Describe the crack

Four questions about one crack. The reading uses BRE Digest 251's width scale and InterNACHI's inspector manual, and stores nothing unless you save it.

1 Where is it?

Inside wall (plaster or drywall) Ceiling Above or beside a door or window Outside brick or block wall Foundation wall: concrete block Foundation wall: poured concrete Basement or garage floor slab Chimney

2 Which way does it run?

Straight up and down Side to side (horizontal) On a slant (diagonal) Stair-step along mortar joints Branching, like a map

3 How wide is it at its widest?

Width mm inches

No ruler? The printable card has bars from 0.1 to 25 mm. A credit card is about 0.76 mm thick (ISO/IEC 7810): if it slides in easily, the crack is wider than that.

About the same width all along Wider at the top Wider at the bottom

4 What else do you see? Tick any that apply

One side sticks out or sits lower than the other Edges look clean and fresh (no dirt or paint inside) It has been filled or painted over before Doors or windows nearby stick or will not latch The floor nearby slopes The wall bows, bulges or leans Water stains or damp at the crack Several cracks wider than 3 mm in this area

A reading of published guidance, not an inspection. Buying Crack Book cannot see the house and never tells you a house is fine. Hire a qualified home inspector (licensed where your state requires it), and a structural engineer when the reading says so.

Buying Crack Book

A crack notebook for house hunters: read wall, ceiling and foundation cracks against published guidance, keep them per house, compare houses, print questions for your inspector.

Crack Book Pass $1.95 a month or $19.50 a year · Free during preview.

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Crack Reader
Crack patterns
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Printable width card
Questions to ask

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My Crack Book
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