Nuisance tile cracks, or bigger problem?

[cklempay]

Hello all,

My house is a few years old (2003), and I noticed a crack in the kitchen floor tile probably 2 years ago. At the time, I didn't think much of it -- it was near the back door to the garage, and so I assumed I was an idiot and probably dropped something at some point, cracking the tile in question.

I later noticed that it wasn't that tile -- it was a slew of them, and (maybe most importantly?) the cracks run roughly along an axis of my house. There are a few cracks across a few tiles running through the middle of the kitchen..and then along roughly the same axis, a thin crack on the back patio. The garage has a similar crack.

I don't know if these are normal settling cracks...or if this is indicative of some sort of foundation issue?

Linked are 2 pictures from the kitchen floor cracks, along with one from the back patio.

1024x768 versions (~130k each)
Kitchen 1
Kitchen 2
Patio

Full resolution versions (~3 MB each)
Kitchen 1
Kitchen 2
Patio

Any commentary would be appreciated! Thanks.

Corbett

[thedcdude]

I wasn't able to view your photos, but when you have a crack running through many tiles in a line it's caused by uneveness in the subfloor. Ceramic tile doesn't bend, so if any part is not supported underneath, it eventually cracks. Sounds like the tile setter made the mistake of not correcting the subfloor before laying the tile. Unfortunately the only solution is to take up the tiles and do the job right. If you can match the tile, you can take up and fix only the bad spots -- it will be very hard to match the grout, but if you can get close it will blend better over time. Otherwise you'll have to find a complementary type tile or redo the whole floor.

[jnaas2]

Is it concrete or wood floor that the tile are laid on

[cklempay]

It's all concrete underneath; it is a 1 story house on a concrete slab.

[jnaas2]

The only thing I guarantee when I pour concrete is that it will crack, The slowerer it cures the less likely it is to crack. If you have a small crack and its not getting bigger they probably laid the tile directly over the concrete and what you see on the surface is where the concrete has cracked. I wouldnt let it bother Me unless it gets bigger or the pieces shift up or down if the concrete is moving a lot there may be other problems that need to be fixed.

[ceramictilepro]

concrete cracks smaller than approx 1/8" are generally no problem if you use a high quality modified thinset.

if you see anything bigger you should really consider using a anti-fracture memrane:semco,noble seal, red guard.

it is generally too late if the tile was set over cracks that were ignored.

sorry

ceramictilepro