Patio/Foundation Damage

[kper]

I recent put in a patio. I noticed a thin crack in the foundation. Inside and out. About 2 feet long. Not sure if it was there before the patio was put in or if it got damaged when the patio was put in. (possibly a uniloader/bobcat bumped it, when digging out the patio????)

What should I do to treat this crack so that it does not get larger or cause a problem in the future.

Should I just put concert caulk over it? Or is this a better perventative messures. The house was built in 1953.

[Rich]

Concrete is concrete - it cracks. There are many reasons why it would crack - equipment (like you said), soil movement, house settling (unlikely being built in 1953), etc. I would start with some type of injectable caulk or concrete patch (hydraulic mortar) to completely fill the crack as much as possible. Keep an eye on it over the next several months and see if it opens further. If it does it's probably a sign that something else is going on. At that point, if it gets worse, I would consult an engineer and see what they have to say about it. Hopefully you won't have to go that far.

[kper]

Thx Rich, Should I apply the caulk to both the interior and exterior sides of the wall.

[Rich]

I would apply it to both sides. Even better would be hydraulic mortar that gets injected far into the crack. Do that from both sides and you shouldn't have any problems at all.
If you only have caulk available then try and use a putty knife or similar tool to push the caulk as far into the crack as possible.

[kper]

Not really sure what hydraulic mortar is. Is that something that can be purchased at Home Depot?

[Rich]

I might have mis named it - hydraulic cement is probably more common. It's essentially water stop. Just searched www.homedepot.com for hydraulic mortar and they have one article regarding it (very short). Search google for hydraulic cement you should be able to find a supplier. Yellow pages under concrete should pull up something also.

[kper]

Thanks for your help!!!