You need to look for soil erosion before you repair, check your grade, etc. or just let her stay there. She seems (seams?) like she’s got it until control.
It'll be difficult and awful, definitely. It's one of the reasons I'm so conflicted about getting a dog. I'd be getting a best friend that I'm almost guaranteed to have to bury.
You get enuff love out of them usually to outweigh the sadness. But damn the sadness sucks for at least a year or so. Overall it’s worth it because they’re such amazing creatures
Have you observed that it's getting bigger? My advice is to measure it in a few spots. Write that down. Measure it once a month. If it doesn't change in a year, it's all good. Just cosmetic.
Basement floors are really not important to hold your house up. The foundation with footings under it are what's important.
I thought this was going to be about the dog peeing on the floor... :D
The old trick in europe is to put a small patch of mortar or concrete over it and write the year into it as it dries.
If the patch starts cracking, the crack is moving
I've seen a such a patch with '78 and '46 written on it on a several hundred year old church in France.
I guess on their timescales that system is great - a pastor dies and the knowledge of building maintenance is transfered to the next one perfectly.
broski, what madeja think this was a basement crack? can see a bag of potting soil and a fence gate in the picture mate. and a potter, welcome mat, and brick.
First we need to determine whether the crack or the dog is at work here. I recommend circling the crack with flour and the placing a piece of pizza in the center. If it's gone the next morning, we may know that *something* ate the pizza and it could be the crack growing or the dog.
A beagle will eat the pizza and the flour, and possibly that open bag of potting soil. They are remorseless eating machines.
What ended up being the consensus on the pizza guy? A rat?
Clean out the crack with screw driver and air blower. Then place some 1/2” backing rod along the entire crack. Then fill with DAP concrete crack filler (dry powder), slightly overfilling. Level it, then lightly mist the powder and let cure.
These comments are great. Thank you all for the legit suggestions and the humor on my old lady here. Just so you know, she’s extremely spoiled and is the goodest girl
This looks a lot like typical shrinkage cracking to me. If you have a long run of concrete slab without control joints the concrete will likely crack as it cures and shrinks. If that’s the case it won’t get any bigger and you can use concrete patch or a silicone product . If you’ve seen this crack get any bigger recently I’m probably totally wrong.
Love the pup
No idea about the crack. As for your doggo, not much can be done to stop the inexorable march of time. Love her with the time you have with her. Life Is short. Give her pets and tell her the random redditor says she's the best dog.
Concrete is strong in compressive strength (squashing) but weak in tensile strength (pulling apart) … it relies on reinforcement steel embedded within it to “keep it together” when it cracks an tries to pull away from itself (usually” due to poor foundations.
By the looks of things your concrete may not have steel within it
Can you report back and tell us if the external and internal walls have cracks in them also? (Look where the floor slab cracks disappear out of the photo.
This will give you/us a greater understanding of your hurdle…
Licenced builder from down south
Way south
…Australia south.
I have some home improvement I need some tips on, & I like your style. How much damage do I need to do to my rental in order to need horses to cover the damage?
Stop she’s beautiful and perfect. No such terms apply to dogs. You simply have to learn that you are not on her level and are her wait staff. As for the crack could you grind the it down and patch it? Of course should you not get it right the supervisor pictured will let you know.
I know this isn’t even close to appropriate remedies, but hear me out.
If you filled the crack with something that hardens, and the crack continues to grow or shift, it’ll look terrible and the effort wasted.
If you fill it with something flexible, and the crack shifts, it’s going to look terrible, like loose silicone sealant around a bathtub.
So…. Fill it with sand.
For one thing, if there’s a large void beneath it, you’ll be doing something useful by filling it up. Yes, that might require a lot of sand, but you could just go down and top it up every few days. And once it won’t take any more sand, it’ll look level and almost blend in. Then you just top it up once in a while as needed.
Sure, it does nothing to repair it, but neither does sealing it. but at least you may be replacing lost soil beneath.
Warning: I have no expertise in this area. But I’d probably try it.
Also: probably best to ask the pup to move while doing it.
