Cracks on Walls and Corners
#1
06-25-16, 07:54 AM
Cracks on Walls and Corners
Hello,
after I bought my house I painted everything and it looked great. Now, some corners, mainly between ceiling and wall, getting cracks.
I am not a professional, but can this be because of the humidity and air condition?
Can this be fixed by adding some strong ties to the frame of the walls and attick?
Thank you for any help.
after I bought my house I painted everything and it looked great. Now, some corners, mainly between ceiling and wall, getting cracks.
I am not a professional, but can this be because of the humidity and air condition?
Can this be fixed by adding some strong ties to the frame of the walls and attick?
Thank you for any help.
#2
06-25-16, 09:23 AM
Some pics would be helpful. Running the HVAC generally controls the humidity. Cracks are more likely to appear in the winter when there is typically less humidity. How old is the house? what type of foundation?
#3
06-25-16, 11:02 AM
Here are some pictures. I hope the cracks can be seen.
https://goo.gl/photos/Qg3GQLhzJLabLbpz7
https://goo.gl/photos/a5rK5hsFn2eAYkMz7
https://goo.gl/photos/cL4kDwAMJmnqT6jb9
https://goo.gl/photos/AQsAczAazD5VS8FWA
https://goo.gl/photos/Qg3GQLhzJLabLbpz7
https://goo.gl/photos/a5rK5hsFn2eAYkMz7
https://goo.gl/photos/cL4kDwAMJmnqT6jb9
https://goo.gl/photos/AQsAczAazD5VS8FWA
#6
06-25-16, 12:33 PM
I agree with Dixie, it looks like settlement. You need to closely inspect the foundation. The cosmetic fix is to tape/mud as needed but any repairs would be temporary if movement continues.
#9
06-25-16, 02:13 PM
Group Moderator
When a house sits empty and is not climate controlled, paper tape will do that in the weakest areas. The diagonal crack is from past settling... probably not any current issues. Fix it and forget it. Stuff like that is a maintenance issue that was either never addressed, or never fixed properly.
#10
06-25-16, 02:25 PM
Ahh, that was the case. House was empty for about 2 1/2 years. Now, with heating and cooling the wood shrinks and expands. Am I right? That makes sense.
#11
06-25-16, 03:24 PM
Mostly living in the house and running the HVAC changes the conditions the house was exposed to. Minor problems [like your cracks] are to be expected if a house isn't heated/cooled for a year or more.
#12
06-25-16, 09:18 PM
Group Moderator
Yes, it's a combination of the wood expanding and contracting wildly, and also drywall absorbs humid air like a sponge, so if the AC was off and the house got hot and humid.... and cold in the winter (things shrink) it will create a lot of problems... nail pops, tape etc. When you think about it, we all usually keep our houses at "room temperature" so they rarely vary by more than 10F. If no one was living there and power was off for 2 1/2 yrs, it's no wonder.
