Repair Concrete Slab

Cracks / Settlement Damage

Concrete slab crack repair methods:

This article describes methods for repair of cracks that occur in poured concrete slabs
or floors and explains the need for accurate crack cause diagnosis and impact on
structure before repairs are attempted.

Cracks in concrete floors or slabs occur in poured concrete slabs may be found both in
basement and in slab on grade or "patio home" construction and have a variety of
causes and cures that we discuss here. This article series describes how to recognize
and diagnose various types of foundation failure or damage, such as foundation cracks,
masonry foundation crack patterns, and moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building
foundation walls.

Repair Methods for Cracks in Concrete Slabs & Floors

Types of foundation cracks, crack patterns, differences in the meaning of cracks in
different foundation materials, site conditions, building history, and other evidence of
building movement and damage are described to assist in recognizing foundation
defects and to help the inspector separate cosmetic or low-risk conditions from those
likely to be important and potentially costly to repair.

Our photo (left) shows cracks developing in a slab on grade in a homein Alaska. Built
over thawing permafrost, the cause of these cracks needs to be understood before a
proper repair can be designed.

Accurate Diagnosis of Slab Crack Cause, Impact on

Structure, Repair Needs
Before attempting to choose a repair method for concrete floor slab cracks,

Diagnose the cause of the slab movement and cracking. Only by an accurate diagnosis
of the cause of cracking or movement in a floor slab can we be assured that the crack
repair will be durable and appropriate. In fact some types of floor cracks, such as
hairline concrete shrinkage cracks may not need repair at all.

In contrast, a concrete slab may have settled over poorly-compacted or washed-out fill
(such as in some garages) without cracking (tipping instead), but repair may still be
necessary to correct slope, provide drainage, or to prevent further settlement or even
collapse.
Types of Cracks in Slabs

Each type of basement slab, floor slab, or slab on grade crack is discussed and
described in articles at this website. Understanding the differences among these
concrete crack types is an important first step in diagnosing their cause and their
significance to the structure.

 Shrinkage cracks in a slab are unlikely to be of any structural concern but can
be a source of water entry or radon entry in buildings and may form a tripping
hazard.
 Settlement cracks in a slab indicate inadequate site preparation, such as failure
to compact fill on which a slab was poured.
 Frost heaves or expansive soil damage can cause substantial damage to
basement, crawl space, or garage floor slabs in some conditions.

List of Slab Crack Repair Methods Articles

Please see the individual slab crack repair articles listed below

 Control Joint Cracks in Concrete - adding control joints may be necessary to reduce
further slab cracking if the joints were omitted in the original construction
 SEAL CRACKS by POLYURETHANE FOAM INJECTION - non-structural cracks (often
the case with poured floor slabs) may simply need to be sealed in floors (or walls)
to stop leaks
 SEAL CRACKS IN CONCRETE, HOW TO - more poured concrete crack sealing
methods
 Standards for Repair of Cracks in Floors - so how bad does a crack have to be in
order to decide that repair is necessary?

Cracks come to the job along with the concrete, riding in the same truck! At a
Journal of Light Construction conference (Boston 1985) a lecturer informed us that
"Every concrete truck that comes to your job to pour a slab has at least four cracks in it.
It's up to you to either provide control joints, or not. If you leave out control joints the
cracks will occur in a messier pattern at natural stress points in the slab."

The bad news about typical floating slab construction (where the soil is not compacted)
is that anything that causes the soil to settle risks slab cracking and settlement.
Flooding, leaks, or simply poor handling of roof and surface runoff can send water
under a building where it causes loose soil to settle.

The good news about cracks in floating slab construction is that the damage is to the
floor, not to the structure that is supporting the building. Only if you see a floor slab
crack that continues up in the foundation wall where the crack meets the wall would the
structure be obviously involved.
More good news: if there is significant soil settlement under a floating slab, the slab is
likely to break and follow the settling soil downwards; a sudden precipitous collapse of
a floating slab is less likely than the next case we describe.

