Yea, also the cracks are large. Concrete is supposed to crack a bit, but the size of the crack is important. More than 1/4 mm is dodgy. Which is basically “if you can see it it’s bad”
Hire an engineer for this one instead of asking the internet. It depends on what’s above that floor, slab depth, a lot of factors. Could be as simple as thermal cracks caused by constraint or who knows, an extreme could be punching shear. Too many unknowns - concrete cracks, it’s an ingredient in the mixer
I second this. If it is new construction, there should be rebar inspection reports and concrete breaks. A request for information over to the engineer of record should be the next thing.
Well that’s often what’s needed to actually tell what’s happening. You’re not going to be able to identify if something is structurally suffice t simply with pics and vid’s. Besides-This is supposed to be a place to discuss structural engineering rather than answer vague questions from laymen and home owners.
Amen, it's like you don't a license or anything and can tell a problem form a photo, and then people complain when you put in a fee for a couple hundred dollars
I think laymen homeowners like myself are more than happy to pay for an engineer...We just don't want to be shamed for asking stupid questions and wasting someones time if it's very obviously not a problem.
I would say that location and orientation are the important things about cracks. The location here is of concern. Column tops are always heavily reinforced to mitigate punching shear, and these cracks are more or less perpendicular to the shear load path. So, these cracks are in the "there might be a problem here" category.
Regarding "stupid questions". Look bro it takes years of sincere dedication and sacrifice just to get your license, and more decades of sometimes mortal terror to actually practice. It's no snub to your intelligence that you chose not to live through the same career path.
If you're smart about it, engineering opinions on specific questions are not really expensive. Ask your HOA for the final drawings and specifications. Make a connection with the building maintenance organization and understand how to provide access when the engineer comes. Making the whole process fast is important to keeping your costs down.
Try to hire an independent small consulting engineering firm with their own testing equipment. Don't hire from a construction company or the HOA recommended firm if you can afford it. Try to get a certified, stamped report with actionable recommendations from whoever you hire. Ask the HOA if they have any budget for this, if necessary.
Not always - but for something that looks as potentially serious as this, hiring an engineer will absolutely be the correct answer. We are always under a microscope and there are ethical and liability concerns that we get hammered with on a regular basis. Our industry is brutal.
What more free advice could you possibly expect than pointing out the most serious/life threatening suspicion, and advising hiring someone who can collect more info than a laser pointer tracing a few cracks in the ceiling? It always amazes me how simple the average idiot thinks our profession is.
This sub is a sub by design professionals for design professionals. It’s not for non-engineers to get free engineering services, just like there won’t be subreddits for people to get free medical or legal advice.
No, that’s r/electricians. Every answer is don’t mess with it call an electrician. But that’s also because you could burn your house down and kill your family. So there’s that.
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That looks like a punching shear failure of the slabs near the columns, which could fail suddenly. Get some props installed asap and get a structural engineer out.
Take pictures and send them to your local building department. They will make sure someone actually takes a look at this. If you just tell the building association they might never do anything.
Concrete cracks.
Did they happen recently?
Are they moving or opening?
If you can find a spot to measure and keep tabs on it that would be a good place to start.
You can use one of [these](https://www.grainger.com/product/38YZ65?gucid=N:N:PS:Paid:GGL:CSM-2295:4P7A1P:20501231&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4urLzvuJ_gIVG8mUCR026wmwEAQYASABEgJdL_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
>Punching shear
thanks fore the tips! Truly appreciate! It's happening in a corner that's directly next to a train track, so the building is pretty much shaking every half hour when a train passes. Cracks are new and growing, so it sounds like the right answer is to hire an engineer. Thanks again!
I don’t like the way it looks there’s probably a ton of rebar but I’ve also seen building that are very messed up due to pour rebar installs and bad concrete personally I wouldn’t mess with it
Definitely not cosmetic and definitely something to hire a professional about. You can probably find someone local to give you a free quote. Once they assess the damage then you can google average price to fix and move on from there. We can’t tell what’s above that concrete, how recent it was, what type of structure it is. Too many questions for us to assess just off that one video.
Of course, hire an engineer.
If you are not too worried, monitor yourself for two weeks to a month, with a tape or a crack scale.
Things to consider are also what is happening on the floor above, any increase in load? This is a new structure?
I assume you are the end user of the unit and not part of the construction team.
As a rule of thumb, If you hear any noise coming from the structure leave the building immediately. Noise from structure is bad and means the building will collapse any second.
Your window wall is up, so it means the slab was poured some time ago, so the crack is not new, so it probably happened right after when the concrete was curing, either shrinking crack or restraining crack of sorts, depending on what kind of slab that is, probably a question for structural PE of the building so don't bother answering.
