Deck Cracks

[engteach43]

Hi all,
I was hoping to get some of your wise input and opinions about my deck. I have two very large cracks that go all the way through the entire thickness my deck and run from the edge of the pool out to the end of the cool decking. I realize some cracking is normal, but these are really severe. The end of my comprehensive warrenty is drawing near and I'm trying to get this resolved before it expires. The builder already repaired them once, earlier this spring at the end of February (I'm in Arizona), but the cracks came back again within a week. Please tell me if you believe I'm being unrealistic to not expect to have my concrete decking completely cracked all the way through as it is. I've attached a picture.

Thanks for your insights,
Jeff Huffman
Mesa, AZ

 

[JasonLion]

Concrete cracks, that is the way of the world. A good builder will put in control joints to direct where the cracks occur and insure they don't mar the overall appearance. The usual rule of thumb is that there should be a control joint at least every 15 feet.

As long as the two sides of crack are not moving relative to each other things will usually be fine. If the cracks continue to widen or shift then something is wrong.

 

[Lershac]

Yeah cracks are going to happen. Too bad it didnt happen at a control joint. As long as your decking has the wire mesh reinforcement, and its in the middle of the slab (and not on the bottom of it) it shouldnt get too bad. As JL says as long as the two sides of the crack do not move relative to one another, its just a cosmetic issue and not really one of concern beyond the cosmetic aspect of it. While its unfortunate and may drive you nuts, a crack that small is not going to get you a new deck poured for free as that would be really really expensive for the pool builder.

Just make sure that you have control joints at intervals in the decking. If they are not there then that would be something I would have a problem with the pool builder on, as it will cause you no end of unsightly cracks for the life of the deck.

Are the sidewalks in your neighborhood cracked like this? Driveways? Those would be an indicator of what you can expect out of your pool decking.