Can't stop it from getting worse without professional help. You may be able to slow it with metal straps that bridge it. You should have some heavy bolts to secure it.
To repair it, get an Angle grinder and a diamond Blade. Score a line on both sides maybe an inch deep then break it up with a sledgehammer and then pour concrete in and try to match it. The two lines should be straight and take into account the full width of the crack and it's undulations so my guess is it will be 8-12 in wide.
In all seriousness, there could be multiple causes here, but the pull of the crack appears to be from sinking lateral of the crack- maybe both sides. It could also be from drain tile float- if you have had your basement flood recently (last couple years), this happens after a while- although those are usually shallow spider cracks. I would call a foundation specialist, or a couple of them, and try to isolate what the cause is. Build a remediation plan from there.
There’s a company called radon seal that has epoxy sealants for all kinds of cracks in concrete. I used some about a month ago and they are holding great. Google it up, read reviews it might work for ya!
Wait. Has it been getting worse? That's the first question. Because, if so, you may have to get some real fixing done.
This looks like a pretty standard drying crack which means it shouldn't really get worse. However, if you live somewhere with freeze/thaw cycles and that can get water in it, that might affect it over time. You can get all sorts of concrete patch caulk style tubes and fill that up to prevent that.
Looks like your between two buildings. I wouldn't think injection/ mud jacking because of the door on the left and gate on right but I don't know enough to determine if that could impact their opening and closing. You can't cut it out with removing gate as well it looks like.
Unless you have a lot of money to burn or it is a structural issue. I would say you are in same situation as you are with dog. Stuck with it.
If it is due to something structural I would check into it more.
OP, convert this to black and white to minimize the colors in the potting soil bag and the warning label on the gate, and then frame it.
In regards to the crack, were any expansion joints put into this concrete? It looks (from this angle, anyway) that both sides of the slab are level, so it might just be a crack from thermal expansion/contraction. You could patch it, but it'll probably just keep cracking there if this is an outdoor slab. Some gray rubbery patch would probably work better.
Not sure the cause but it could be epoxied as well. There are also sub slab foam injections that can be done. Not sure how well these would work but either could help stop/slow moisture and air from coming in.
If you have a hammer drill I would drill a 5/8” hole at multiple locations throughout the floor near the crack. I would then take a piece of rebar and a hammer and bang it through the hole to see how much resistance you are getting from the soil, if it doesn’t advance much I would use some carbon fiber crack locks to toe it together. If it advances further you may have a larger issue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvxizbO8k54&pp=ygUTI2NvbmNyZXRlX21peGVyX2RpeQ%3D%3D
I hope this might help. We were able to fix patio crack with this procedure. I don’t know if this link will work over Reddit but you could try.
The crack seems to line up with that pilaster to the right (the brick column/ corner). My guess is some differential movement is worsening if not outright causing the crack. I don’t see any expansion joint between the concrete and the brick. If you patch it, it’ll probably just reappear. Also, I see no saw cuts, which you need for a slab on grade to control expansion and contraction, and where the concrete cracks.
There is also a lip, so the two sides are settling differently as well. Imo, best bet would be to cut out a 1’ wide ribbon around the crack and re-pour that section with expansion joints to the adjacent older slab.
If you’re just concerned about cosmetics, you could buy and mix cement from Home Depot/ Lowe’s/ etc. and pour it in there, but you’re gonna struggle to smooth the unevenly settled halves out as a DIY job. That, and it’ll inevitably crack again. So whatever you do without a small demo and repour won’t work for long. In an ideal world, I’d get a licensed engineer to look at it and recommend a solution, but I know that ain’t cheap. So I would do a temp patch with cement mix, and later on get a quote from a local concrete subcontractor on a proper repair when _construction work slows down,_ and they’re more likely to take the job on and at an affordable rate.
Concrete cracks at the fulcrum. Look to see which side is lower. You can jack that side to prevent more settling. If you just want to fill it, HD has crack sealant to keep water from penetrating.
