There are a number of different reasons that cracks can appear in plaster. Some of these reasons include:
- Settling of the building or home
- Using inferior materials to plaster the wall or having too little sand in proportion to other materials
- Poor workmanship when plastering the wall
- Plaster drying too fast, which can occur from excessive heat or by the moisture being sucked from the plaster from the dry wall
- Uneven contraction
The reality is that identifying the cause of cracked plaster can be difficult. Hence, it is more important to know how to fix the crack than to know why it happened to begin with.
Repairing Cracked Plaster
Repairing cracked plaster can be a difficult task. Many homeowners attempt to fix these cracks with a spackling compound after chiselling the crack into a V shape. Unfortunately, they seem good until the house is moving again and the crack reappears. In order to make a long-lasting repair, you need to bridge the crack with material capable of handling the movement. To learn how to do this correctly, it is useful to take a course in plastering that gives you hands on experience in repairing cracks.
Whether you are a homeowner looking to make some repairs in your plaster or a professional that needs to learn more about plaster repair, taking a plastering course is a good way to learn more about how to repair cracks and to prevent them from occurring again in the future.
Repairing these cracks, which move on a regular basis, is somewhat difficult. You must tape over these cracks with a paper or mesh tape. Simply filling the crack with patching plaster will not work. As long as the cracks move even a small amount, the paper tape in most cases will hide the movement of the crack. The useage of specialist flexible fillers can also be suitable in many cases where there is only hairline cracking and the repair is mainly for asthetic reasons. Your local builders merchant will be able to advice on the most suitable product for your needs.
