Are they interior walls, exterior walls, or both? What is the house made of? Approximate geographical location? I wouldn't like seeing all of those cracks in new construction. It seems like something is moving.

Ditto. The diagonal cracks above the doors indicate something is moving to me too. Maybe foundation settling/sinking? I would be very concerned too. I would want a foundation engineer to inspect to confirm whatever the builder tells you the problem is.

The house is brick, standard wood stick built on-site framing, stick built attic/roof, TJIs used in floors and ceiling, & 22 piers under the house. The cracks are all appearing on interior walls--just did a perimeter walk and no cracking that I can see on the outside. All 3 diagonal cracks lean toward the center of the house. We are located on the western side of central NC. I do have the structural drawings if they would help. Here is the floor plan with the doorways marked where the cracks are.

Sounds like settling and since you're on piers with footings, look there first for your culprit. I'm not a builder or structural expert, but here are lots of questions for you to think about.

Can you get within your crawl space? I'd meticulously check each pier with a flashlight and also the joist system. I saw a photo from the "How's your build" thread and see that you've got brick veneer over the outside of your cinderblock foundation wall so that might be masking any cracks on your outer wall. Get under there and crawl around! :)

Did you take plenty of photos of the joists and piers during construction?

How do the cracks correlate to your pier system and joists?

Did an engineer ever look at the loads/blueprints before you built?

What do you know about the footings..... how deep, how were they reinforced and was any soil study ever done?

You might want a structural engineer to look at it asap. Good luck, I'm sure you are just sick over this..... I'm so sorry!

My house has some cracks like that, but it occurred only after another section of the house was jacked up to correct a problem that had pre-existed. We were planning on re-doing the affected areas anyway, so we weren't too concerned. I would say that something underneath is not right.

I hear what everyone is saying about the footings. Have you checked the span in your basement between the support columns? I doubt that is the cause of the number of cracks you have, but it might be worth checking.

Good Luck, and keep us posted.

I am so sorry to read about the cracks in your new home. Not having any knowledge only gut instinct, I would insist on a structural engineer to inspect the house REGARDLESS of what the builder says at your meeting.

mydreamhome - very sorry to hear about that. How unsettling and upsetting that must be. I would agree with the others that you should consult with an engineer regardless of your discussion with the builder. You might want to call your insurance agent as well.

Cracks that are not open do not mean much.

Cracks that are open indicate shifting of support members.

Tight cracks can be caused by material itself and minor movement (wind loads, snow loads, etc.).

Permanent movement causes cracks that remain open.

Problems with doors racking can be anything from drying out of structural wood, settling, or framing defects.

Update--DH got under the house last night with his flashlight and level and inspected all the piers, foundation walls & TJIs. No cracks that he could see on any of the piers, foundation or TJIs. When he put the level under where the cracking is occurring, he said it was slightly out of level--may be 1/8". DH said he thinks its just the house settling, but we are still having the builder come out. Don't worry, I plan to have a structural engineer check it out too. Our county requires you to have the plans engineered & signed off on with the engineer's stamp on it before you can build & that is what the inspector uses to ensure that it's done to specs.

brickeye-Thanks so much for chiming in. I was hoping you and Renovator8--and even macv if he ever just cruises by anymore-- would take a look. How would you classify the cracks I have based on what you outlined above and the info & pics above?

Aggravating but very likely not significant, especially as you can't find any cracking in structural support.

From the Construction Performance Guidelines of TARION, the mandatory government warranty programme that I build under:

"CONDITION
9.4 CRACKS IN INTERIOR WALL AND CEILING SURFACES
Acceptable Performance/Condition
Interior drywall shall be installed to minimize cracking of joints, corners and corner beads.

Warranty
One-Year - Work and Materials Cracks resulting from normal shrinkage of materials due to drying after construction are excluded from the statutory warranty.

Action
Only warranted cracks shall be repaired and refinished to match original builder-applied finish as closely as possible.

Remarks
Cracks are not unusual in drywall compound at joints, particularly at corners. Most cracks are a result of normal shrinkage and are generally not warranted. The repair of normal shrinkage cracks is at the builder's discretion and sanding and repainting is not required. Builder's specific policies with respect to drywall repair will vary. These repairs are best left until the framing has settled." (Emphasis added.)

Thanks, Worthy. That helps alot. When should we expect that the framing has settled enough to do the repairs?

I'd probably wait a few months to repair in order to monitor the cracks, in case they widen. Framing, even so-called kiln dried, shrinks and warps; everything settles.

Those cracks are worse than I'd expect on a new home; not unusual for a 40-50 year old one. I'd certainly put it on record to the builder and have him check that out-of-level framing.

Even the permitted deflection of steel beams over time will create unsightly cracks in surface finishes without affecting structural integrity.

mydreamhome, definitely have a structural engineer come out to look at it! i wish we had done this sooner on my build. Our structural engineer has been able to come up with some creative fixes to our (many) problems that will not cost as much as tearing things apart and redo-ing. Good luck!!

Mydreamhome,
I live near you and we are also having issues in our slightly less than 1 year old house! Perhaps it is our wonderful county dirt! We have alot of cracking, but not on the walls-just about every trim piece, corner, etc.

This is in addition to other problems, so it is disheartening. I am hoping yours and mine are just "normal" settling....

jeannc--So sorry to hear you are having similar problems. Hopefully we will both be able to get some answers.

Hello, I just found this post and was wondering what the ultimate problem was. We live in a custom build home ourselves that was finished about 18 months ago and we experience very similar issues.

Frank- Settling is a very common issue within new construction. Did you utilize a GC on your build, and do you have a Builder's Warranty? A quality GC/builder follows these issues, and fixes under warranty.

At this point, as well, you would do yourself a favor in hiring an independent inspection. These, also, are very common in my area. My inspector has 10 years as a GC, and another two decades of inspection experience in the area. Really wonderful. At various points within our builder's warranty, we've brought him in to advise. Costs a bit, but he's well respected by our contractor- no argument on anything, and it all gets fixed in a time frame that makes sense. Inspector also totally reasonable- this is a small flag, not likely to ever become an issue. This is a "big flag", and it needs to be dealt with. Sometimes within Code, as in- this will become a resale issue. He's very tight with city/county inspection, and has a great idea of where a homeowner could get stuck "holding the bag", if not fixed.

In this way, we've been able to communicate with our builder/GC, in respect and reason. Totally works for us all, and frankly? GC is really pleased for the extra "eyes on" the project.

I agree with millworkman, but I would take it a step further; I would contact a local structural engineer to come and take a look at your concerns . . . today.

"...Or Is This Normal...?"

No. It appears you have more than normal settlement. Diagonal cracks are never a good thing.

You need a structural engineer and begin a field inspection with your foundation and site drainage around the perimeter of your foundation.

Since you have a crawl space construction, the next inspection is under the house for foundation and framing.