Causes and Prevention of Cracks in Building

CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF
CRACKS IN BUILDING
INTRODUCTION
MAJORITY OF CRACKS OCCURS WHEN THE BUILDING ON ITS COMPONENTS OR THE
MATERIAL OF WHICH THE BUILDING IS MADE UP OF ITS SUBJETEDTO FORCES WHICH
ARE GREATER THAN THOSE WHICH IT CAN WITH STAND
CRACKS MAY ALSO OCCURS IF THE MATERIAL USED IN THE BUILDING IS OF POOR
QUALITY AND THE CONSTRUCTION IS NOT CARRAIED OUT OCCORDANCE WITH
RELEVANT DRAWING,AND PRESCRIBED JAB SPECIFICATION AND IN A WORK MAN LIKE
MANNER
CRACKS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES

1.
STRUCTURAL CRACKS
2.
NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS
1.
STRUCTURAL CRACKS:-THIS TYPE OF CRACKS MAT BE ARISE DUE TO

VARIOUS REASON SUCH AS INCORRECT DESIGN ,OVERLODING OF THE
STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS ,OVERLODING OF SOIL ON WHICH THE
BUILDING IS CONSTRUCTED OR OTHER SIMILAR FACTOR.
THIS TYPE OF CRACKS ENDANGER THE STABILITY OF THE BUILDING AND
MAY BE DIFFICULT TO RECTIFIED.EXTENSIVE CRACKING OF FOUNDATION
WALL,BEAM,COLUMNS,OR SLABS ETC. EXAMPLE OF STRUCTURE CRACKS.
NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS :-THIS TYPE OF CRACKS IS CRACKS DUE TO

INTERNAL FORCES DEVELOPED IN THE BUILDING ON ACCOUNT OF CHANGE
IN THE SIZE OF BUILDING COMPONENTS DUE TO THE MOISTURE
VARIATION ,TEMPERATURE VARIATION ,THE EFFECT OF GASES ,LIQUID AND
SOLID ON BUILDING COMPONENTS .
CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS

THE NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS GIVE AN IMPRESSION THAT THE STRUCTURA IS
GETTING UNSURFACE .HOWEVER OF FACTOR OF SAFTEY ADOPTED IN DESIGN
OF BUILDING ,IT IS VERY RARE THAT A STRUCTURE COLLAPSES SOON AFTER
CRACK IS NOTICED.
CLASSIFICATION OF CRACKS
THE CRACKS CAN BE BROADLY CLASSIFIED AS VERTICAL ,HORIZONTAL,
DIAGONAL,TOOTHEND CRACKS .IRREGULAR CRACKS OR RANDOM CRACKS .
CLOSELY SPACED FINE CRACKS ON SURFACE OF THE MATERIAL IS KNOW AS
CRAZING.
INVESTIGATION RELATING TO CRACKS

A CAREFUL STUDY OF THE LOCATION OF CRACKS (STARTING AND FINISHING
POINT) THEIR WIDTH AND DEPTH, HELPS IN DEALING WITH THE DIAGNOSIS OF
DIFFERENT TYPES OF CRACKS
THE CHANGES IN WIDTH OF CRACKS CAN BE EASILY DETCTED WITH THE HELP
OF TELLTALES .
IN THIS METHOD ,A PIECE OF FLAT GLASS (ABOUT 2 TO 3 cm IN WIDTH.
10 TO 12 cm IN LENGTH) IS SPANNED ACROSS THE CRACK AND IT IS STRUCK TO THE

WALL SURFACE AT ITS END WITH MOTAR. THE DEVICE IS KNOWN AS TELLTALE .IF THE CRACK WIDENS THE GLASS PIECE WILL SHOW A CRACK.
CAUSES OF OCCURANCE OF CRACKS

