Cracks on walls can appear for many reasons, such as sudden changes in air humidity, ground settling, poor quality painting work, etc. Fortunately, repairing them for a long period is not complicated; it only takes a little effort and even fewer tools and materials.
Before starting the work, it is first necessary to determine what kind of crack it is. If it is a surface crack, where only the plaster has cracked while the wall underneath is “healthy,” the repair is the simplest. It will be enough to scrape off the cracked plaster with a spatula.
How to Remove Minor Cracks
Gently scrape the plaster with a spatula as long as you feel it easily falls off the wall surface. It is important to remove all parts of the plaster that have loosened to avoid redoing the work within a few months. When only solid, healthy plaster remains on the walls, use a dry brush or vacuum cleaner to remove excess dust and larger debris from the wall.
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Next, it is necessary to apply a primer for walls. It is diluted with a larger amount of water, so for minor repairs, you will need the smallest possible amount that can be purchased.
When the primer is completely dry, a new layer of plaster can be applied. It is not recommended to do the plastering yourself on large surfaces, as this job truly requires experience. However, if it is about filling a crack where you have surrounding healthy plaster to “catch the level,” then this job can be done in a DIY manner. Once the applied plaster dries, you can lightly sand the wall and then paint it.
How to Repair Deeper Wall Damage
A slightly more complicated repair is if you find that the crack is not just in the plaster but also goes into the mortar structure on the wall, beneath the plaster. In that case, it is again necessary to use a sharp object (an old screwdriver, for example) to remove all parts of the wall that have loosened and expand the crack itself.
This is necessary to remove all parts of the wall that are not solid and to allow the crack to be adequately filled. Smaller cracks can be filled with plaster, while larger ones are filled with gypsum.
Of course, it is again necessary to apply a primer beforehand. When using plaster, ensure it is not mixed with too much water to avoid being too runny, as it will drip.
With gypsum, the most important thing is the speed of work, as it hardens very quickly and quite vigorously with the release of heat. For these slightly larger repairs, another step is necessary to prevent the crack from reappearing. When the crack is filled, a layer of plaster is applied over it.
On that fresh layer of plaster, a mesh tape is then placed, followed by another layer of plaster over it. This way, the wall is reinforced, and the elastic mesh will be able to compensate for new stresses and prevent the crack from reappearing. Of course, after plastering, the wall needs to be painted.
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Conclusion
All these techniques, in addition to cracks, can be used for repairing other wall damages. Before painting, pictures are usually removed, and if there are any damages from nails or plugs, they are easily repaired with a spatula and a little plaster. Filling with gypsum and reinforcing with mesh is used for repairing larger holes or, for example, filling channels when installing new electrical installations.
Foto: Freepik