Thread: crack in foundation - can it be caused by a sump pump 10 ft away?

The neighboring house is claiming that the sump pump from the next door house has caused a crack in their foundation. Their foundation on their addition has no basement and the soil in this area has alot of clay in it. The sump pump is located about 10 ft away from the neighboring house and is about 3 ft from the house that owns the sump pump. Is this possible?

Originally Posted by Katya Feder

The neighboring house is claiming that the sump pump from the next door house has caused a crack in their foundation. Their foundation on their addition has no basement and the soil in this area has alot of clay in it. The sump pump is located about 10 ft away from the neighboring house and is about 3 ft from the house that owns the sump pump. Is this possible?

Yes, it is possible.
Excessive water in one area of the foundation can cause problems with the foundation.

Originally Posted by Rick Cantrell

Yes, it is possible.
Excessive water in one area of the foundation can cause problems with the foundation.

I agree with Rick, water is the largest issue of prevention and maintenance around homes today. Constant water in one are will over time destabilize the soil. However this does not mean the neighbor is legal liable, that is a question for others!

Definitely possible I wouldn't count on it though without looking at the situation closely.
You may want to ...
- assess grading conditions, how does the ground slope, is the neighbors ground lower
- look for water trails, if their water is causing a problem there should be water trails going to that area; granted it could be flowing down and over but you should be able to see some signs
- assess gutter and downspout conditions
- determine how often subject property sump is actually going on, how much water is it discharging
- something like this isn't going to happen over night, so does damage look recent or older
- since you stated the neighbors addition has no basement, is it an addition built on an old or new slab; if an old slab it may have just been a patio slab that wasn't poured for occupancy purposes; if a newer slab what did the contractor pour and was it designed for full occupancy load, i.e. addition
- what kind of crack is it, is the corner of the addition sinking or just some sort of visible crack
- does the neighbors property have conditions present that would contribute to this damage
- are there just complaints at this point, is someone talking about suing, etc; these are things you should know and adjust your assessment and report accordingly

Too few facts as Marcus has pointed out.

Also, where in Canada? Canada's a big place and geological conditions significantly.

Clay can expand and contract when drying and expand when wetted, it will also not allow proper drainage. Factor in freeze thaw situation, bad prep, bad back fill, foundation placed on unconsolidated fill....