THE IMPORTANT CAUSES RESPONSIBLE FOR OCCURANCE OF CRACKS IN
BUILDING ARE AS UNDER
1.
CRACKS DUE TO MOISTURE CHANGES
2.
CRACKS DUE TO TEMPRATURE VARIATION
3.
CRACKS DUE TO ELISTIC DEFORMATION AND CREEP
4.
CRACKS DUE TO EFFECT OF CHEMICAL RECTION
5.
CRACKS DUE TO MOVEMENT OF GROUND
THE VARIOUS CAUSES OF FORMATION OF CRACKS AND MEARURES ADOPTED TO

PREVENT THEM ARE DESCRIBED BELOW :1.
CRACKS DUE TO MOISTURE CHANGE:- WE KNOW THAT MOS TOF THE
BUILDING MATERIAL IKE BRICK ,CONCRETE , MOTAR ,STONE TIMBER ETC
HAVE PORES .HENCE THESE MATERIAL INCREASE IN SIZE OR EXPAND ON
ABSORBING MOISTURE AND DECREASE IN SIZE OR SRINK OR DRYING.
SRINKAGE ON ACCOUNT OF DRYING OUT OF MOISTURE CONTENT IN BUILDING
MATERIAL IS ONE OF THE MAIN FACTOR RESPONSIBLE FOR CRACKS IN
BUILDINGS.
2
CRACKS DUE TO TEMPERATURE VARIATION:- WE KNOW THAT ALMOST ALL
MATERIAL EXPAND ON HEATING AND CONTRACT ON COOLING .IN SOME
MATERIAL THE CHANGES IN TEMPRATURE CAN CAUSE APPRECIABLE CHANGE
IN THEIR SIZE .THE EXTENT OF MOVEMENT DUE TO TEM. VARIATION IN THE
BUILDING COMPONENT DEPEND UPON NO. OF FACTORS SUCH AS DIMENSION
OF THE MATERIALS ,ITS COFFICIENT OF EXPANSION,THE MAGNITUDE OF
VARIATION IN TEMPRATURE.
THE EFFECT OF TEM. VARIATION IN THE INTERNAL WALLS AND INTERMEDIATE
FLOORS IS VERY SMALL MAY NOT RESULT IN CRACKS.
CRACK DUE TO ELASTIC DEFORMATION AND CREEP:-THE DIFFERENT COMPONENT

OF BUILDING VIZ. WALL ,COLUMN,BEAM ,SLAB,ETC.UNDERGO ELASTIC
DEFORMATION WHEN LOADED.THE MAGNITUDE OF SUCH DEFORMATION
DEPENDS UPON THE TYPE OF BUILDING MATERIALS USED IN THE
CONSTRUCTION LIKE BRICK ,CEMENT CONCRETE BLOCKETC.AS WELL THE
SPSN OF THE STRUCTURAL MEMBERS AND THE LOADING CONDITIONS .
IT IS THEREFORE OBVIOUS THAT IN THE CASE THE BRICK PANEL WALL IN THE
FRAME STRUCTURE IS CONSTRUCTED TOO TIGHTLY BETWEEN THE FRAME
COLUMN ,IT IS LIKELY TO BE SUBJECTED TO CRACK DUE TO SHORTENING
DEFOMATION OF THE RCC FRAME ON THE ACCOUNT OF SRINKAGE CREEP .
THE SITUATION WHERE CRACKING DUE TO THE ELASTIC DEFORMATION AND
CREEP ARISE AND THE PREVENTING MEASURE TO AVOID SUCH CRACKS ARE
SUMMERISED BELOW .

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Causes and Prevention of Cracks in Building

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CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF

CRACKS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES

STRUCTURAL CRACKS:-THIS TYPE OF CRACKS MAT BE ARISE DUE TO

NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS :-THIS TYPE OF CRACKS IS CRACKS DUE TO

CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF NON STRUCTURAL CRACKS

INVESTIGATION RELATING TO CRACKS

10 TO 12 cm IN LENGTH) IS SPANNED ACROSS THE CRACK AND IT IS STRUCK TO THE

CAUSES OF OCCURANCE OF CRACKS

THE VARIOUS CAUSES OF FORMATION OF CRACKS AND MEARURES ADOPTED TO

CRACK DUE TO ELASTIC DEFORMATION AND CREEP:-THE DIFFERENT COMPONENT

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