Dear Tim: I'm
hanging drywall for the first time in my garage. I have completed one wall thus
far. I noticed about 1 week after priming the wall that the horizontal seam is
beginning to develop a hairline crack. I used 12' sheets and laid them on their
sides to create fewer vertical joints. The screws are about 6" - 8" apart
vertically and 1 per stud per sheet horizontally. I used fiberglass tape for
this seam. Can you tell me what I've done wrong? Any help will be greatly
appreciated. I hope to prevent this problem on my other 3 walls. Johnny S.
Dear Johnny: Based upon your description, it sounds like you
did everything right. The crack is probably a shrinkage crack in the joint
compound you used to hide the seams. If there is excessive water in the joint
compound, the dried material often has small cracks from the volume loss that
occurs as the water evaporates.
The crack could also be caused by
movement of the walls. Some garages do flex a little bit on windy days.