Standards for Repair of Cracks in Concrete Floors

Settlement cracks may form a tripping hazard even if they are not traced to a structural
concern.

While there are few construction acceptance standards for floor slab cracking, one,
"Quality Standards for the Professional Remodeling Industry" NAHB, recommends that
cracks in basement floors which exceed 3/16" in width or 1/8" in vertical displacement
should be repaired.

The same standard provides that cracks in slab-on-grade floors shall not exceed 1/16"
in width or in vertical displacement.

The same standard provides that cracks occurring in control joints in concrete slabs are
normal and acceptable. [We suggest that this last criteria should apply to crack width
but not to vertical displacement.

How to Evaluate Cracks in Poured Concrete

Concrete Slab & Floor Cracking
Floor slab & tile crack diagnosis & repair:

This article describes the types of cracks that occur in poured concrete slabs or floors
and explains the risks associated with each, thus assisting in deciding what types of
repair may be needed.

Cracks in concrete floors or slabs occur in poured concrete slabs may be found both in
basement and in slab on grade or "patio home" construction and have a variety of
causes and cures that we discuss here as we explain how to repair cracked concrete
floors and as we describe slab on grade construction or "patio home" construction
cracks and as we review the diagnosis of cracks in ceramic tile over concrete slab
floors,

This article series describes how to recognize and diagnose various types of foundation
failure or damage, such as foundation cracks, masonry foundation crack patterns, and
moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building foundation walls.

Four Types of Cracks in Concrete Slabs & Floors

Types of foundation cracks, crack patterns, differences in the meaning of cracks in
different foundation materials, site conditions, building history, and other evidence of
building movement and damage are described to assist in recognizing foundation
defects and to help the inspector separate cosmetic or low-risk conditions from those
likely to be important and potentially costly to repair.
  Shrinkage cracks in a slab are unlikely to be of any structural concern but can
be a source of water entry or radon entry in buildings and may form a tripping
hazard.
 Settlement cracks in a slab indicate inadequate site preparation, such as failure
to compact fill on which a slab was poured.
 Frost heaves or expansive soil damage can cause substantial damage to
basement, crawl space, or garage floor slabs in some conditions.
 Concrete cracks due to inclusions of shale and Iron sulfide mineral (pyrrhotite)
cracking

Each type of concrete foundation, wall, basement slab, floor slab, or slab on grade
crack is discussed and described with photographs below.

Other types of concrete cracking such as due to impact or loading are discussed in
other articles at this website.

Cracks come to the job along with the concrete, riding in the same truck! At a
Journal of Light Construction conference (Boston 1985) a lecturer informed us that
"Every concrete truck that comes to your job to pour a slab has at least four cracks in it.

It's up to you to either provide control joints, or not. If you leave out control joints the
cracks will occur in a messier pattern at natural stress points in the slab."

Types of Poured Concrete Slab Floors - Different

Implications of Cracks & Movement

Before we describe crack, movement, and damage patterns and diagnosis in

concrete slabs, we need to introduce three different types of poured concrete floor
slabs.

We use the three Carson Dunlop Associates Sketches shown here to comment on the
occurrence, causes, and significance of cracks and movement in poured concrete slab
construction.

Floating concrete slab characteristics:

In the sketch at above left, the floor slab (left side of the foundation wall) is simply
"floating" sitting atop gravel and soil inside the foundation wall.

The author's first construction job (construction at the Fleet antiaircraft missile training
center, Dam Neck, VA) consisted of raking roughly level loose-fill dirt inside of building
foundations.

Over several summers of this labor we never once saw anyone using a soil compactor
and rarely did we see gravel poured inside of the foundation walls before the slab was
poured.
The bad news about typical floating slab construction (where the soil is not compacted)
is that anything that causes the soil to settle risks slab cracking and settlement.
Flooding, leaks, or simply poor handling of roof and surface runoff can send water
under a building where it causes loose soil to settle.