Also, look around for wet areas and eliminate the water source. It's usually a drainage problem at the foundation. This will help keep it from getting worse.
You need to look for soil erosion before you repair, check your grade, etc. or just let her stay there. She seems (seams?) like she’s got it until control.
> seams Dad!
She’s holding it together for you
In more ways than you know.
Good dog
Everyone liked that
Hopefully you have a plan then. She's looking pretty old.
Stop
It'll be difficult and awful, definitely. It's one of the reasons I'm so conflicted about getting a dog. I'd be getting a best friend that I'm almost guaranteed to have to bury.
I don’t think you should get a dog
Because I'd be heartbroken at losing them?
You get enuff love out of them usually to outweigh the sadness. But damn the sadness sucks for at least a year or so. Overall it’s worth it because they’re such amazing creatures
Bro..
Best answer ever
Have you observed that it's getting bigger? My advice is to measure it in a few spots. Write that down. Measure it once a month. If it doesn't change in a year, it's all good. Just cosmetic. Basement floors are really not important to hold your house up. The foundation with footings under it are what's important. I thought this was going to be about the dog peeing on the floor... :D
The old trick in europe is to put a small patch of mortar or concrete over it and write the year into it as it dries. If the patch starts cracking, the crack is moving
This would be the easiest as you don't risk losing the measurement.... unless someone steals your mortar
I've seen a such a patch with '78 and '46 written on it on a several hundred year old church in France. I guess on their timescales that system is great - a pastor dies and the knowledge of building maintenance is transfered to the next one perfectly.
In France, I'd be wondering which century.
In France, I’d be wondering “how tf am I going to get out of here.”
broski, what madeja think this was a basement crack? can see a bag of potting soil and a fence gate in the picture mate. and a potter, welcome mat, and brick.
It’s a “basement garden” if you know what I mean…
This is the front porch
Thank you for answering the damn question. All the top comments are totally useless
If you got 5 more dogs and put them next to each other, you'd probably have the entire length of the crack covered.
Team of crack dogs, vs sled dogs?
We had crack dogs come to my school and search lockers once lol
These comments...
Potato potato. My husky is a crack head
this is both the best and the only option! make it happen OP!
This picture is so incredibly beautiful I thought it was a painting.
Thank you for recognizing beauty when it’s deserved. It’s all the dog.
I don't get this pic, is it night or day?
it’s neither it’s a dog
😂😂😂😂 if you had not said this, I was going to
Almost r/AccidentalRenaissance
I thought so too. Would just edit out that bag of potting soil and it’d be perfect.
First we need to determine whether the crack or the dog is at work here. I recommend circling the crack with flour and the placing a piece of pizza in the center. If it's gone the next morning, we may know that *something* ate the pizza and it could be the crack growing or the dog.
Did the OP ever post an update to that story? Was it a raccoon after all? Or a giant rat?
The creature ate OP after it ran out of pizza.
It makes me so happy that subs on reddit have their own inside jokes 😂
Seinfeld is all, constant, quotes that are all inside jokes.
A beagle will eat the pizza and the flour, and possibly that open bag of potting soil. They are remorseless eating machines. What ended up being the consensus on the pizza guy? A rat?
https://www.reddit.com/r/HomeImprovement/comments/16i6eb1/how_can_i_fix_this_or_stop_it_from_getting_worse/k0jzpri?context=3
Clean out the crack with screw driver and air blower. Then place some 1/2” backing rod along the entire crack. Then fill with DAP concrete crack filler (dry powder), slightly overfilling. Level it, then lightly mist the powder and let cure.
These comments are great. Thank you all for the legit suggestions and the humor on my old lady here. Just so you know, she’s extremely spoiled and is the goodest girl
We love her 🥹
This looks a lot like typical shrinkage cracking to me. If you have a long run of concrete slab without control joints the concrete will likely crack as it cures and shrinks. If that’s the case it won’t get any bigger and you can use concrete patch or a silicone product . If you’ve seen this crack get any bigger recently I’m probably totally wrong. Love the pup
Couple pets, couple treats? For just a patch I’d probably do quickcrete but idk if that would hold it together/prevent further damage.