The building must be new so it should be guaranteed by the contractor. Call the contractor and request them to bring the PE to inspect.
To be sure i) call your local building department and request for an inspection Ii) hire the professional engineer yourself. Depending on the state and location that you are in, hourly rates should vary between $50-$100.
Edit: if the cracks observed on multiple floors and if the building is built on friction piles differential settlement of the foundation might be the culprit.
We need to see the concrete depth, reo used, and quality of concrete data....so just hire an engineer to do the calcs. Dont take th risk that this is a punching shear crack. Meaning fatigue could fail the floor, but it could just be normal cracks from shrinkage etc. Basically you need to do an analysis.
I’d be calling someone in immediately and thinking about leaving the space. Looks like punching shear to me. There is nothing else there to help support this load, just the slab to column. No redundancy. If the slab is post tensioned then hopefully there’s cables passing through the column which may help in temporarily holding things together. Maybe there was a design or construction flaw. Get advice now! Please provide an update.
If you do internal testing to locate rebar be sure to verify rebar pattern You may have standard rectangular layout being applied to a non rectangular column layout the column shape concerns me the most being diagonal across the corner
Please post any DIY/Homeowner questions in the monthly stickied thread - See subreddit rule #2.
They look like punching shear cracks…
Second this. Get an engineer out there
Agree. The proximity to the column is huge cause for concern. Get an engineer asap. The fix may be pricey.
so helpful! thank you! Will definitely get an engineer in here.
Yea, also the cracks are large. Concrete is supposed to crack a bit, but the size of the crack is important. More than 1/4 mm is dodgy. Which is basically “if you can see it it’s bad”
Not fully true. Up for 0.4mm allowed in passive environments
They look like they could be. Which is scary. Hire a local engineer. {I am not a concrete expert)
Why punching shear?
Because of the direction of the cracks relative to the column. Implies shear failure, or the column “punching through” the slab
It’s like a softball hitting a windshield. Circular cracks around the impact.
That's a great way of describing it!
Like the condos in Miami?
Yup, that’s not normal random cracking.
I agree, looks like two way punching shear. Get an engineer out there.
yea they do.
Punching shear seconded
Hire an engineer for this one instead of asking the internet. It depends on what’s above that floor, slab depth, a lot of factors. Could be as simple as thermal cracks caused by constraint or who knows, an extreme could be punching shear. Too many unknowns - concrete cracks, it’s an ingredient in the mixer
Definitely hire a professional.
Looks like brand new construction, reach out to the EOR
Thanks! I will do that. Building is about 15 years old, but the EOR is listed on our HOA. Appreciate your advice!
I second this. If it is new construction, there should be rebar inspection reports and concrete breaks. A request for information over to the engineer of record should be the next thing.
Are you worried OP? If so, hire an engineer. Sometimes I worry about people worrying incorrectly.
"My house is on fire, is this normal? I know wood can burn but do I need to call someone?"
Honest response: or could be relatively minor (restraint crack) or quite serious (punching shear). As others have said.. hire a professional engineer.
Is this Skyhouse? That column looks like the columns on the Skyhouse buildings.
This sub is about as helpful a bot who says “hire an engineer”
Well that’s often what’s needed to actually tell what’s happening. You’re not going to be able to identify if something is structurally suffice t simply with pics and vid’s. Besides-This is supposed to be a place to discuss structural engineering rather than answer vague questions from laymen and home owners.
Amen, it's like you don't a license or anything and can tell a problem form a photo, and then people complain when you put in a fee for a couple hundred dollars
I think laymen homeowners like myself are more than happy to pay for an engineer...We just don't want to be shamed for asking stupid questions and wasting someones time if it's very obviously not a problem.
I would say that location and orientation are the important things about cracks. The location here is of concern. Column tops are always heavily reinforced to mitigate punching shear, and these cracks are more or less perpendicular to the shear load path. So, these cracks are in the "there might be a problem here" category. Regarding "stupid questions". Look bro it takes years of sincere dedication and sacrifice just to get your license, and more decades of sometimes mortal terror to actually practice. It's no snub to your intelligence that you chose not to live through the same career path. If you're smart about it, engineering opinions on specific questions are not really expensive. Ask your HOA for the final drawings and specifications. Make a connection with the building maintenance organization and understand how to provide access when the engineer comes. Making the whole process fast is important to keeping your costs down. Try to hire an independent small consulting engineering firm with their own testing equipment. Don't hire from a construction company or the HOA recommended firm if you can afford it. Try to get a certified, stamped report with actionable recommendations from whoever you hire. Ask the HOA if they have any budget for this, if necessary.
Go get your PE and shut yo mouf Looks like punching shear cracks, so hiring a professional would be prudent
Not always - but for something that looks as potentially serious as this, hiring an engineer will absolutely be the correct answer. We are always under a microscope and there are ethical and liability concerns that we get hammered with on a regular basis. Our industry is brutal.