The good news about cracks in floating slab construction is that the damage is to the
floor, not to the structure that is supporting the building.

Only if you see a floor slab crack that continues up in the foundation wall where the
crack meets the wall would the structure be obviously involved.

More good news: if there is significant soil settlement under a floating slab, the slab is
likely to break and follow the settling soil downwards; a sudden precipitous collapse of
a floating slab is less likely than the next case we describe.

The cracks and foundation movement were probably due to a combination of:
poorly prepared foundation footings, blasting on an adjacent building lot to
prepare that site for new construction, and possibly omission of steel
reinforcement in the poured wall. As movement appeared to be ongoing over
more than a year, the builder might have repaired the foundation by supporting it
from below using one of the methods listed here.

Foundation Repair Using Mud Jacking, Pressure Jacking, Slab jacking Methods

Grout pumping or mud jacking is used to stabilize soils below settling footings
or slabs.

The mud jacking or grout pumping method of foundation repair is capable of

lifting a slab and possibly some structures.

Mud jacking is suitable if bearing rock or stable soils are not too deep.

For cases where bedrock or suitable stable soils are deeper, slab-jacking
methods are usually preferred - see the next foundation repair item just below.

Slab jacking (sketch below) is used to stabilize or lift and level settling concrete
slabs, including interior floor slabs poured within the perimeter of a building
foundation, and also lifting and leveling of monolithic concrete slabs or slab-on-
grade construction.

If a floor slab or slab on grade construction is tipped, settling, or cracking, the

underlying cause may vary among poor site preparation such as pouring over
un-compacted fill, poor surface water runoff control resulting in soil loss or
compaction, expansive clay soils, soil subsidence over buried debris, and
sinkholes
Foundation Repair Using Driven Steel Pins

Driven steel pins are used to stabilize settling foundation walls or footings. A pin
is driven next to the foundation and is inserted into the soil until it contacts
bedrock.

The driven pin foundation repair method, like the alternative piers listed below, is
often used when a portion of a foundation wall is moving or settling, perhaps
because of improper site work or footing undermining.

The cost of this method is about $1200. to $1500. per pin for average 30 ft. depth.

The steel pin foundation repair method permits more precise leveling control
across the building than grout pumping.

Foundation Repair of Settled Footings, Slabs, or Walls by Reconstruction

Reconstruction of foundations: Some engineers who examine a failing

foundation may prescribe excavation and reconstruction, possibly with
reinforcement over the original design and with additional foundation and site
drainage. And indeed in some cases these extensive foundation repair steps are
completely appropriate and necessary both to repair the building and to prevent
a recurrence of the trouble.

Watch out: We saw this method used for a home in Hyde Park, New York when it
was discovered that the home had been built half over a landfill and was
suffering from substantial differential settlement.

Helical screw piers or even driven steel pins might have worked at about one
tenth the cost of the project as it was designed. We don't know if that alternative
was considered.

How to Evaluate Cracks at Control Joints in

Concrete Floors & Slabs
Concrete slab cracks at control joints:

This article describes the causes, evaluation, and repair of cracks at control joints in
poured concrete slabs or floors.

Are cracks at control joints or expansion joints in concrete a problem? Are control joints
always needed in poured concrete? Recommended methods for sealing cracks in
concrete floors & slabs

This article series describes how to recognize and diagnose various types of foundation
failure or damage, such as foundation cracks, masonry foundation crack patterns, and
moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building foundation walls.
 How to Use & Inspect Control Joints in Poured
Concrete Slabs

Here we focus on control joints needed in poured concrete floor slabs and
monolithic concrete foundations. But control joints are also required in certain masonry
walls, including brick walls and in some cases concrete block walls as well as poured
concrete walls.

What is a concrete slab control joint & why do we need control joints in
concrete?

