I had a new 24' sidewalk poured last May that was "cut" into 8 3ft each
blocks. I just noticed that in 2 of the cuts there are cracks the
entire width of the block.

Did the contractor mess up when he poured this by putting too much
stress on the blocks by not leveling it properly?

Also, what should I do about this? I'm concerned that water will get
into the cracks and cause additional damage.

Thank you!

Stuart Benoff wrote:
I had a new 24' sidewalk poured last May that was "cut" into 8 3ft each
blocks. I just noticed that in 2 of the cuts there are cracks the
entire width of the block.

Did the contractor mess up when he poured this by putting too much
stress on the blocks by not leveling it properly?

Also, what should I do about this? I'm concerned that water will get
into the cracks and cause additional damage.

Thank you!


Concrete cracks, that's why the cuts are made...........to make sure
the "natural" cracks occur at the cut lines

The cracks forming in the bottom of the cuts is exactly what you want.

Often the "crack control" cuts are not deep enough & the concrete
cracks (jagged) elsewhere.

Is your sidewalk subject to freeze / thaw?

Cheers
Bob

If I understand you correctly, the saw cuts that the contractor
put in on purpose have cracked all the way through the slab.

This is exactly what was supposed to happen. A tooled joint or
saw cut is used to tell the concrete where to crack and to please
do so in a nice straight line rather than a random, jagged line.
If you are wanting to seal the joints use a polyurethane pavement
sealer:
Vulkem (Tremco) and NP 1 (Sonneborn) come to mind. They both make
a self leveling sealer if your circumstances allow.

______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"Stuart Benoff" wrote in message
...
I had a new 24' sidewalk poured last May that was "cut" into 8
3ft each blocks. I just noticed that in 2 of the cuts there are
cracks the entire width of the block.

Did the contractor mess up when he poured this by putting too
much stress on the blocks by not leveling it properly?

Also, what should I do about this? I'm concerned that water
will get into the cracks and cause additional damage.

Thank you!

BobK207 wrote:
Stuart Benoff wrote:

I had a new 24' sidewalk poured last May that was "cut" into 8 3ft each
blocks. I just noticed that in 2 of the cuts there are cracks the
entire width of the block.

Did the contractor mess up when he poured this by putting too much
stress on the blocks by not leveling it properly?

Also, what should I do about this? I'm concerned that water will get
into the cracks and cause additional damage.

Thank you!



Concrete cracks, that's why the cuts are made...........to make sure
the "natural" cracks occur at the cut lines

The cracks forming in the bottom of the cuts is exactly what you want.

Often the "crack control" cuts are not deep enough & the concrete
cracks (jagged) elsewhere.

Is your sidewalk subject to freeze / thaw?

Cheers
Bob


Yes - The pavement is subject to freezing in the winter months and
thawing in the spring - which is what happen a couple of weeks ago.

The cracks are not all of the way through the slab - yet and I would
like to seal it before the water causes that to happen.

Dan G recommended a few sealers (Vulkem (Tremco) and NP 1 (Sonneborn))
so I'll probably go that route.

Thank you.

in buffalo ny: the water will go into the cracks that properly formed
and drain to the usual gravel and earth below. sidewalk is not a
waterproof surface.

Stuart Benoff wrote:
I had a new 24' sidewalk poured last May that was "cut" into 8 3ft each
blocks. I just noticed that in 2 of the cuts there are cracks the
entire width of the block.

Exactly what's supposed to happen.

Did the contractor mess up when he poured this by putting too much
stress on the blocks by not leveling it properly?

Possibly, but not from what you've indicated. They score those lines for
exactly that reason: you provide a place for the concrete to crack.

Also, what should I do about this? I'm concerned that water will get
into the cracks and cause additional damage.

Do nothing, you've got what sounds like a perfectly fine walk.

Thank you!

No problem.



John
--
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