ᐅ Expansion joint between drywall and masonry

Hello! I am new to this forum because I couldn’t really find information on this topic online, and no one else has been able to help me. I am currently renovating my house. Some walls are going to be extended using drywall. For example, I have a 12cm (5 inches) partition wall, and a drywall lining will be installed next to it. The drywall panel and the plaster will then form one large new wall. The problem is that, according to drywall manufacturer recommendations, a movement joint (expansion joint, acrylic sealant, etc.) should be installed between the two different materials. I really want to avoid this. My idea was to apply a reinforcing mesh and adhesive plaster over both components together. The drywall company’s technician couldn’t confirm whether cracks might develop later despite the mesh. A structural engineer said that he used this method for his brother-in-law’s house and no cracks appeared (after 3 years). Do you have experience with this situation or have solved it in a similar way? Or do you have another suggestion? My goal is to avoid these movement joints if at all possible. Many thanks for your input and help! Best regards, Franz

No one can give you a general answer to that because there are external factors involved as well (e.g., outdoor climate / indoor temperature).

But why are you refusing to use a standard method? A joint can crack either way. We experience this with the roof overhang between wood / masonry and aluminum.

That’s why cracks within a few millimeters (inches) in expansion joints are always excluded from warranty and must be accepted.

Do you want to leave it bare or wallpaper it?
Sooner or later, the objects will move in opposite directions as the material expands and contracts.

We tried with a mesh, but it tore. Then we glued a makeshift strip of ash wood over the joint and painted it white. That works.

Cracks at the junction of two different materials can sometimes occur, but they don’t necessarily have to. It’s not very helpful if people say that it was fine for them for x years or that various cracks of different severity appeared.

Without being an expert on the subject, I can imagine the following solutions:

1) Covering the entire wall with painter’s fleece to bridge any potential cracks
2) Applying drywall panels (plasterboard) to the existing wall to cover and bridge the joint