Repairing a Cracked Stucco Ceiling

A stucco ceiling is one of those parts of your home you will hardly ever have any problems with. However, there may be times when cracks will appear on the ceiling. Fixing the cracks is not out of the question for anyone who is familiar with very basic hand tools.

Assess the Damage
While there are several reasons why there might be cracks in the ceiling, there are those that might mean something bigger is causing the problem. If the crack is very wide and runs the length of the ceiling from the center out, or from the corner in, you could have a more serious problem to deal with. Causes could be;

• Foundation shift
• Water damage
• Floor joists splitting

If you see any of these types of cracks in our stucco ceiling then consult with a contractor, or home inspector, so they can give you a professional evaluation of what is going on in your home. If, however, the crack in ceiling is minor, or very thin, you can take care of it very quickly.

Clean Area
Once you have your materials gathered, then you start the repairing process by cleaning out the track and removing any dirt and debris. Use the chisel to dislodge pieces of stucco, while the air hose can blow out the cracks to ensure they are all clean. If there are any weak pieces of stucco then you will want to break those off too.

Spray Down with Water
After the length of the crack is cleaned out then spray it down with water. Saturate the area as much as you can. You are getting the surrounding stucco wet because it will latch onto the moisture of new stucco and actually suck it out. This will cause the new stucco to crumble up and fall back out.

Fill in Cracks
Depending on the size of the cracks you can one of two things.

• Use caulking - If you are dealing with thin cracks, then you can use some cement caulking. Press it into the crack, working it throughout the entire crack. Once it is applied, then wipe off the excess and allow it to dry.
• Use stucco mix - If the cracks are wider than an 1" across then you will need to use stucco mix. Mix up enough to fill in the crack  and use the trowel to smooth it out or add texture to it.

Paint
After the cracks are repaired in the stucco ceiling then you can match the color of paint and paint over it. You may have to repaint the entire ceiling as the new section will stand out if it has been some time since the rest of the ceiling has been painted.