I’m new to this forum and hoping I can find some answers. I am building a new home up until the point of painting the majority of the work has been done by contractors. They have just finished the drywall and a coat of primer was applied to the walls and ceilings. After the primer dried we had hairline cracks in all of the corners including from wall to ceiling, top to bottom, left to right. Can someone tell me what caused this and how to fix it before anymore is done.
Thank you!
Learn how the pros keep their hand tools sharp without breaking the bank.
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.
Start Free Trial NowGet instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.
Start Free Trial Now
Replies
A little more information please. What's cracking? The primer, the joint compound or the drywall? Do the cracks follow the joints of the boards or tape?
Whatever, you shouldn't have any cracks at this point.
Additionally
Also need to know if the roof is stick framed or trusses.
Truss uplift cancause corned craking if the wall are naile off to the trusse without the use of clips. many framers and drywall men have never heard of the problem, So, framers don't know how to accomodate it durring the framing, and DW installers follow on with likehanging methods.
Never would have guessed
The roof is a truss roof and I'm not sure if clips were used I will have to inquire. The cracks at first look seemed to be the actual primer, however after inquiring I was told that the primer would not crack unless the drywall mud and/or caulking underneath was cracked. What is the proper time to wait after drywall is complete before it is primed?
Tough question.
Depends a lot on local weather conditions. High humidity, rain, and a closed up structure can mean days or weeks before the moisture can escape. Running the HVAC systen (cooling cycle) can help significantly.
That said, I've painetd immediately after the finnisher was done on many house and had no problem, but that has been years ago and I don't recall weather conditions.
To check for truss clips on the walls, just stick your head up in the attic and look around. If they were used, you will see them as L shaped metal with a slotted hole in the up leg and located on wall perpindictcular to the trusses.
It couldn't be truss uplift.
For one thing, he said that it happened in all the corners.
Also - Truss uplift happens in the winter.
Yeah, my thoughts too.
Yeah, you may see shrinkage cracks in the primer, if applied too soon after the drywall was taped. If that's all it is then it's not a problem. But we can't see the cracks from here to tell whether there is some other cause.
dc
Movement or too short a dry time or too quick successive coats on finishing can cause cracking. To be in all corners would eliminate frame movement. Give it some time to dry, then paint over the cracks and see what happens. I wouldn't do any finish coats yet.
All that has been applied thus far is the primer and 4 rooms have ceiling paint. The cracks are definitely in every single corner which was why I thought it odd.
dw questions
How was that paint applied?
When sprayed it can fail to ever reach the very insode corner and appear to have cracked if the person spraying does not have the proper skills.
also, after sanding the DW, were the walls cavumened or sprayed free of dust? Residual dust in corners causes cracking as paint shrinks back from over that caot of dust. I use a compressor or vacum on reverse to blow walls clean first.