I recently was asked to repair a ceiling that has radiant heating in the ceiling. There are many cracks in the ceiling where the radiant tiles are in the ceiling. They disappear in the summer when the heat is off. It is obvious someone tried to fix the cracks previously but they came back. I have been in other homes with radiant heating and there were no apparent cracks or damage.
Does anyone have any advice or can tell me a bit about this style of heating. I am wondering if it was installed properly and how we might fix the cracks.
There must be some solid wood strapping behind the drywall. It's most likely the strapping, that dries out and shrinks during the months where the heat is on. Therefore, if the strapping shrinks and the drywall is fastened to the strapping, then the drywall will try to move with it as much as it can.
The only way to fix this, is tear the ceiling down and start over using strips of MDF board for the strapping. MDF board does not expand and contract with moisture changes in the air. Not what you wanted to hear I know.
Good luck
Radiant heating uses a series of tubing loops or and metal grid in a floor above a sub floor with the heat rising, so maybe this is the wrong term to use, the problem maybe in the joint placment or load bearing.
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