A control joint controls where and how a shrinkage crack appears in poured concrete,
and it allows for thermal expansion or contraction without additional damage. ]

Without a control joint, cracks in concrete floors, walls, or ceilings appear at stress
points in uneven, diagonal, or other patterns in locations where they may be unsightly
or may cause damage such as cracks in ceramic tile or other floor coverings, or may be
traced to leaks.

How much does concrete shrink as it cures? How much does concrete move in
response to temperature changes?

Because concrete shrinks as it cures (about 1/16 inch for each 10 liner feet or by other
sources, about .66 inches per 100 feet), and because there may also be some
expansion and contraction of poured concrete in response to temperature (about 0.25
inches per 100 feet per 25 degF temperature change, with a maximum of about 0.5"
per 100 feet) and moisture changes in its environment, a large solid slab of poured
concrete for a floor or slab is likely to crack.

Control joints, called "relief joints" by some builders and more loosely speaking,
"expansion joints" by others, are built into a well-designed poured concrete slab so that
the occurrence of more random, ugly cracks is less likely.

Remember that concrete shrinkage itself is a normal process. If a pour and control
joints are perfect, cracks caused by concrete shrinkage will not be noticeable - they'll
occur inside the control joints (as we show below), or if a slab shrinks perfectly with no
internal cracks, you'll see a gap opening around the perimeter of the slab where it abuts
the foundation walls.

Description of the concrete curing process

During the concrete curing process, a chemical process called hydration, concrete
hardens, using some of the water molecules in its original content.

Concrete typically takes 28 days to reach its design strength; a considerable portion of
concrete shrinkage is going to occur during this interval, particularly during the first
week or less.
Even though the concrete's design strength is reached in about a month, concrete
continues to harden for days or weeks after that point too.

What do control joints or "expansion joints" look like?

A control joint is a gap, usually formed in a straight line, placed at intervals to control
where and how cracks will occur in poured concrete. When you see a "crack" or joint
that is formed in a straight line, dividing poured concrete into sections, most likely it's a
control joint.

Concrete control joints may also be cut by a power saw if they were omitted during the
original pour.

A concrete control joint that was formed during the pour or placement of the concrete
usually is tooled to round the upper edges of either side of the joint, and the joint
extends some depth into the concrete, or in some cases (such as sidewalks and some
floors) the control joint may extend through the full depth or thickness of the concrete.
Full-depth control joints are normally filled with a flexible material.

Even in a climate where we do not anticipate freezing, control joints are needed to
prevent random shrinkage cracks that would otherwise occur in a large concrete floor
slab pour like this one. Notice that we do not see other cracks in this slab.

Standards for Repair of Cracks in Poured

Concrete Floors
This article describes some Standards for Repair of Cracks in Poured Concrete Floors.

This article series describes how to recognize and diagnose various types of foundation
failure or damage, such as foundation cracks, masonry foundation crack patterns, and
moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building foundation walls.

Types of foundation cracks, crack patterns, differences in the meaning of cracks in

different foundation materials, site conditions, building history, and other evidence of
building movement and damage are described to assist in recognizing foundation
defects and to help the inspector separate cosmetic or low-risk conditions from those
likely to be important and potentially costly to repair.

Standards for the Acceptance or Repair of Cracks in

Concrete Floors in New Construction
Settlement cracks may form a tripping hazard even if they are not traced to a structural
concern. While there are few construction acceptance standards for floor slab cracking,
one, "Quality Standards for the Professional Remodeling Industry" NAHB, ,
recommends that cracks in basement floors which exceed 3/16" in width or 1/8" in
vertical displacement should be repaired.
The same standard provides that cracks in slab-on-grade floors shall not exceed 1/16"
in width or in vertical displacement. The same standard provides that cracks occurring
in control joints in concrete slabs are normal and acceptable. [We suggest that this last
criteria should apply to crack width but not to vertical displacement.]

Cracks in concrete floors or slabs occur in poured concrete slabs may be found both in
basement and in slab on grade or "patio home" construction and have a variety of
causes and cures that we discuss beginning
at CONCRETE SLAB CRACK EVALUATION.

