Drywall cracks occur along the seams more often than any other region. Because the seam is a region where two walls meet, it’s bound to happen. This type of cracks is caused by a range of stress factors including wide temperature fluctuations (when you abandon or heat your home irregularly in the winter) and undue pressure in the joints. A crack between the ceiling and wall. The ceiling joists and roof trusses have been designed to move up and down, and expand and contract with changes in humidity and temperature. As the wood moves so the drywall, fixed to the wood, moves with it. Jan 14, 2016 - Fixing a drywall crack at the wall/ceiling joint will improve the looks as well as the structural soundness of your room. Drywall is a construction panel made from gypsum plaster and thick sheets of paper that is then dried in a kiln.
What causes cracks between the wall and ceiling?
Monday, August 5, 2019
The least expensive method of repairing the crack involves re-taping the horizontal seam where the wall meets the ceiling. Before applying a new drywall corner bead. What causes drywall crack at ceiling tape joint? Entire length of joint. A type ceiling meets flat ceiling joint is 14 feet long. Joint is cricket entire length on both edges of tape. House is 8 years old.
Cracks along the line where the ceiling and interior walls meet can be caused by settlement of the floor slab, but usually there is a separation between the baseboard and floor first, along with stress cracks emanating diagonally from the corners of doors, before any ceiling/wall crack lines appear.
If the cracks are just along the ceiling/wall line, and your roof structure is wood trusses, it is likely due to truss uplift. These cracks usually occur during the winter, and close back up during the summer, because they are thermally induced. Due to the mild winters in most of the southern two-thirds of Florida, it is more likely to occur in North Florida and during a harsh winter.
What happens is that the bottom chord of the truss bows upward during cold weather, pulling the ceiling up and away from the walls. To understand why, you first need to know that wood expands and contracts more in relation to moisture content than temperature. As a percentage, expansion/contraction is significantly higher perpendicular to the grain than along the the grain. But because the length of the truss lumber is many times the width, and the chord members more constrained in length than width by the truss plates, the movement with the grain (along the length of the lumber) is the more significant issue with trusses.
During the winter months the bottom chord of the truss in buried in ceiling insulation, warm and dry. The top chord and web members in a ventilated attic are exposed to the high relative humidity of cold air and possibly occasional condensation. So they have a high moisture content and expand, while the dry bottom chord contracts. Because the bottom chord is secured at both ends to the bearing walls and cannot move laterally, the result is that the expanding top chord and web members pull the bottom chord upward, making it bow, as shown by the dotted lines in the diagram above.
Truss Uplift Repair
This is not a structural problem. It is only cosmetic, but nobody wants unsightly cracks at their wall/ceiling line. There are several solutions that do not stop truss uplift, but keep it from becoming a problem. Unfortunately, the various recommended fixes should be done at time of construction, and are difficult and expensive to retrofit.
- Install an inverted “L” angle clip, with the verical side nailed to the top plate, and the horizontal side resting on top of the ceiling drywall, with no ceiling nailing of the drywall close to the corner, so the corner stays intact and the drywall can flex slightly upward when the trusses bow.
- Secure drywall to the top of the wall, but not to the trusses for a distance of 18” away from the walls. Another way to let the corner flex a little.
- Install decorative cove molding where the walls meet the ceiling, and fasten it to the ceiling, but not the walls. So the crack between wall and ceiling is hidden by the sliding cove molding. This is the one fix that is comparatively easy to retrofit, but do not paint the walls in the summer, to avoid having an unpainted stripe around the room when the molding rises during the winter.
One last thing that can cause ceiling cracks at the wall is sagging drywall, usually due to high humidity and corroded fasteners. This is most likely to happen in a garage because it is an unconditioned space and, also, cracks along the seams of the drywall panels perpendicular to the wall are likely to appear before the cracks along the wall. To read more about it, see our blog post Why is my garage ceiling sagging?
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Here’s links to a collection of our other blog posts about STRUCTURE AND ROOMS:
•Why is the grout cracking and coming loose at my floor tile?
•What are the building code requirements for notching and boring holes in a wall stud?
•What causes dark or light 'ghost' lines on ceilings and walls?
•Can you access or exit a bedroom through another bedroom?
•What is the difference between a carport and a garage?
