End to end straight line cracks on ceilings

[Victor Tang]

We completed the purchase of the properties back in December and realised there were straight line cracks pretty much in every room in the house (living room, kitchen, all the bedrooms).

Our plasterer tapped those cracks, skimmed and painted. However those cracks came back only after a month. The master bedroom is particularly worse. These are all end to end straight lines.

His advise is best to replace the ceilings as they could fall at anytime, most likely caused by the load, re-plaster over time since the house was built in 1960s. We did have the kitchen ceiling replaced and he said the old ceiling was so heavy when they were taken off. I would like to seek second opinions as this is worrying and we have just moved in today.

Any advise is highly appreciated.

 

[Johnny Allround]

Your ceiling looks like it’s been artexed or something like polycell coated. We’re the ceilings like that when you viewed the property?

 

[Victor Tang]

We didn't really notice the ceilings when we viewed the property. The crack was just hairline cracks being picked up by the surveyor but it got worse after skimmed.

 

[Victor Tang]

This is what the surveyor noted in the report:

CEILING DESCRIPTION: The ceilings have a painted finish.
CEILING DRESSING DESCRIPTION: Same as above.
CONDITION SUMMARY: Hairline cracks were observed that are considered to be of no significance. These cracks should be raked out and filled upon redecoration. Raking the cracks out to a depth of around 5mm will help prevent them from opening up again in the future.

 

[JohnD]

are the cracks 2440 or 1220mm apart?

How old is the building?

What's in the loft?

 

[Victor Tang]

It was built in 1960s. The cracks are 920mm apart in one of the bedroom.
We recently moved the boiler and water cylinder to the loft but the cracks were there before that. Other than that, there is nothing in loft.

 

[Johnny Allround]

Well the plasterer didn’t get the first one right. Which room is the first picture with the ridge that looks like it’s not been smoothed out?

 

[Victor Tang]

All the three pictures were taken from the same bedroom (referring to the same cracks).
They are the 2 lines of crack in the master bedroom.

Is that true the ceiling would potentially fall down and we need to all replaced?

 

[Johnny Allround]

I’m not sure but it seems a little ott for a 1960s build. But without actually taking a depth check in a corner nobody from a photo can check how many times it could have been skimmed or even skimmed properly. The surveyor might have it right by chasing out the cracks properly and filling and repainting.

 

[Victor Tang]

Appreciate your advise so far. Would you advise I need to get a structural engineer to look into this or simply get a plasterer to look?

 

[Johnny Allround]

It depends, decorators will be able to chase out, fill and paint. Plasterer if it needs taking down. Structural engineer not needed.

 

[Victor Tang]

I had a look just once again, apparently, there were three straight lines in the master bedroom where they are both separated by 920mm. Two of them actually run all the way to the next bedroom towards the end. Is this concerning? The other line run towards the hallway (loft hatch) where I can't see any crack (yet).

 

[Johnny Allround]

Your bedroom ceiling just could be movement when you moved the boiler into the attic. I wouldn’t stress about it probably just cosmetic.

 

[darrington]

To be quite honest, that looks like cracks between 2 sheets of plasterboard. If you look at the photo of the plaster close up, you'll see the old undercoat plaster from years ago. Those cracks are far too straight for it to be a structural problem. This is what I would do.
Re-screw the plasterboard to the joists along the cracks, checking other areas too. Always push the boards upwards when adding screws, it gives a tighter fit.. Check for, and remove any loose areas of plaster along the cracks and then tape "ACROSS THE CRACKED JOINTS", all the way across the room,, from one side of the room to the other. Each piece of tape should be around 6 inches in length. Make sure that each piece of tape sits close, side by side, and all the way ACROSS the ceiling cracks. This may seem overkill, but it works, I do it all the time using mesh tape. By taping ACROSS the cracked joint/s, it's a far stronger job than a single length of tape, plus the ADDITIONAL/ EXTRA screws added earlier, will pull the plasterboard tighter to the joists. To hold the bits of tape in place if required , mix a small amount of Bonding with PVA added, and spread a little across the tapes. This will all be hidden when plastered.
When this is all prepped, PVA the ceiling, adding a red food dye to the white pva, turning it pink, so you can see exactly where you've been. Put on a coat of Bonding Coat plaster, maybe 2 coats, over the whole ceiling, onto the WET/TACKY pva, ( never plaster onto dry pva). Better to PVA the ceiling in sections, then put on the Bonding coat. When the whole ceiling has been coated with PVA and Bonding Coat, let it set, then put on 2 coats of Multi Finish, work at it until it sets, then job done, ready to paint, . This is exactly what I do all the time.

 

[Johnny Allround]

The original boards could have moved don’t you think?