Repairs
Ceiling Crack Repaired and Bedroom Repainted
A crack in the ceiling had reached the steel reinforcement. It was repaired and the room was painted again.
Step by step
1. Preparation
The furniture is covered in plastic before anything starts, because repairing a ceiling makes dust.
2. The crack in the ceiling
The ceiling had cracks and blistered plaster. The loose pieces are removed and the spots are patched.
3. Rusted steel
Inside the crack was rusted steel. Rusting steel swells and breaks the concrete around it, which is why the crack is opened up that far, so it can be repaired properly.
4. The ceiling finished
After the repair and painting, the ceiling is smooth and you can no longer see where the crack was.
5. The walls
The walls were painted in a soft tone that goes with the ceiling.
6. The result
A clean, fresh room with no cracks or stains.
Questions this job answers
A crack has opened in my ceiling and I can see rusty steel. Is it dangerous?It means the reinforcement is rusting, usually because of water, and shouldn't be left. Local damage is repaired: clean, protect the steel, rebuild with repair mortar. If it is spreading or on a beam, call an engineer.I fill a crack in the wall and it opens again. Why?Because the crack is moving and filler doesn't stretch. It usually sits where materials meet, on hollow plaster or over a deeper cause, so it needs mesh or a different repair.The plaster sounds hollow when I tap it. What does that mean?That the plaster has come away from the wall behind it, even if it doesn't show yet. It isn't filled over: it is removed back to a sound base and redone.