•What are simple ways to find the cause of a ceiling stain?
•What is the minimum size of habitable rooms in a house according to the building code?
•Why is my garage ceiling sagging?
•How can I identify what kind of wood flooring I am looking at?
•Why does my concrete floor slab sweat and get slippery?
•What is the minimum ceiling height for rooms in a house?
•Why are there score line grooves in the concrete floor of the garage?
•How much can I cut out of a floor joist?
•How can I tell if my floors are sloping?
•Why do the floors slope in this old house?
Crack Ceiling Wall Joint
•What are the common problems when a homeowner converts a garage to conditioned living space, such as a family room?
• How can I tell if a wall is load-bearing? Which walls can I take out?
Visit our STRUCTURE AND ROOMS page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.
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How To Fix Crack Between Ceiling And Wall
No matter how much you love the home you’re in, being a homeowner can sometimes seem like a thankless task, especially when it comes to property maintenance. Even for those who buy new build homes, there’s probably always seems to be something that needs fixing. Working out whether this ‘something’ is serious or not, and whether you can repair the problem yourself is the trick.
Drywall Crack Ceiling Wall Joint
Cracks in walls are a perfect example of this. Houses are always moving, even new builds. This could be due to settling, which you find with all new homes, movements in the soil under the house, or changing humidity levels (amongst other things). When this happens, cracks can appear in drywall, plaster or concrete. In most cases, these cracks are nothing to worry about. In others, however, they could be a sign of structural issues that need fixing quickly.
What cracks in walls might mean?
You are likely to see most cracks in walls when they first appear. However, as not all will be immediately obvious, it’s worth checking in ‘hard to see areas’ such as around door frames or behind furniture regularly. This way, you can fix any potential problems before they get worse (which could end up costing you a lot of money). Where you find the crack and whether the crack is in plaster, drywall or concrete could make all the difference.
Cracks in plaster and drywall
Crack At Ceiling Wall Joint Repair
If you see a crack in plaster or drywall, the first thing you need to do is see which direction it runs in. Cracks that are horizontal or vertical are generally a sign of the plaster drying or shrinking. You’ll often see these types of cracks in newer homes or after you’ve had work done and they aren’t really anything to worry about.
If the cracks are jagged, are at 45-degree angles or look like a flight of stairs going up your wall, you probably need to get them checked out. They are probably harmless but could be a sign of structural issues that will need addressing, so it is worth making sure.
Most of the cracks you see in walls will likely be paper thin and anything less than a 1/8” is usually nothing to be concerned about. Cracks wider than this are, again, a sign there could be something wrong structurally.
Where the crack is can also tell you how serious it is. For example, hairline cracks around windows shouldn’t cause problems. However, cracks along joints that connect upstairs ceilings and partition walls could be a sign there are problems with your roof truss, which could end up with walls coming away from ceilings. If you do see cracks in the ceiling, it’s a good idea to check for water leaks too, as these can lead to significant damage if not repaired.
Concrete walls
Whereas vertical lines in plaster or drywall aren’t much to worry about, they could be if your walls are made of concrete. This is because cracks that are vertical or diagonal in concrete could be a sign of issues with your foundation. One of the main things to look for here is whether the crack widens at any point. If you see this, or cracks that look like a staircase, this could mean your house is heaving (where the concrete slab your home is built on starts to rise above its foundation).
Another potential issue that you’ll need professional help with is horizontal cracks, which could mean your home hasn’t been designed correctly and that there has been a build-up of pressure behind the wall. The presence of water is also something that will need immediate attention as this can lead to further damage, even if the initial crack wasn’t that significant.
How To Repair Crack Between Ceiling And Wall
What to do with cracks
Crack At Ceiling Wall Joint
If you small cracks that aren’t serious, you can generally repair these yourself without much trouble. Use a flexible filler (which you can purchase at your local hardware shop) and sand it down to a smooth finish once it’s dry. There are different types of fillers on the market, but one-coat plaster is probably the best for DIY-ers.
Wall To Ceiling Joints
If the crack is larger or more significant, may need to get professional advice from a construction company or other expert. This may seem expensive in the short-term but will save you money in the long run because there is much less risk of further damage. Plus, you are more likely to end up with an excellent long-lasting finish, that is well worth paying for.