Spent 3 years ignoring a crack in my basement floor in Cleveland

I moved into this house in 2019 and noticed a hairline crack in the basement slab near the corner. Kept telling myself it was just settling and swept it under the rug. Last month after a heavy rain, I found water pooling down there and a 3/8 inch gap where the crack used to be. Anyone else just put off basement issues until they become a bigger problem?

3 comments

3 Comments

umar5914d agoTop Commenter

That 3/8 inch gap after rain means you probably have water undermining the slab now too. Did you check if the ground outside slopes toward your foundation or if your gutters are dumping water right there? Honestly, that crack might be the least of your problems if your soil is getting saturated and pushing against the basement walls.

the_oscar14d ago

Yo did you ever try that hydraulic cement stuff? I had a crack in my slab near the wall and that's what fixed mine, just filled it in and it sealed up tight. Worked way better than I thought it would, and it's pretty cheap too.

robertb4715d ago

lol yeah that sounds about right. I had a similar thing with a window well in my last place - ignored a tiny chip in the concrete for like 2 years then boom, a storm hit and I had a mini swimming pool in the basement. Ended up having to rent a pump at 10pm from the hardware store and my wife was not happy about it. The crack in your floor is probably just the start too, those things always spread like spiderwebs once water gets in. Hope you got it patched up before it turns into a sinkhole down there lmao.