Straight-line cracking. Cracks that follow the reinforcement grid telegraph rust expanding along the bars beneath the surface.INSPECT
Rust staining. Brown bleed through fresh paint marks active corrosion behind the finish.INSPECT
Hollow-sounding render. A dull note under a knuckle tap marks cover or render that has separated but not yet fallen.INSPECT
Freshly painted soffits. Balcony undersides, garages and basement columns show the truth longest; recent paint there deserves questions.INSPECT
Coastal 1960s to 1980s frame. Salt-laden air (exposure class XS) plus a pre-1983 frame is the highest-risk combination, aggravated where carbonation runs at the same time.INSPECT
Spalling with exposed, section-losing rebar. Detached cover and visibly thinning reinforcement is a structural repair, not a negotiation point.ENGINEER NOW
Crack widths and visual signs are escalation triggers, not measurement standards. The yes-or-no answer comes from the phenolphthalein depth read against cover, on site, before the CPCV.