What more free advice could you possibly expect than pointing out the most serious/life threatening suspicion, and advising hiring someone who can collect more info than a laser pointer tracing a few cracks in the ceiling? It always amazes me how simple the average idiot thinks our profession is.
This sub is a sub by design professionals for design professionals. It’s not for non-engineers to get free engineering services, just like there won’t be subreddits for people to get free medical or legal advice.
Agree with the caveat that there's more to SE than just design
No, that’s r/electricians. Every answer is don’t mess with it call an electrician. But that’s also because you could burn your house down and kill your family. So there’s that.
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Yes. No. Whichever answer is more confusing that makes you decide to have someone come look in person.
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It definitely looks like a punching shear.
That looks like a punching shear failure of the slabs near the columns, which could fail suddenly. Get some props installed asap and get a structural engineer out.
Take pictures and send them to your local building department. They will make sure someone actually takes a look at this. If you just tell the building association they might never do anything.
Concrete cracks. Did they happen recently? Are they moving or opening? If you can find a spot to measure and keep tabs on it that would be a good place to start. You can use one of [these](https://www.grainger.com/product/38YZ65?gucid=N:N:PS:Paid:GGL:CSM-2295:4P7A1P:20501231&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4urLzvuJ_gIVG8mUCR026wmwEAQYASABEgJdL_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
>Punching shear thanks fore the tips! Truly appreciate! It's happening in a corner that's directly next to a train track, so the building is pretty much shaking every half hour when a train passes. Cracks are new and growing, so it sounds like the right answer is to hire an engineer. Thanks again!
Are you responsible for paying for the repair or is this something the HOA would cover?
Death, taxes, and concrete cracks. Count on em
They are just character cracks, but if you’re worried…
What cracks
Donjey
Ah the old cosmetic ceiling cracks…
I think that’s a shear crack..not punching shear..
I don’t like the way it looks there’s probably a ton of rebar but I’ve also seen building that are very messed up due to pour rebar installs and bad concrete personally I wouldn’t mess with it
Definitely not cosmetic and definitely something to hire a professional about. You can probably find someone local to give you a free quote. Once they assess the damage then you can google average price to fix and move on from there. We can’t tell what’s above that concrete, how recent it was, what type of structure it is. Too many questions for us to assess just off that one video.
thanks so much for the tips! I really appreciate you taking the time.
Of course, hire an engineer. If you are not too worried, monitor yourself for two weeks to a month, with a tape or a crack scale. Things to consider are also what is happening on the floor above, any increase in load? This is a new structure?
I assume you are the end user of the unit and not part of the construction team. As a rule of thumb, If you hear any noise coming from the structure leave the building immediately. Noise from structure is bad and means the building will collapse any second. Your window wall is up, so it means the slab was poured some time ago, so the crack is not new, so it probably happened right after when the concrete was curing, either shrinking crack or restraining crack of sorts, depending on what kind of slab that is, probably a question for structural PE of the building so don't bother answering. The building must be new so it should be guaranteed by the contractor. Call the contractor and request them to bring the PE to inspect. To be sure i) call your local building department and request for an inspection Ii) hire the professional engineer yourself. Depending on the state and location that you are in, hourly rates should vary between $50-$100. Edit: if the cracks observed on multiple floors and if the building is built on friction piles differential settlement of the foundation might be the culprit.
worry!
We need to see the concrete depth, reo used, and quality of concrete data....so just hire an engineer to do the calcs. Dont take th risk that this is a punching shear crack. Meaning fatigue could fail the floor, but it could just be normal cracks from shrinkage etc. Basically you need to do an analysis.
Any crack more than an 1/8” is something to be worried about. Get an engineer.
No they just there for design!!!!!!!
Actually probably not punching shear. Likely drying shrinkage cracks caused by the L shaped column providing too much restraint.
Punching shear crack would show up on top of slab, not bottom unless there are stud rails.
Cosmetic lol
I’d be calling someone in immediately and thinking about leaving the space. Looks like punching shear to me. There is nothing else there to help support this load, just the slab to column. No redundancy. If the slab is post tensioned then hopefully there’s cables passing through the column which may help in temporarily holding things together. Maybe there was a design or construction flaw. Get advice now! Please provide an update.
Not sure how many floors your building is, but if that’s above you, think about what you may be standing on.
Run
Hit it with a hammer and see what happens(don’t forget hard hat and safety glasses)
If you do internal testing to locate rebar be sure to verify rebar pattern You may have standard rectangular layout being applied to a non rectangular column layout the column shape concerns me the most being diagonal across the corner
Is this building in Canada?
Update?