Measurements of the degree of levelness or flatness of concrete slabs and floors

How to Slab "F" numbers to describe the flatness and levelness of a poured
concrete slab

The traditional objective for levelness of a poured concrete slab was that the slab could
be tipped or concave or convex in an amount equal to or less than 1/8" in 10' of slab
surface in any direction. A perfectly uniform surface might tip from one end to the other
by up to 1/8" across a ten foot distance and still be acceptable.

However other conditions of variation in concrete slab surface flatness and degree of
levelness occur, such as variations out of flatness level at other intervals across the
same distance - making such measurements and standards ambiguous. An "F-number"
system is currently used to describe the degree to which a poured concrete floor or slab
is flat and level.

The formulas for "F" are more complex than just using a level and tape measure:

 Slab flatness: FF = 4.57 / ((3 x Sq) + (the absolute value of the mean value of q))
where Sq is the standard deviation of q, and "q" is the variation in height over any
given 12" distance or interval across the slab.
 Slab levelness: FL = 12.5 / ((3 x Sz) + (the absolute value of z)) where Sz is the
standard deviation of z, and "z" is the total change in elevation from one edge to
the other of the poured concrete slab across ten feet in any direction.

A little online course and tables of recommended "F" numbers to provide a standard for
flatness and levelness for different types of poured concrete floors is at Technical
Reviewers below.

How to Repair Foundation Cracks Using

Polyurethane Foam Injection
Foundation wall or slab crack repair using polyurethane foam injection: this article
explains how to use injected polyurethane foam to repair a concrete basement (or crawl
area) wall or slab crack in order to stop basement or crawl space water entry or air
leakage.
 How to Repair a Leaking Basement Foundation Crack
by Polyurethane Foam Injection
A variety of site conditions can lead to cracks in a concrete or other masonry foundation
wall. Speaking generally, foundations may be damaged and cracks may appear from
innocent causes unlikely to affect the structure such as shrinkage cracks, initial
settlement, or from potentially more serious causes such as ongoing settlement,
unusual pressures or loading, or from improper construction.

Before repairing a foundation crack by sealing it against water entry, it is important to

diagnose the cause of the crack and its effects on the building structure. If there is an
underlying ongoing problem causing foundation movement or damage, that problem
should be corrected.

Cracks in concrete walls that are larger than 1/4", cracks which are increasing in size,
or cracks which are indicative of foundation movement should be evaluated by a
professional.

The diagnosis and evaluation of foundation cracks and structural foundation damage
and repair methods are discussed at FOUNDATION REPAIR METHODS

Shrinkage cracks and in some cases other foundation cracks such as those caused by
minor initial settlement might not be a structural concern but may still form an opening
leading to water leaks into the building. Concrete shrinks as a natural process of it
curing. This shrinkage causes the concrete to develop stresses and to relieve it, the
basement wall cracks.

Concrete shrinkage cracks are a common condition in a concrete foundation [or also
in concrete slabs unless control joints were used in the wall or floor design] and occur
when concrete shrinks as it dries and cures.

Shrinkage cracks are easy to recognize and to distinguish from cracks that occur later
in the life of a foundation because [usually] the cracks are not continuous and tend to
extend in a very irregular line through the concrete (as shown in the photo) range in
length from a few inches to the entire height of the concrete wall, extending from wall
top to bottom.

Concrete shrinkage cracks virtually always extend through the full thickness of the
foundation wall, which means they can provide a ready path for water entry into the
building.

Common areas for a shrinkage concrete crack to develop are under a basement
window, above a doorway in the middle of a long wall or where the foundation "steps
down." Shrinkage cracks also often occur near the middle of a large poured concrete
wall [or floor] if no control joints were used.
Concrete control joints are very often omitted in residential construction. Shrinkage
cracks and how to recognize and diagnose them are discussed further at SHRINKAGE
vs EXPANSION vs SETTLEMENT.

