ᐅ Older Building – Crack on Interior Side of Exterior Wall – Seeking Advice

Hello,

I need your advice.

I have rented an older apartment and unfortunately noticed drafts coming through the wall as well as noise from the street.

I have now removed some of the wallpaper and discovered a crack running from top to bottom at the corner where two exterior walls meet.

Sometimes the building also shakes, similar to an earthquake, which is caused by a heavily loaded train passing about 130 m (425 feet) away.

Can I repair this crack myself by injecting a ready-to-use acrylic-based mortar from a cartridge along the crack, and if there is a hole where the applicator fits, fill it that way?

If this is possible, how exactly should I proceed? Afterwards, I would apply filler over the area and then repaint with regular wall paint, similar to filling a drill hole.

Pictures attached.

Heintje627 schrieb:

How exactly do I proceed?

Since it is a rental apartment, you have the landlord carry out the repair at their expense 😉

That won’t work. He’ll threaten to kick me out again, claiming I’ve tampered with something here, and so on. Can I do this myself using a ready-mixed acrylic-based mortar in a cartridge for injection? I would apply it along the crack and fully fill any larger holes. Then smooth it out, sand it, and paint over it again.

Why acrylic? Any standard filler would do. Because whether it’s gypsum, acrylic, or cement, the crack is just a symptom of a bigger problem. If it bothers you, go ahead and fill it. But chances are, you’ll be facing the same issue again in 12 months. (By the way, in any court in this country, you would win if your landlord tried to terminate your lease because of this crack).

Heintje627 schrieb:

That’s not possible. Then he would threaten to kick me out again, accusing me once more of tampering with something here, etc., etc.

Honestly. I would have
a) either taken this person to court if I had the time and energy to invest, or
b) rented another apartment.

What is there to “tamper” with? He should come and see it with his own eyes.

I once experienced something similar in an apartment. No matter how you try to fix it, the crack will reappear sooner or later. This is because the two exterior walls move independently, possibly also due to traffic vibrations from the railway. Neither plaster nor acrylic sealant can prevent this.

Given the troubled tenant-landlord relationship, I would rather focus on finding a different apartment.