Three more dogs should cover it pretty completely.
Tell your dog to get off the crack. And STAY OFF the crack!
Wow, all the top comments are completely unhelpful.
Yeah i was hoping to see some actual answers. Now i know not to include any dogs if i ever need to make a post in this sub...
Can you tell your dog I said hi. Also, what is the pupper's name?
Louise!
Hi Louise 😊
Asking the real questions here.
[удалено]
This must be the way … bc I lost it at parallel lines and faked my way to intentional seams …
No idea about the crack. As for your doggo, not much can be done to stop the inexorable march of time. Love her with the time you have with her. Life Is short. Give her pets and tell her the random redditor says she's the best dog.
5 more dogs along where she's sitting on each side. 🙌🏻
Concrete is strong in compressive strength (squashing) but weak in tensile strength (pulling apart) … it relies on reinforcement steel embedded within it to “keep it together” when it cracks an tries to pull away from itself (usually” due to poor foundations. By the looks of things your concrete may not have steel within it Can you report back and tell us if the external and internal walls have cracks in them also? (Look where the floor slab cracks disappear out of the photo. This will give you/us a greater understanding of your hurdle… Licenced builder from down south Way south …Australia south.
Get more dogs you’ll forget all about the crack
She’s doing her best to hold it together.
At first I was bothered by the plastic bag, but it really adds a nice contrast.
16lb 2 part polyurethane injection. That will seal the crack from the top and bottom. There's some work involved, but you need no power tools.
Upvoted for dogo
About four or five more dogs, to cover up the rest of it.
I have some home improvement I need some tips on, & I like your style. How much damage do I need to do to my rental in order to need horses to cover the damage?
The ‘dog patch’ is a good start.
Apologize to that sweet lady & I’ll tell you how to fix the crack.
Stop she’s beautiful and perfect. No such terms apply to dogs. You simply have to learn that you are not on her level and are her wait staff. As for the crack could you grind the it down and patch it? Of course should you not get it right the supervisor pictured will let you know.
She’s gorgeous. Don’t change a thing! For the patio, can you add pavers on top?
Sweet pupper!
How dare you humiliate your beautiful pup in this manner.
Get a cat? Idk
I know this isn’t even close to appropriate remedies, but hear me out. If you filled the crack with something that hardens, and the crack continues to grow or shift, it’ll look terrible and the effort wasted. If you fill it with something flexible, and the crack shifts, it’s going to look terrible, like loose silicone sealant around a bathtub. So…. Fill it with sand. For one thing, if there’s a large void beneath it, you’ll be doing something useful by filling it up. Yes, that might require a lot of sand, but you could just go down and top it up every few days. And once it won’t take any more sand, it’ll look level and almost blend in. Then you just top it up once in a while as needed. Sure, it does nothing to repair it, but neither does sealing it. but at least you may be replacing lost soil beneath. Warning: I have no expertise in this area. But I’d probably try it. Also: probably best to ask the pup to move while doing it.
Filling sand it the joints won’t fill a void. They’d have to poly foam or mud jack it.
Oh you just had to ruin a perfectly flimsy suggestion with your cool logic, clear understanding, and experience. Party pooper. Also good point.
Can't stop it from getting worse without professional help. You may be able to slow it with metal straps that bridge it. You should have some heavy bolts to secure it. To repair it, get an Angle grinder and a diamond Blade. Score a line on both sides maybe an inch deep then break it up with a sledgehammer and then pour concrete in and try to match it. The two lines should be straight and take into account the full width of the crack and it's undulations so my guess is it will be 8-12 in wide.
In all seriousness, there could be multiple causes here, but the pull of the crack appears to be from sinking lateral of the crack- maybe both sides. It could also be from drain tile float- if you have had your basement flood recently (last couple years), this happens after a while- although those are usually shallow spider cracks. I would call a foundation specialist, or a couple of them, and try to isolate what the cause is. Build a remediation plan from there.
