Clark,
Thank you very much! I will get the fiberglass tape and some "mud" but I'm
not sure what you mean by that. Would they know at Lowe's what I mean by
that or does it have another name?
You seem very knowledgeable about this, so if you wouldn't mind, will you
give me some pointers on how to do this? Like how do I remove old seam tape?
Just start scraping that area?
Okay, then I put up the fiberglass mesh tape on the seam, then put the mud
stuff on there? Do I sand it when it dries?
Thank you so much, I really appreciate your help,
lucille

"Clark W. Griswold, Jr." 73115 dot 1041 at compuserve dot com wrote in
message ...
"lucy" wrote:

Older house, was built in the 60s I think, and lately I'm noticing
something
like cracks in the ceiling in most of the rooms, but it's more of what
looks
like a seam about to show. In all but one room, it hasn't come through
the
paint yet, if that makes sense. In one room, it's an actual "crack" looks
like a sidewalk crack, very thin though, and has cracked the paint. Long
one. There are also some cracks near the door frames on the walls. I live
in
Texas and have heard people say houses settle here a lot. Pier and beam
foundation, small house, just five rooms.

I cannot afford to move, fixed income, and it's just me, but I can still
climb a ladder if I'm careful. Will someone please tell me how to fix it?

You can usually tell quite easily if it is a seam crack. Those will be in
the
corner or run in a straight line. The easiest way to fix those is to use a
paintable acrylic caulk to fill the crack, then paint over with a latex
paint
that matches the existing paint.

If the seam tape has lifted, it needs to be removed (as much as has
lifted), and
replaced, mudding as required. I tend to think the fiberglass mesh tape
works
well for repairs as it is a bit stronger, but paper would also work.

Using drywall patch for seam cracks is usually not a good idea as the
crack will
likely reappear after a short time.

Note that if the surface paint has been on for a few years it most likely
will
not match fresh paint. If that's a problem, you need to paint the entire
surface
to a corner or other natural break in sight line.

If its serious?

These types of cracks are not serious as long as the gap is relatively
small -
say a pencil lead width or less. If the crack is larger or runs in
multiple
directions, you probably should have a trusted builder or inspector take a
look.

I don't have anyone I can call as far as family, and I rely on this
newsgroup a lot for information about this house

Now that's dangerous...