Ceiling crack 2000 mobile home

[Bluejayz79]

Good evening folks.

This is my first post. Ok to the point. I have a Mobile home i bought new in 2000. It does not sit on a slab but is blocked up. About 3 years ago i got a crack in the ceiling drywall (I think it's drywall). This crack runs from where the ceiling overlaps the wall up to the marriage beam and down to the other side of the wall. The mobile home is 14' X 72' and the crack is roughly in the middle of the home. One half of the drywall sits about an 1/8" of an inch lower then the other. The ceiling is textured. I was thinking that i could find the ceiling joist and use a few sheetrock screws to even the level of the drywall in this area but am unsure how far apart the joist are. Another little problem is that the crack does run above a wall in the middle that seperates a bedroom from the living room. I have heard that i could use ceiling buttons but have never heard of these items before. If needed i can take some pictures tommorow and post them up. I also believe that with the textured ceiling i would need to scrape off the texture in order to use a stud finder to locate the joist. Thanks for the help and i will try to post pics tommorow.

Chad

[Greg]

Hi & welcome. It most likely is sheetrock. What type of finish do you have on it? If it is a popcorn texture you will need to be very careful and do as little damage as possible otherwise the repair will stick out like a sore thumb. You could try some white paintable caulk to fill the crack and leave it at that.

My guess would be that the crack was a result of the home moving, if you are in a cold region frost heave will do this.

Greg

[Bluejayz79]

Hi Greg & Thank you,

i believe your right it is sheetrock and is the popcorn texture. Wondering how far the joist are apart. I am guessing 16"? Never tried the button approach. Think they are more or less for plaster. Already tried the Caulking method which i hoped would have worked. Do you think a stud finder would work through the popcorn texture?

Thanks a bunch
Chad

[Greg]

I was able to use a stud finder on ours. I have a "deep scan" feature on it. I put tape over the velcro strips on it to keep from snagging the popcorn. I think the buttons may look out of place, I would try a few screws first and hope you can hide them with some joint compound.

Greg

[Bluejayz79]

Greg,

Thanks. I will revisit this post after i complete the repair with pictures of before and after. Need to get the vehicles situated for inspection (Yay!).