What tradesman is required to sort these various interior cracks?

martin2345uk

Hi all,

So my mum passed in November sadly, and we are currently going through probate which will transfer her house into my and my sister's ownership.

The house is a 70s end of terrace and hasn't really been decorated since mum moved in almost 20 years ago, so it's a wee bit tired. It has cracks in some ceilings and the plaster on some walls - see the attached photos. Is a plastered needed for this type of stuff? I am a total n00b when it comes to this kind of stuff so sorry if this is a really stupid question but I would like to know how to take care of it, as the plan is that I will move in to the house at some point...

Thanks guys

martin2345uk

Edit: obviously I don't know how to embed photos! Can someone help?

theonlywayisup

I couldn't add your photos and had to take screenshots, so I don't think the problem is yours, but perhaps an issue with the site. 

Sorry to hear about your mum.   

Not a silly question and I am no expert on cracks but they look like they follow the plasterboard lines. 

martin2345uk

Thank you so much, I think I also worked it out at the same time haha :-)

FreeBear

theonlywayisup said:  I couldn't add your photos and had to take screenshots, so I don't think the problem is yours, but perhaps an issue with the site.

Not a silly question and I am no expert on cracks but they look like they follow the plasterboard lines. 

I think there is a file size limit...

The cracks do indeed appear to be along the joints between sheets of plasterboard. Raking out and filling should fix them for a few years. The ones around the window frames - Either fill with a flexible decorator's caulk or hide with some narrow trim - B&Q do a small (12mm) scotia beading which doesn't look too bad. Painted white and stuck on with something like NoNails will cover the cracks.

A decent decorator should be able to fix the minor issues before painting everything. It isn't particularly difficult if you want to DIY the job and keep costs down.

Bendy_House

Hi Martin.

That is basic DIY.

Ok, now I've offended you, I will add that it's one of the trickiest to get right, and a heart-sinker for folk like me  

Two options - you can get 2 or 3 painter/decorators out to quote for the job, or you can do some YouTube-type research on how to sort this yourself, and then come back here for any clarification required.

For the former, try and get personal recommendations from local folk about local tradespeeps. Call them out for a look, listen carefully to what they say about how they'll fix them, and ask 'innocent' questions like, "So, doing that will make these cracks disappear?!" and "And they won't come back?!!!"

Follow your gut. Come back on here with what they said, and folk on here should be able to filter out any BS...

Also try and get a quote for the whole job, whatever it is you want; eg just filling and sanding ready for painting that you will then do yourself, or for a full redecoration job. For the latter, you'll want some more info on things like how much prep for the woodwork, how many coats, and what products.

But there's nothing scary there - it's all bog-standard grist to a P-D's mill.

martin2345uk

Thank you so much all, very much appreciated. I won't be moving in for quite a while as probate can take so long and then I actually have to go through the process of selling my own house... but once I get there I shall dig this thread out and post for some more advice!

FreeBear

martin2345uk said: Thank you so much all, very much appreciated. I won't be moving in for quite a while as probate can take so long and then I actually have to go through the process of selling my own house... but once I get there I shall dig this thread out and post for some more advice!

You don't need to wait for probate to be granted or the transfer of ownership to be completed before you move in. As long as your sister and the executors agree, you could move today. Putting the move off until you sell your existing property makes sense though - Gives you opportunity to fix the faults and decorate whilst the place is empty.

twopenny

I used to have cracks like these in an old family house. They were sort of part of the furniture and needed doing every few years.

Clean out gently, mix some filler and scrape across the cracks.

Wipe off excess gently with a soft sponge. I used to save old dish sponges for this.

Using some water and a paintbrush dipped and shaken/wiped so it's just damp and brush across horizontally or diagonally gently enough to smooth but not remove the filler.

This should leave it flush enough to paint over. If not a fine sandpaper on a block to keep it level.

Someone came to decorate and do it and kindly explained. It's stood me in good stead and saved a lot of money.

It's just that movement in the house with hot and cold will cause them to appear again eventually. So then you do it again.