Ceiling cracks after reroof

12 years ago

I am halfway through a roof job that entailed the removal of two layers of asphalt shingles and installation of an exposed fastener Galvalume metal roof.

The home is a 1200 sq ft ranch with walk out basement.

I am seeing very small ceiling "cracks" in three rooms.

I put cracks in quotation marks because they are not really cracks, more like a seam showing.... but I am not even sure my ceilings are drywall.

The house was built in 1955 and it is very hard to drive a nail anywhere and removal of one causes huge chips that don't look all that drywall-y to me.

There are heating cables in the ceilings- unused for decades but I mention them because you can kinda sorta see lengthwise indentations in some of my ceilings.

The new cracks do all run the same direction.

If I push on the areas adjacent to the cracks nothing moves and it looks like something that would be an easy fix with some spackle and a bit of paint. A pain to have to, sure, but doable.

My question is- is this abnormal and should I insist on the roofer covering the fix or is it par for the course and not a big deal?

I realize that photos are next to useless without scale but it is extraordinarily difficult to get a good shot.

They really are thin.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (5)

ron6519
12 years ago
You just took of a few tons of weight off the building. I would think that was the issue.
I'd tape and compound the cracks.
The house is probably a 3 coat plaster.
sdello
12 years ago
it might be an artifact of the pictures but the first picture the "crack" looks raised relative to the adjacent surfaces of the ceiling and in the second picture the edges of the "crack" are rounded and look like they have been painted over at least once. I'd expect new cracks to exhibit a fine fresh break line with sharp defined and matching edges to each side of the crack. Are you sure these "cracks" haven't existed for a long time and you're now just noticing them because you're scrutinizing your ceielings due to the current roof work? they don't look new to me.
Related Discussions
cracks in ceiling, help!
Q
Comments (7)
Interesting - I doubt very much the ceiling's drywall because it takes a lot to make that cardboard split - no doubt it's fibrous plaster or cast plaster. Irrespective of what's causing it, (don't overwater the foundations either) make sure it's not too dry indoors, humidify a little if it's well under say 45% The cracks themselves can be sealed with a FLEXIBLE gap filler, make sure it's a flexible water clean up one, force it in gently with a thin flexible scraper, and you can gently wipe over with a slightly damp cloth to remove any excess (if you work carefully with the scraper there won't be much excess) and see how you go. if it's a white ceiling, you may not need to repaint. There is a boat-building technique to stop cracks, basically you drill a hole in the path of the crack - being round, when the crack reaches the hole, it'll stop. I'd exercise caution when applying this technique, though, not knowing what the ceiling's made of, condition etc. If you drill small holes, say 1/8 inch, (you will need to be accurate with position) you should be safe enough. Do you have access to the ceiling space above? In older places with lathe and plaster and plasterboard, they often sag with time, in extreme situations, you can prop up the sag with a broad piece of plywood, supported from underneath, then up in the ceiling place (after removing insulation and dust etc) pour liquid casting plaster - plaster of paris - over the top of the sagging part, and allow to set (don't pour it into any light fittings, vents or electrics) - this will reinforce/hold up the ceiling, I suppose if you were clever you could reinforce the plaster with some sort of material like you were fibreglassing, even with, say, fibreglass cloth? (you want to avoid flammable materials up there) Then, the idea is, you have a solid, no longer sagging ceiling, and you apply a thin skimcoat over the underside, to seal/cover the cracks.
...See More
How do I repair this plaster ceiling crack / sag?
Q
Comments (9)
sfsuperstar: "My husband's really doesn't like the ridge, and the rest of the ceiling is so smooth he thinks trying to blend a 3/4" deep ridge will look obvious, so his tentative plan as of this evening is to remove the ridge of mesh to try to flatten it, then try to redo the crack repair smooth." That sounds reasonable. You may have to widen the crack just a bit more and clean it out, trying to cut under the edges as much as you can so the patching material has a place to grab in to and hang on. sfsuperstar: "It seems that the sagging part isn't an edge of the mesh, but is a center part of the mesh -- like an upside-down mini-mountain ridge. Should he try to cut out just the ridge part of the mesh with an exacto knife, or does he have to remove the whole mesh tape (even the part that's not sagging)?' I would guess it depends on how easily it cuts. I've not used it before, so I can't say. If it ravels and gets frayed and stringy, then it may be hard to cover over again with whatever you use. sfsuperstar: "And should he re-repair the crack / removal damage with flat drywall tape and joint compound? Or is there something plaster-specific that he should use? I'm not familiar with the patching plaster you mentioned." It may be OK to use the drywall tape, but I would wonder how much it would give or move under changes in temp and humidity in the ceiling without breaking loose at some point. I really don't know! We got the patching plaster at the hardware store; it's dry and comes in fairly small bags, and you just add it to a small amount of water in a container and let it absorb the water, stirring or 'folding' the mixture only very gently. If memory serves, drywall compound is still water soluble after it dries, while the patching plaster is a bit more impervious to water once it dries. Drywall compound also has a tendency to crack easily as it dries if it's applied to thickly, and the patching plaster doesn't do that as readily.
...See More
Drywall cracks 10 months after load bearing wall removed: how serious?
Q
Comments (3)
^^what LK said. Did a structural engineer calculate the load and what would be needed to support it, or did your contractor make a “best guess”? We opened up a load bearing wall on our first floor and the engineer indicated that 2 LVLs were needed for a maximum span of 11.5’ - so that’s what our contractor put in. We have had no issues or cracks anywhere on the first floor or second floor in about the same amount of time as yours, so if an engineer did not calculate what was needed to support the structure and carry the load, it could be a big and costly issue to correct.
...See More
When Are Interior Wall + Ceiling Cracks A Major Concern?
Q
Comments (4)
Everything you posted points to unstable foundation that has probably been going on for years. You can hire engineers and try overcoming it but after 27 years I suspect remedies have been tried and failed. Another option is hiring a paint contractor to "doctor it" like the people that sold it to you did then sell it to another unsuspecting buyer.
...See More
brickeyee
12 years ago
"two layers of asphalt shingles"

How many squares if roofing?

it is at least 12 and goes up from there depending on the pitch.

It is not uncommon for cracks to appear in walls and ceilings when removing multiple layers of roofing.

As noted above, you just pulled a LOT of weight off the structure.
Each layer is between 250 to 400 pounds per square, meaning you removed more than 6000 to 9600 pounds of weight from the roof.

All the rafters will rise slightly, and any ceiling joists carrying roof weight will also rise.
openings in the exterior weight bearing walls can also rise when the load is removed from their headers.

I have had 'pig' houses with 3 and even 4 layers of shingles that had all sorts of cracks appear as the weight bearing joists and walls moved after stripping the roof.
cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you everyone for your reassurances.

sdello- I get what you are saying and discussed that very thing with the roofers this morning.
I painted all of my ceilings with my own two hands when we moved in in '07 and feel certain that I would have noticed and repaired any cracks. I was painstaking in my preparation- I had a lot of time to kill and wanted things to be perfect, otherwise the husband would have done the painting :)

That said of course I am fallible and could be mistaken.
I think that I am mostly just wanting to know that it is not a sign of impending collapse and that I should just go quietly about my repairs and not think too much more about it.
I'm almost there :)
sdello
12 years ago
It's certainly not any sign of impending collapse.

good luck with the repairs.

Ceiling cracks after reroof

Comments (5)

ron6519

sdello

Related Discussions

brickeyee

cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
Original Author

sdello

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Ceiling cracks after reroof

Comments (5)

ron6519

sdello

Related Discussions

brickeyee

cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)Original Author

sdello

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
Original Author