Once concrete cracks in a basement or crawl space wall or floor slab, it is possible for
water to leak into a building through the crack. There are several ways to repair a
basement crack leak.

An easy, quick, and effective measure to stop basement or crawl space water entry
through a foundation crack is to perform an injection of polyurethane foam into the
basement crack. [Also be sure to find and fix the sources of water outside.]

Both commercial and home-owner "do it yourself" kits and equipment are available to
seal foundation cracks using this foam method. [Photograph of this foundation crack
repair kit, courtesy of Applied Technologies].

Polyurethane foams are injected into the basement crack in a liquid form. This allows a
gentle and slow filling process of the basement crack that will completely fill the crack.
After a few minutes the polyurethane will begin to react with the water in the crack to
begin foaming. Water is actually the catalyst that converts the liquid polyurethane into
foam. This foaming action increases the volume of the polyurethane up to 30 times its
liquid form.

As the polyurethane foam expands it fills the basement crack from bottom to top and
front to back. The finished foam will be a closed cell structure that will not allow water to
leak into the basement crack. In fact, if there are any voids in the soil outside of the
basement- such as under a rock or if the foundation is backfilled with gravel-the
polyurethane foam will expand and extend out into the void.

The polyurethane foam forms a strong bond to the concrete.

This bond will be able to withstand the hydrostatic pressure that may develop from high
subsurface water levels. High underground or "subsurface" water levels are typically
caused by heavy rains and most-often by failure to direct roof runoff or nearby surface
runoff away from the building.

This concrete crack repair process using polyurethane injection is likely to be more
successful and more durable than other crack patching methods. Surface patching of
the crack is just that. Only the inside of the basement wall is covered by a repair.
Chiseling out the crack and filling it with hydraulic cement only fills a portion of the
crack.

Water can still enter the basement crack and will eventually force out the patch or
hydraulic cement. [Forces that tend to cause separation of poorly-bonded concrete
surface patches include the molecular action of crystallizing mineral salts left behind as
moisture passes through the masonry wall.]
 How to Seal or Repair Cracks in Concrete
Floors & Walls
How to seal cracks in concrete floors, foundations, walls, or other masonry: this article
how to seal and repair of cracks in poured concrete slabs, floors, or walls.

We list all of the current methods used to seal control joints or cracks that occur in
those building surfaces, giving the properties, general procedure, and pros and cons of
each method: control joint inserts, masonry caulks, radon crack sealants, semi rigid
epoxy resin crack fillers, special poly urea caulks designed as a joint filler -
polyurethane foam injection to seal cracks, grouts including portland cement, latex-
modified, epoxy, modified epoxy-supported, and furan grouts or other products used to
fill or seal cracks in concrete or other masonry surfaces & structures.

How to seal control joint & expansion joint cracks in

concrete slabs

Here we discuss how to choose among and apply the alternative methods for
repairing or sealing cracks in masonry surfaces such as poured concrete floor slabs,
concrete foundation walls, or brick or masonry block foundation walls. We describe use
of epoxy sealants, polyurethane foam sealants, and hydraulic cement crack repair
sealants.

This article series describes how to recognize and diagnose various types of foundation
failure or damage, such as foundation cracks, masonry foundation crack patterns, and
moving, leaning, bulging, or bowing building foundation walls.

Types of foundation cracks, crack patterns, differences in the meaning of cracks in

different foundation materials, site conditions, building history, and other evidence of
building movement and damage are described to assist in recognizing foundation
defects and to help the inspector separate cosmetic or low-risk conditions from those
likely to be important and potentially costly to repair.

Here we discuss: a list of materials used to fill poured concrete slab control joints. How
to seal a cracked masonry foundation wall or floor slab.Typical concrete crack
preparation for sealant with an epoxy product.

Use of Polyurea as a control joint filler or crack sealant in concrete slabs (Polyurethane
Foam Injection Method). Use of Epoxy-supported Grouts as a control joint or crack filler
in concrete slabs or walls.

