LESLIE: Mike in Indiana is dealing with some cracks in the plaster. Tell us about where they are, how often you’re fixing them. What’s going on?
MIKE: Well, I’ve got some cracks over my door, in the plaster, and I’m not sure how to fix them. Tried putting some – like the stuff that you use to seal the drywall.
TOM: Spackle. Spackle. Mm-hmm.
MIKE: Yeah. And did that …
TOM: It didn’t work too well, did it?
MIKE: No. It came back.
TOM: (chuckling) It came back?
MIKE: Yeah. They’re back.
TOM: Yeah. Yeah, exactly. It’s got a very short memory. It keeps coming back. (Mike chuckles) Well, the reason that happened, Mike, is because walls and spackle are not very elastic and if you want to fix it so it doesn’t come back you have to put a piece of drywall tape over the crack the next time you repair it. And what you should do is use a fiberglass drywall tape that’s perforated and this way will sort of bridge the space across the cracked area. And then you want to use a couple of coats of spackle there and sand it between the coats and if you do that the crack won’t reappear. The fact that the crack is over the door is fairly normal because that’s where you get a lot of movement in the wall.
MIKE: Yeah, because like in the wintertime I can’t close my bathroom door …
TOM: Exactly.
MIKE: … and in the summertime I can.
LESLIE: Mm-hmm.
TOM: Exactly. Exactly.
MIKE: Yeah.
TOM: Yeah, that’ll fix it, Mike.
MIKE: I appreciate it very much. Thank you.
TOM: You’re welcome. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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