Ceiling Coverings

Dave_T · 01-29-2013, 08:22 PM

My house is just under 5 years old. The ceiling is sheet rock and was put up without strapping for support. The house is round (see www.DeltecHomes.com) and the ceiling is curved, i.e. 8' high at the edges of the house sloping up to about 13' at the center which has a support post. Every year about 5 or 6 cracks open up at the center, radiating out for anywhere from 5 to 8 feet and up to 1/4 inch wide.

It's been patched by professionals 4 times and always fails as the seasons change. So now I've given up hope of fixing it using conventional drywall patching methods. See the attached which shows the area where the cracks are, although only a couple may be visible in the photo.

Referring to the photo, one of the cracks radiates from near the pole to the left to that narrow wall that is a bedroom entrance. A second goes straight back to the greenish wall. The remaining cracks are to the right of the pole and straight towards the front.

Does anyone have any creative solutions that don't involve drywall patching? For example, some sort of wood covering like hardwood flooring installed in an octagon shape centered around the pole and extending out 8 feet, maybe with a white stain. I'm not sure if interlocking wood strips could be attached to the drywall. And the fact that the ceiling is curved seems to be the major issue. Any ideas? Thanks.

JPL · 01-29-2013, 09:32 PM

Why is the structure moving so much? Bad foundation? My house is on expansive soil, and the cracks open and close as seasons change. I've had some cracks fixed, but without rebuilding the exterior walls and gluing and screwing them together, there's not much I can do. What supports that post in picture- that would be a good place to look.

TheCamper · 01-29-2013, 09:33 PM

Cracks in gypsum board are from movement (settling) in the frame. If that post is a structural support for the roof trusses you want to make sure that it is properly supported beneath. e.g. the post should be directly over a double joists that are properly sized for the load, or if the post rests on the sub-floor, and there is a girder beneath, there should be solid blocking between the sub-floor and the girder. You should be able to view the truss plans at your local Building Dept. The truss plans will specify if that pole is a structural support and what it should be bearing on. You can install wood on the ceiling, probably over furring would be easiest, but I would still want to resolve the cracking (settling) issue first. good luck.

Dave_T · 01-30-2013, 06:07 PM

Yes, the post is structural. The roof trusses are attached to it with a collar. The post sits on top of another post in the basement, and that is on top of appropriate size footing. There are no cracks anywhere in the basement floor or the foundation walls.