Having a chimney can sometimes be useful when trying to spot structural problems. If your chimney is cracked and leaning to the side, then it means that your home is experiencing some form of settling. There are three ways a house can settle, but only two ways can result in a cracked or tilting chimney. With uniform settling, the house is sinking straight down and minimal tilting is present, but with tilting and differential settling, the house shifts to the side. The moment you notice something wrong with your chimney, look for other signs around your Terre Haute house to take action and prevent further damage. Settling occurs when a soil layer under your home erodes. The foundation settles against the eroded layer, resulting in an uneven home. Tilting settlement and differential settlement both describe how the house shifts to one side when settling. Tilting settling is pretty straightforward, and it’s just the house sinking on one side, so the chimney leans as the house sinks. Differential settlement is a little more complicated. Because the house is sinking to one side, the weight of the home is unevenly distributed, so a part of the foundation begins to break away from the home. This puts a huge strain on the walls, columns, and the chimney itself. When this happens, not only is the chimney tilting, but the weight of the uneven house is also causing it to break apart, which is why chimney cracks are a good indicator of foundation settling.