It looks like a pre-cast foundation system, similar to Xi wall by Superior walls. In the earlier days some used PT wood on the inside so sheetrock could be nailed directly..., now they started to use metal. That's the only thing I can think of what this can be, hard to say from that picture you posted. Here is a sample of Xi wall system it looks similar to what you have and they holes are made to run wires.

Thanks for the information! That looks pretty similar to what I'm dealing with. The house was built in 2005 if that helps narrow it down at all. Is there some reason they built houses this way? Also, any idea why the Hardie would be cracking on the outside? It appeared to be installed correctly. Thank you again!

That sounds about right, is when this walls hit the market. This type of a wall doesn't require a footing, you prep the base using stone and provide drainage and set the wall on top of the stone and tie them at each corner. It's a good system, expensive, average block foundation would run you 10k let's say, this type a wall will cost you 20k.

The only down part is using this system if you have to make a change in elevation in the field, it can't be done as you would do with blocks, drop a course or 2 if you have too. In addition, you have to be accurate specifying all penetrations, i.e window openings, etc if something is off or you need to add something it will cost you. Also, you have to make sure there is access because you need a crane, etc so when working in tight neighborhoods it can be a pain in the neck. Other than that, they set entire basement is one day, you brace the walls, do a deck and you can pour concrete floor and backfill, everything can be done in 3-4 days.

As cracking goes, it could be anything, improper installation, expansion, and contraction, weather exposure, etc. I think around that time Hardie was just hitting the market also, and they did have some issues here and there around 2007-2009.

Awesome information! I really appreciate the quick response. Do you by any chance know what best practice would be to attach siding to the concrete? Or are there nailing strips on the outside as well? I haven't started the job yet so I haven't torn off any of the siding to see exactly what's going on.

They certainly do look like Superior walls. They were extremely popular in the western New York area when I was working in the housing industry from about 2005 on. The problem in New York is that a lot of times the stone footings just didn't hold up and the walls would sometimes collapse. I'm wondering if the Hardie is cracking because the footings have moved and shifted. Our site work people refused to build on them after having so many issues.

Yeah I will definitely find out in a few weeks and post pictures of my findings. I'm guessing the hardie could have cracked for a variety of reasons. The house was vacant for 3 years when it was in foreclosure and I know there was some sort of water issue. So that could very well of been the issue as well as the walls moving, which I know has been a problem in the past on a few houses we have worked on with walls on stone.

Superior walls can be fantastic if properly placed/ prepped. I absolutely swear by them her in northern NY. I have no more movement from them and often less then poured walls. I work with a lot of fiber cement siding as well.. including the now defunct 2004 era cemplank that looks similar to hardie but a different substrate that experienced a lot of cracking. This pick shows some clear installation issues in my opinion. One crack stems from a face nail that appears counter sunk as several of them do. You must never counter sink on fiber cement. The bottom of this board should not be face nailed and actually needs a horizontal fur strip behind it as every last board does. The other crack appears in a corner board that i suspect the blind nail missed the narrow fur strip provided by precast. Lastly there needs to be a gap between butts/ ends. They look very tight and would swell and crack from pushing each other off the nails.. I do not work for James Hardie but quite evident it wasn't fastened correctly in many ways. Be sure and and spend a week ( haha) reading the James hardie install and tech bulletins. And for god sake don't be cheap buy a lot of saw blades and keep them fresh, Far too many boards get microscopically fractured from dull masonry blades , the problem appears later. I know this post is old so I'm sure the job is done but wanted to offer future readers some input.

@Barden Building Systems, Independently Featuring, post is 3 years old.