A long CMU corridor wall has no control joints shown near a re-entrant corner, and shrinkage cracking is likely to concentrate there. What is the best preconstruction action?
Correct Answer
C) Coordinate the control-joint layout with the designer before laying the affected wall
CMU walls need planned crack control, and re-entrant corners are common stress concentrators; the joint layout should be coordinated before construction. Other choices deny shrinkage, wait for damage, or use sealant indiscriminately.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
CMU walls need planned crack control, and re-entrant corners are common stress concentrators; the joint layout should be coordinated before construction. Other choices deny shrinkage, wait for damage, or use sealant indiscriminately.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option A: Ignore the corner because cMU does not shrink
Choice A (Ignore the corner because CMU does not shrink) is rejected because the action skips the timing, documentation, or field-control step needed for Control joints.
Option B: Fill the first crack with hard grout after it appears
In masonry work, Fill the first crack with hard grout after it appears is the wrong selection for Control joints: the choice would not get the project to Coordinate the control-joint layout with the designer before laying the affected wall, which is the Control joints result verified by the source.
Option D: The masonry crew should replace mortar joints with caulk across the entire wall
Choice D gives Replace mortar joints with caulk across the entire wall. Its specific error: it treats Control joints as optional.
Memory Technique
Use the phrase "problem, control, result" for control joints; the result side is Coordinate the control-joint layout with the designer before laying the affected wall.
Reference Hint
Open Modern Masonry - Brick, Block, Stone, 9th Ed., 2020; use the index entry or section for "Concrete masonry control joints" to confirm that CMU walls need planned crack control, and re-entrant corners are common stress concentrators; the joint layout should be coordinated before construction.
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