List of the Types of Tile Grouts, their Bonding Agents and other Properties. Concrete
expansion joint sealant products, epoxies, caulks.

Use of Hydraulic Cement for Repairs in Concrete Slabs, Foundations, or Masonry

Block/Brick Walls.
When should we not seal a foundation wall or floor slab crack?

Warning: some crack sealing operations may make crack diagnosis or monitoring
more difficult

Watch out: First of all do not just seal a crack if the crack size, shape, pattern, location,
or other evidence indicate that something important is going on with the foundation.
Further evaluation and choice of proper repair method may be in order.

If for example we think that there may be active foundation movement or settlement
going on and if that condition is going to be monitored for evidence of further
movement, just pushing a flexible sealant or caulk into a crack is leaves some worries
unattended:

This photograph of foundation cracks attributed to concrete that included iron sulfide
(pyrrhotite), provided courtesy of CCACB - Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling
Basements. The pattern looks like shrinkage but the crack width is larger than normal
shrinkage cracking.

Watch out: before sealing concrete cracks like those at page top be sure that you've
got a credible diagnosis of their cause. This cracking pattern could be due to iron
sulfide pyrrhotite cracking damage from inclusions in the original concrete as mixed and
placed.

See FOUNDATION DAMAGE by MATERIAL or INCLUSIONS for details.

 Concete Crack Sealant hides ongoing movement: Using a flexible sealant in a

structural crack may make it difficult to see small amounts of future movement
since the sealant may stretch and tolerate small increases in crack width.

This can increase the difficulty of crack monitoring and diagnosis

 Sealant doesn't fix a structural problem: Using a sealant in a foundation or
floor slab crack may fail to address the underlying cause of the problem such as
foundation settlement or frost heaving which need to be addressed
 But some epoxy sealants are in fact also a repair: Some structural epoxies
may seal and also "repair" the damage in a structural sense.

For example Sika produces epoxy resin & structural engineering systems for
concrete crack repair using a structural injection system. http://usa.sika.com/

We may decide to seal a cracked wall or floor slab anyway, to try to reduce water entry
in a building, but remember the implications of sealing we've just listed.
Types of Sealant Repairs in Concrete & Concrete Structures
Control joint sealant:

control joints, designed to control where cracks appear in concrete placed horizontally
or vertically, are themselves are sealed against water, frost, debris and to handle
recurrent movement (listed below) using a flexible sealant.

Recurrent movement:

Seal and repair cracks in concrete using injection of either epoxy resin or polyurethane
where recurrent movement is expected (in my opinion a flexible sealant is what's called
for here) when the movement is considered normal, perhaps caused by traffic vibration
or temperature swings, and where the movement is not threatening structural damage.

Stop a water leak:

Seal and repair cracks in concrete when it is important to quickly stop water leaking
through a crack,seal those cracks in concrete using injection of either epoxy resin or
polyurethane sealant.

Structural repair:

Seal and repair structural cracks: for some situations (usually where an engineer,
expert in masonry repair has made an assessment), actual structural repairs are made
using injectable epoxy resin and possibly in some (probably low-load) cases by using
injectable polyurethane sealant.

In my opinion (I'm not a P.E.) this application of injected epoxy resin is probably most-
appropriate when cracks have appeared due to non-recurrent stresses. When we
epoxy cracked structural concrete or a concrete slab that was broken by an initial
installation error or by a subsequent event, we expect the repaired area to be as strong
or stronger than if no crack were present.

Structural reinforcement:

some sealant manufacturers such as Sika provide seal or wrap-and-seal systems that
actually provide additional strength to existing concrete structures such as concrete
columns.

Structural reinforcing wrap systems may include use of synethetic fabrics, carbon fibre
fabrics, and other wraps. These products might also be used on steel or concrete that
has been damaged by weather, frost, corrosion.

