Ceiling and roof issue

Discussion in 'Repairs & Maintenance' started by Sady.Sydney, 11th Jul, 2018.

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  1. Sady.Sydney

    Sady.Sydney Well-Known Member

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    I bought 1970 build house 3 years ago. Recently we have identified that the cracks have started to build in external render at few places. There is a vertical crack that run from ceiling to floor. Further investigation found there is a small gap left between wall in laundry and bathroom. Not sure why it was done. Can someone shed light on it?

    Also corner and cornice in bathroom has developed cracks. I jumped on a tiled roof and noted large amount of leaves in gutter which I am getting cleaned. During roof inspection I also noted that there is no sarking under tiles within soffitt area on one side of house but other side has sarking. Could water drip from tiles into soffit and then to external wall? I did find green mould on few tiles but the wood underneath looked clean.

    Also I noted that the side with sarking had few damaged patches where I found one bird nest. I am still confused how bird could get there.

    What could I do to resolve these issues?
     
  2. Joynz

    Joynz Well-Known Member

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    Photos would help.
     
  3. Stoffo

    Stoffo Well-Known Member

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    Lots of places are moving due to exceptionally dry conditions
    The clay below your house dries up and shrinks causing the house to move.
    If the tiles are in good condition then no sarking wont be a major concern.
    Being an older place the verticle crack could be from an extension with a poor join.

    Photo's and more details about the building construction may help
     
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  4. Scott No Mates

    Scott No Mates Well-Known Member

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    If it doesn't rain, there'd be no issues either.
     
  5. Sady.Sydney

    Sady.Sydney Well-Known Member

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    I have attached few pics of roof.

    Will upload cracks pics later in the evening.
     

    Attached Files:

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  6. charlie01

    charlie01 Well-Known Member

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    The last photo: shows a damaged tile
     
  7. Paul@PAS

    Paul@PAS Tax, Accounting + SMSF + All things Property Tax Business Plus Member

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    The roof isnt sealed. Thats a concern. If birds can enter so can water and leaves it seems and vermin. Dry leaves will blow in from under tiles. Water too. Seems some splashing evident shows this has occurred in past maybe. You can buy foam, timber etc in the tile profile (ie like waves) to seal those ends etc. Nail / adhesive avoiding electrical wires. PITA to remove that last row or you may be able to slide them back. May break tiles if you lift them due to age.

    Suntuf Black Corrugated Foam Infill - 4 pack
     
  8. Czechia

    Czechia Well-Known Member

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    Agree...it's a very dry year. We have never had any cracks at our place and lately they popping up all around the house (mainly on the ceiling). Even had a issue with opening one of the doors. The house moved a bit.
     
  9. EC101

    EC101 Member

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    Pic 156 shows signs of bird nest, straw plastic etc. birds will enter Eason tiled roof without sarking. Unsarked roofs are common, and they make for a cold house in winter and hot one in summer. It does sound like you have had movement, however small and several cracks in render sounds like render is not done correctly and ‘live’. In respect to dripping, yes cold tiles will allow moisture to condense on the underside of tile then drip onto gyproc ceiling in turn causing mould.
     
  10. R.C.

    R.C. Well-Known Member

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    Having no sarking is not in itself a real issue, nor is it responsible for for the vertical crack and gap you describe. "Sarking", or "builders paper" is essentially a heavy duty aluminium foil reinforced with some fibre. It does offer some minimal thermal insulation and protection from minor water ingress, just what may blow through or drip between the overlapping concrete tiles during heavy wind & rain. It won`t keep out keen birds, possums or rats, its easily penetrated & chewed through. For many budget builds of that era, like Housing Commission homes, it was not used or an extra cost option. It was often referred to as insulation, before fibreglass batts became popular.

    What is very concerning though, is that your house may be suffering from what is referred to as "truss spread". Modern construction usually uses a factory pre-made engineered timber truss. It has reinforced triangulated sections across the width and is designed to support the roof weight while supported at the extremities on top of the wall framing. This allows a greater span and does not need support from internal load bearing walls, allowing for larger rooms and a choice of wall positions. Timbers are accurately cut at angles, assembled on a jig, and held together by gang nail plates pressed into the timber from both sides. They do not spread.
    These trusses are placed from 450 to 1200 centres, mainly depending on the roof type and the corresponding weight.

    However, during the period your house was constructed, manufactured trusses were a new thing and most roof framing was still done the traditional way, with timber rafters and joists, nailed together on site by a carpenter ( or an apprentice or maybe just a labourer). Think of a simple triangular frame, an "A". The rafters are cut in a "birdsmouth" to fit over the external walls, on top of the timber frame if brick veneer or the internal brick wall if double brick.

    A steel (Colorbond, zincalume) roof weighs around 5Kg per square metre, while concrete tiles are closer to 50Kg/m2. Depends on roof area, but an average size tiled roof could weigh around 10 ton. The only thing preventing the "A" from collapsing and spreading out is a few rusty nails through the horizontal joist to the rafters.


    I`ve tried to explain things since it could be a very serious problem. Many people blame "movement" of foundations and brickwork, usually caused by clay type soils that expand and contract with moisture; rainfall and hot dry weather cycles. If it is a truss type of roof construction it may indeed be that, which is not good either. On the other hand however, if the roof framing is rafter & beam then it is likely to be "truss spread" and the walls are being forced apart from the weight of the roof. An indication is if the vertical crack is larger at and commencing from the top. Also, does the top roof line appear to drop or sag where the cracked area is?

    Unless you are able to enter the roof cavity and at least determine the type of construction, or perhaps take and post pictures here, it is definitely time to seek a qualified builder or carpenter to inspect and advise.