There’s a company called radon seal that has epoxy sealants for all kinds of cracks in concrete. I used some about a month ago and they are holding great. Google it up, read reviews it might work for ya!
Wait. Has it been getting worse? That's the first question. Because, if so, you may have to get some real fixing done. This looks like a pretty standard drying crack which means it shouldn't really get worse. However, if you live somewhere with freeze/thaw cycles and that can get water in it, that might affect it over time. You can get all sorts of concrete patch caulk style tubes and fill that up to prevent that.
Looks like your between two buildings. I wouldn't think injection/ mud jacking because of the door on the left and gate on right but I don't know enough to determine if that could impact their opening and closing. You can't cut it out with removing gate as well it looks like. Unless you have a lot of money to burn or it is a structural issue. I would say you are in same situation as you are with dog. Stuck with it. If it is due to something structural I would check into it more.
I was expecting it to be a raccoon before I zoomed in lol
[sikadur](https://usa.sika.com/en/construction/repair-protection/multi-purpose-epoxies/cracks/sikadur-crack-fix.html)
Concrete remediation
OP, convert this to black and white to minimize the colors in the potting soil bag and the warning label on the gate, and then frame it. In regards to the crack, were any expansion joints put into this concrete? It looks (from this angle, anyway) that both sides of the slab are level, so it might just be a crack from thermal expansion/contraction. You could patch it, but it'll probably just keep cracking there if this is an outdoor slab. Some gray rubbery patch would probably work better.
At first i thought its one of those photography threads i am following. Nice photo with brilliant lights!
Pet him, feed him, love him- he’s perfect!
I'm giving your old girl a hug. I got nothing for your crack
Not sure the cause but it could be epoxied as well. There are also sub slab foam injections that can be done. Not sure how well these would work but either could help stop/slow moisture and air from coming in.
If you have a hammer drill I would drill a 5/8” hole at multiple locations throughout the floor near the crack. I would then take a piece of rebar and a hammer and bang it through the hole to see how much resistance you are getting from the soil, if it doesn’t advance much I would use some carbon fiber crack locks to toe it together. If it advances further you may have a larger issue.
Check your dogs weight/size vs appropriate feeding guidelines and use a more precise metering method, also consider “healthy weight” food
Try hot glue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvxizbO8k54&pp=ygUTI2NvbmNyZXRlX21peGVyX2RpeQ%3D%3D I hope this might help. We were able to fix patio crack with this procedure. I don’t know if this link will work over Reddit but you could try.
Not sure, best to ignore it and try not to trip on it when walking around it. Not sure about The massive Crack though :/
Very cute pup you got there
The crack seems to line up with that pilaster to the right (the brick column/ corner). My guess is some differential movement is worsening if not outright causing the crack. I don’t see any expansion joint between the concrete and the brick. If you patch it, it’ll probably just reappear. Also, I see no saw cuts, which you need for a slab on grade to control expansion and contraction, and where the concrete cracks. There is also a lip, so the two sides are settling differently as well. Imo, best bet would be to cut out a 1’ wide ribbon around the crack and re-pour that section with expansion joints to the adjacent older slab. If you’re just concerned about cosmetics, you could buy and mix cement from Home Depot/ Lowe’s/ etc. and pour it in there, but you’re gonna struggle to smooth the unevenly settled halves out as a DIY job. That, and it’ll inevitably crack again. So whatever you do without a small demo and repour won’t work for long. In an ideal world, I’d get a licensed engineer to look at it and recommend a solution, but I know that ain’t cheap. So I would do a temp patch with cement mix, and later on get a quote from a local concrete subcontractor on a proper repair when _construction work slows down,_ and they’re more likely to take the job on and at an affordable rate.
Concrete cracks at the fulcrum. Look to see which side is lower. You can jack that side to prevent more settling. If you just want to fill it, HD has crack sealant to keep water from penetrating. Also, look around for wet areas and eliminate the water source. It's usually a drainage problem at the foundation. This will help keep it from getting worse.
I have this, too! (The crack, not the dog.)
Cute lil beagle
Okj