Surface repair:

for working surfaces such as industrial work floors or parking decks cracked by spider-
webbed shrinkage cracks that are non-structural, special "healer-sealer" crack sealants
may be applied.
Specialty Epoxy Resin and Structural Engineering Systems for Concrete

The situations listed above are those of most-interest to owners of residential and
smaller commercial buildings. Below are examples of additional applications of epoxy
resins and sealants in construction:

Anchoring epoxy products:

used to inject into holes into which connectors such as bolts or post anchors will be
placed.

Bonding agent epoxies: used to promote secure bonding between abutting, often
different materials. A special example is the use of segmental bridge adhesives that
bond post-tension pre-cast concrete bridge segments to other structural members or to
one another.

Foundation Repair Methods

Guide to foundation damage repair methods for bowing, cracking, leaning, settling or
other types of foundation damage:

This article series discusses How to Repair Damaged Foundations, Foundation Cracks,
Slab Cracks, Bowed, Buckled, Leaning Foundation Walls, Settled Floors.

The photo above shows a bowed masonry block foundation wall with horizontal
cracking that occurred due to earth loading at the time of construction, probably by
vehicles driving too close to the foundation wall shortly after it was constructed.

At this website we explain how it is sometimes possible to be confident about the cause
of foundation damage which in turn helps assess the risk presented to the building and
the repair methods needed for foundation damage, cracks, leaning, buckling, bowing,
settlement.

Guide to Repair Methods for Foundation

Cracks
Repair Methods for Foundation Shrinkage Cracks
Before repairing a foundation crack it is important to diagnose the cause of the crack
and its effects on the building structure.

The significance of any foundation crack depends on the crack's cause, size, shape,
pattern, location, foundation materials, extent of cracking, impact of the crack on the
building, and possibly other factors as well. If there is an underlying ongoing problem
causing foundation movement or damage, that problem needs to be corrected too.
Cracks in poured concrete walls that are larger than 1/4", cracks which are
increasing in size, or cracks which are otherwise indicative of foundation movement
should be evaluated by a professional.

Suggestions for Repairing Concrete Foundation Shrinkage Cracks

Repairs to foundation cracks which are not traced to building movement, structural
problems, site problems, or other conditions which require site or structural repairs may
be attempted for cracked foundations and other cracked concrete structural elements
using a variety of products and materials such as masonry repair epoxy or sealant
products.

These products, some of which include even structural repair epoxies, might be used to
seal against water leakage as well, and may be used for repairing certain cracks in
concrete foundations following evaluation and advice from a foundation professional.
An evaluation of the presence, absence, or condition of reinforcing steel in cracked
concrete foundations should be a part of such an inspection.

Shrinkage cracks, which are not normally a structural defect in a building, may
nonetheless need to be sealed against water entry. Common repair methods include
chipping out the crack and applying a masonry patching compound to the surface, use
of epoxies, or other sealants.

Water entry leaks at foundation cracks: Polyurethane foam sealant is used for
foundation crack repairs to stop water entry. (Also find and correct outside water
sources). See our article

on POLYURETHANE FOAM INJECTION CRACK REPAIRS for details on using this

product to seal foundation cracks against leakage.

Details about how to repair shrinkage cracks in concrete slabs & foundations are

at SHRINKAGE CRACK REPAIRS

For various methods and products used to seal cracks in concrete floors or
walls,

see SEAL CONCRETE CRACKS, HOW TO a description of various products and

methods used to seal or repair cracks in poured concrete walls, foundations, floors, &
slabs.

Once any concrete cracks it is possible for water to leak into the building through the
crack. There are several ways to repair a basement crack leak. An easy, quick, and
effective measure to stop basement or crawl space water entry through a foundation
crack is to perform an injection of polyurethane foam into the basement crack. [Also be
sure to find and fix the sources of water outside.]

Water entry leaks at foundation cracks: Polyurethane foam sealant is used for
foundation crack repairs to stop water entry. (Also find and correct outside water
sources).