carolina


Raleigh, North Carolina (main address for payments)
3052 Cinder Bluff Dr
Raleigh, NC 27603
​984-261-2787

Cleveland, Ohio
16115 Waterloo Rd
​Cleveland, OH 44110
216-672-6185
Dublin, Ohio
6214 Inishmore Ln
Dublin, Ohio 43017
​614-364-3829

Dayton, Ohio
60 Camden Park Ct
Springboro, OH 45066
​937-396-5239
Cincinnati, Ohio
5605 Bridgetown Rd #10
Cincinnati, OH 45248
​513-306-4640

Toledo, Ohio
478 Dearborn Ave.
Toledo, Ohio 43605
419-329-4623

Ohio Service Areas

CINCINNATI
BLUE ASH
HAMILTON
LEBANON
LOVELAND
MASON
MIDDLETOWN
WYOMING
CLEVELAND
BAY VILLAGE
BEACHWOOD
BEDFORD
BROOKLYN
CHAGRIN FALLS
EUCLID
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS
INDEPENDENCE
LAKEWOOD
NORTH OLMSTEAD
PARMA
ROME
SHAKER HEIGHTS
SOLON
​STRONGSVILLE
WESTLAKE
Columbus
CIRCLEVILLE
CLINTONVILLE
DELAWARE
DUBLIN
GAHANNA
GRANDVIEW HEIGHTS
GROVE CITY
LANCASTER
LEWIS CENTER
MARYSVILLE
NEW ALBANY
PATASKALA
PICKERINGTON
PLAIN CITY
POWELL
REYNOLDSBURG
WORTHINGTON
ZANESVILLE
Dayton
BEAVERCREEK
CENTERVILLE
FAIRBORN
HUBER HEIGHTS
KETTERING
MIAMISBURG
SPRINGBORO
WEST CARROLLTON
Toledo
​BOWLING GREEN
​
HOLLAND
​
MAUMEE
​
PERRYSBURG
SWANTON
SYLVANIA
WATERVILLE

North Carolina Service Areas​

Raleigh
Holly Springs
Fuquay-Varina
Angier
Mt. Pleasant
Smithfield
Clayton
Knightdale
Zebulon
Rollsville
Wake Forest
Youngsville
Morrisville
Carey
Apex
Durham
Chapel Hill
Pittsboro
Mebane
Greensboro
High Point
Ashboro
Winston-salem
Huntsville
Clemmons
Wilmington
Wrightsboro
Kings Grant
Myrtle Grove
Sea Breeze
Carolina Beach
Kure Beach
Leland
Castle Hayne

Contact us at: 888-301-3186
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  • Home
  • Services
    • Full Home Inspection
    • Termite Inspection
    • Radon Testing
    • Mold Testing
    • Thermal Imaging
    • Sewer Scope Inspection
    • Foundation Certification
    • Crack Monitoring Program
    • Manufactured Home Certification FHA VA and HUD
    • Scope of Inspection >
      • Ohio
      • North Carolina
    • Rates
  • About
    • Areas Served >
      • Ohio >
        • Columbus, OH >
          • Circleville, OH
          • Clintonville, OH
          • Delaware, OH
          • Dublin, OH
          • Gahanna, OH
          • Grandview Heights, OH
          • Grove City, OH
          • Lancaster, OH
          • Marysville, OH
          • Lewis Center, OH
          • New Albany, OH
          • Pataskala, OH
          • Pickerington, OH
          • Plain City, OH
          • Powell, OH
          • Reynoldsburg, OH
          • Worthington, OH
          • Zanesville, OH
        • Cleveland, OH >
          • Bay Village, OH
          • Beachwood, OH
          • Bedford Heights, OH
          • Brooklyn, OH
          • Chagrin Falls, OH
          • Euclid, OH
          • Highland Heights, OH
          • Independence, OH
          • Lakewood, OH
          • North Olmstead, OH
          • Parma, OH
          • Rome, OH
          • Shaker Heights, OH
          • Solon, OH
          • Strongsville, OH
          • Westlake, OH
        • Toledo, OH >
          • Bowling Green, OH
          • Holland, OH
          • Maumee, OH
          • Perrysburg, OH
          • Swanton, OH
          • Sylvania, OH
          • Waterville, OH
        • Cincinnati, OH >
          • Blue Ash, OH
          • Hamilton, OH
          • Loveland, OH
          • Lebanon, OH
          • Mason, OH
          • Middletown, OH
          • Wyoming, OH
        • Dayton, OH >
          • Beavercreek, OH
          • Centerville, OH
          • Fairborn, OH
          • Huber Heights, OH
          • Kettering, OH
          • Miamisburg, OH
          • Springboro, OH
          • West Carrollton, OH
      • North Carolina >
        • Raleigh, NC
    • FAQ
    • Contact Us
  • Resources
    • Inspection Library
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  • Schedule