Bathroom cracks cause?

[LucyLu1986]

Hi all,

Our bathroom has multiple cracks all over the walls in the paint but also looks to be the plaster in parts as well. It has always done this and we used bathroom paint, we had it plastered about 7 years ago, sealed it etc and it did it again within a year or so. It seems to be mainly on the external walls and it only happens in our bathroom so I'm thinking it may be a ventilation issue but not sure (we have an extractor fan but it's not the best). Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[CBW]

I don’t think the cracks are to do with lack of ventilation. Could be subsidence?

 

[foxhole]

Movement causes cracks, was it just re skimmed or was all plaster removed and replaced.?
Was the wall mist coated after plastering .Are there external cracks to brickwork?

 

[LucyLu1986]

In all honesty I can’t remember if it was re-plastered or just skimmed but I have a feeling just skimmed. Plaster would have been painted with watered down emulsion. No external cracks anywhere and this only happens in the bathroom, no other room has any cracks.

 

[Koolpc]

I think you need to investigate the cracks by opening them up. See whats going on behind them.

 

[Justin Passing]

Don't thnk it's subsidence - that always shows "purpose"!.
We had some like that when we moved in to a house. Rubbed down, filled the cracks, bathroom paint, and it never came back.

 

[PotatoSoup]

What's under the plaster?

 

[Wayners]

That's poor plastering.
Wants knocking off and doing again

 

[LucyLu1986]

What's under the plaster?

Brick, it’s an external wall

 

[PotatoSoup]

This is a good article about cracks:

A Guide to Cracks in Walls - Cracks in plaster & When To Worry

All properties, old and new, will experience cracks in walls. Find out when plaster cracks should be a cause for concern with our all-you-need-to-know guide.

abdrylining.com

External walls are often dot and dabbed with plasterboard then plastered so could have been plasterboard or you could have had a wooden frame under it with a gap/insulation then plasterboard. Obviously, as it's neither of those, do you happen to know what kind of brick it is underneath? Is it aerated?

After you've investigated, if nothing horrible is afoot then you could scrape off the plaster (get at least a P2 mask and some decent goggles as thick plaster is vile to chip off), then dot and dab plasterboard on, then do a skim coat, which should sort it. Or you could hardwall then skim if you have aerated blocks beneath. But dot and dab (if sealed around the perimeter) gives better insulation, as I understand it.

 

[LucyLu1986]

This is a good article about cracks:

A Guide to Cracks in Walls - Cracks in plaster & When To Worry

All properties, old and new, will experience cracks in walls. Find out when plaster cracks should be a cause for concern with our all-you-need-to-know guide.

abdrylining.com

External walls are often dot and dabbed with plasterboard then plastered so could have been plasterboard or you could have had a wooden frame under it with a gap/insulation then plasterboard. Obviously, as it's neither of those, do you happen to know what kind of brick it is underneath? Is it aerated?

After you've investigated, if nothing horrible is afoot then you could scrape off the plaster (get at least a P2 mask and some decent goggles as thick plaster is vile to chip off), then dot and dab plasterboard on, then do a skim coat, which should sort it. Or you could hardwall then skim if you have aerated blocks beneath. But dot and dab (if sealed around the perimeter) gives better insulation, as I understand it.

Thanks for your reply, all I know is they’re engineering bricks. It wasn’t dot and dab plaster-boarded so what you’ve said all makes sense, thanks