Cracks between wall and ceiling

[bettz1]

Hi i'm after some advice on why i keep getting cracks between the top of the wall and ceiling?.

A few months ago i sanded it down applied filler smoothed it out and re painted but its cracking again?

Could it be the loft?

 

[KenGMac]

bettz, good evening.

Possible causation is that there is no "scrim" between the wall plaster and the ceiling plaster skim coats, the scrim acts as a "reinforcement" to the plaster in what is a high stress area.

As for a remedy? have you considered installing a polystyrene or plaster cove?

Ken

 

[bettz1]

bettz, good evening.

Possible causation is that there is no "scrim" between the wall plaster and the ceiling plaster skim coats, the scrim acts as a "reinforcement" to the plaster in what is a high stress area.

As for a remedy? have you considered installing a polystyrene or plaster cove?

Ken

Evening Ken,

I've so far only tried sanding it and filling then repainting.

A friend mentioned caulking the gaps?

 

[opps]

Caulk is only really suitable if the crack runs along the section where the two surfaces butt up, yours run partially down the wall.

You could try to rake out the cracks, then squeeze some Toupret Fibracryl in to them. It is like a caulk but with small reinforcing fibres. And like a caulk it shrinks back, so once it is dry, fill over it with your filler of choice and then sand and paint. My concern is that cracks may appear elsewhere though in which case you might want to follow KenGMac's advice.

 

[bettz1]

Caulk is only really suitable if the crack runs along the section where the two surfaces butt up, yours run partially down the wall.

You could try to rake out the cracks, then squeeze some Toupret Fibracryl in to them. It is like a caulk but with small reinforcing fibres. And like a caulk it shrinks back, so once it is dry, fill over it with your filler of choice and then sand and paint. My concern is that cracks may appear elsewhere though in which case you might want to follow KenGMac's advice.

Thanks for the advice since we've been in this house 3 years the cracks only seem to appear on that wall.That wall is the outside wall, I noticed the previous owner had CCTV and there's a small hole in the brickwork (unless it's been filled and I can't see it from the bottom).

Girlfriends not keen on putting coves up .Ill take a look at the stuff you mentioned.

 

[KenGMac]

bettz, good evening again

Walls that have been retro skimmed do tend to form cracks in the skim coat,

One other option a wee bit belt and braces ? go with the calk as opps above then ?? how about hanging lining paper then painting that?

if you consider it at one time to cover really poor walls, wood-chip was used extensively and indeed still is.

Ken

 

[bettz1]

bettz, good evening again

Walls that have been retro skimmed do tend to form cracks in the skim coat,

One other option a wee bit belt and braces ? go with the calk as opps above then ?? how about hanging lining paper then painting that?

if you consider it at one time to cover really poor walls, wood-chip was used extensively and indeed still is.

Ken

Cheers didn't think about putting paper up but wouldn't you see a faint line?

I suppose these days new builds are put up that quickly and cheaply it's only 4 years old

 

[KenGMac]

wouldn't you see a faint line?

If you use the calk and filler as described by opps the reinforced filler, let is "shrink" then fill with a "normal" filler let it fully dry out, use a sanding block or pole sander, leave for a while, re-fill with a normal filler and leave to set up fully, sand and now good to go.

Use a heavy grade of lining paper 1200 or better then paint.

The thick lining will assist in masking any crack defects.

One final trick is to organise the lighting in the room so as NOT to cascade a light over the affected areas.

Ken.

 

[opps]

Cheers didn't think about putting paper up but wouldn't you see a faint line?

I suspect that Ken is suggesting lining the whole wall. He is correct that lining paper can potentially mask hairline cracks more effectively than fillers.

It would take a Diyer about 2 hours to line a 4m wide wall.

Cost wise, you will need two rolls (about a fiver or so) plus about the same for the paste. Beg/borrow/steal a pasting table. Use a roller to apply the paste to the walls and the paper. trim edges with a 9mm snap off blade knife and a wide blade filler knife (eg like this for a fiver) to run the blade along when trimming it.

If you do decide to line the walls, just ask for more detailed hanging advice.

As a decorator, I always recommend lining plastered walls unless they have only recently been plastered back to the brick work & post significant structural modifications. The walls are warmer to the touch and less prone to chipping on corners. Typically it only adds about £150 to the total cost but it does provide a better finish.