Q:I have a 1940s-'50s-era plaster house with many cracks around the ceilings. I really don't think I have enough space in the cracks to shove in Sheetrock tape. Can I just apply drywall joint compound ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. A crack in a white plaster wall A crack in a plaster wall can look intimidating, and even be a cause for concern. While the sudden ...

Q: Just off the side door in my house are the stairs that go down to the basement. The ceiling overhead is sloped where the underside of the stairs to the upstairs go. The house was built almost a ...

Q Our plaster ceilings are cracked in a couple of places in different rooms of our house. What does that mean, and how do we fix it? AWell, it probably doesn’t mean much. Plaster is brittle, and what ...

Q. I live in a condo (built around 1952) with radiant heat in the ceilings. Unfortunately, the builders didn’t give much thought as to how high to place the pipes above the ceilings. Over the past ...

Dear James: I have an old house with plaster walls and many cracks that need to be repaired. How can I fix these so they stay fixed and are invisible? — Julianne T. Dear Julianne: Many older houses ...

Q We have plaster walls, and there are cracks showing up everywhere. What can I do to cover these unsightly blemishes? A Sheet rock does have a little elasticity, but plaster is unforgiving, and if ...

Dear James: We live in an older house and one of the rooms has cracks in the plaster ceiling that keep coming back. We are going to use the room for a home theater. Would a drop tile ceiling be a good ...

Dear James: One room has recurring cracks in the plaster ceiling. Instead of more repairs, is it wise to add a dropped tile ceiling to use it as a home theater? — Gary K. Dear Gary: Once cracks start ...

There are two kinds of cracks in old lath and plaster walls. Both can be repaired, but one is a much more serious problem. By Ronda Kaysen Q: Our Gramercy co-op was built in 1929. The thick plaster ...

Q:We have a small 1924 cottage in the El Cerrito flatlands a little east of the El Cerrito Mall. Our lot has a minor slope, and we have a high water table. Our house continues to shift and settle, ...