I would check into the drainage problem. You don't say where you live but if there is water getting into a foundation crack, then freezing, you are bound to see changes in it. But that doesn't mean it's bad. Google "foundation cracks" and you will see some that are extremely worrisome and some that are just there. I think the horizontal ones are the really bad ones. If the engineer looked at it I wouldn't be too worried, but would address the drainage problem asap. As far as the interior ones, I agree, they come up quickly. We live in a 1947 house and I see new cracks all the time. Get your husband to hold a ruler next to the crack while you take a pic so you can look back and compare. One thing that seems to be causing one big crack in my dining room is the placement of the return vent. During a not so great remodel in the 90's they vaulted the ceiling and added new HVAC. The ceiling with the vault keeps cracking along the tape line no matter what we doâ¦a contractor finally told us the vent was in the wrong place. But, since you bought it from a contractor, you are probably in better shape than most. Did you have a home inspection?

Ceiling - Is the texture compound you applied water soluble? Is it "popcorn" or a stucco type? Dampen a small patch and see if it dissolves. Just to toss this out, I have found removing water soluble popcorn textures about the same amount of work as trying to paint them. Walls - Where are the cracks? Are the hollow sounds over the nails? Push against the drywall over the studs and see if there is movement at the nails. What you are trying to determine is if the nails have pulled through the drywall (the reverse of a nail pop). If the drywall isn't loose the nails probably just need another coat or 2 of joint compound. Are the vertical lines at every stud or spaced at 4' drywall joints? Use a straightedge placed horizontally on the wall to determine it the wall bows in or out. Depressions are easier to deal with than peaks.

Mark: I think the confusion is what the stucco that you are painting is on. Paint adheres very well to stucco. However, neither paint nor stucco is waterproof. So typically the wall of a house is built-up with black paper (waterproof) behind the metal lath, scratch coat, brown coat and top (color) coat. There is a weep screed installed at the bottom of the wall. Accordingly, if it rains, any moisture seeping through the stucco drips down between it and the black paper and goes out through the weep screed. On a masonry wall the stucco is applied directly to the concrete block. Therefore, if you paint a stuccoed masonry wall, the moisture can get trapped in the stucco and cause the paint to blister and peel. This doesn't happen on a house since the moisture runs out through the weep screed. I'm pretty sure that this is the way house walls are built even in the desert. You can see the weep screed along the bottom of the walls where the slab ends. If you have them it's fine to paint the house. If your friend paints, be sure to prep the walls well (pressure wash) and use a long nap roller. If the paint is sprayed on, still go over it with a roller to make sure the paint adheres well in the crevices.

We have an old 1920's English Tudor in Wisconsin, and just repaired a step crack in our basement where water was coming in. The crack went all the way from the base of the window down to the floor. We don't have a poured basement, we have cinder block. It was an easy fix. Our crack went really deep, so what we did first was spray "Great Stuff" liquid foam deep into the recesses of the crack - it has a long straw which allows you to reach hidden areas, and once you spray the product expands on its own. I don't know if this was necessary, but we did it anyway just to fill in the voids. This one was specifically designed for masonry. There are others designed for window frames, plumbing, etc. and each has different properties. We purchased it at Home Depot. What local contractors and our local paint store (a reputable one) told us to do is to apply UGL Drylok quick dry Hydraulic Cement. This is applied probably no deeper than 1 inch from the surface. We first chiseled out all residue and wiped the surface so that it was free of dust and particles. You want to chisel the crack at the surface to make a nice "V" shape - enough room to apply the hydraulic cement. Before applying the cement, spray the surface so that it is moist. The wet surface will help the cement adhere better, and will lessen shrinkage while it cures. Home Depot initially told us to seal the cement after it dries, but our paint store (these guys are WAY more knowledgable than Home Depot employees, in my opinion) told us this wasn't necessary unless we were planning on painting that area. We have paneling over the crack, and the cement worked wonderfully, so it wasn't necessary for us to apply a sealer. It's now dry as a bone, after a ton of subsequent rain. Because of the previous leak, the area is a little mildewy, so we purchased UGL Drylock Etch masonry cleaner. This is only necessary if you need to remove mildew, excess mortar, efforescence (salt-like deposits) before preparing the surface for the cement.