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Does anybody know what this is? Could it be something serious?
I know an inspector could easily tell us, but we would like to have an idea before deciding whether we should start the process of making an offer or not.
This would be the second floor from a house that has 1st floor made of stucco/block, and 2nd made of stucco/wood frame. Thanks.
Does anybody know what this is?
Could it be something serious?
I know an inspector could easily tell us
Probably a simple crack where 2 pieces of wallboard come together.
Could be serious. Could be minor.
Inspector won't tell you. He/She will write: "could be, should be examined by structural engineer".
How old is the house?
How does the rest of the house look? Any other similar cracks?
Do you want the house or not?
Location: Mokelumne Hill, CA & El Pescadero, BCS MX.
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It looks to me as if the window above it leaked and/or is still leaking. The tape shouldn't bubble like that. Probably not a huge deal, I'd certainly want to see the outside of the window and check the seal.
Does anybody know what this is? Could it be something serious?
I know an inspector could easily tell us, but we would like to have an idea before deciding whether we should start the process of making an offer or not.
This would be the second floor from a house that has 1st floor made of stucco/block, and 2nd made of stucco/wood frame. Thanks.
Its hard to tell just based on the picture and not seeing the condition of the outside wall. Its looks like the seams between multiple drywall panels is lifting away, suggesting moisture, probably related to the window. There no way to know for sure without having someone qualified look at it more closely.
If you like the home, go ahead and make an offer (obviously contingent on inspection). All you'll stand to lose is around $300 and your time.
We did not see anything on the outside, but it was kind of far up, and a tree was obstructing the view, too, so it would be the inspector's or the engineer's job to look at it. I hope it's nothing serious, because we like the house. Thank you!
From the looks of things, I agree with some other posters. It appears to just be a water leak that caused the problem. The normal solution is to have a contractor or handyman that knows what they are doing, seal the leak, and then touch up that crack as you call it, which is actually a bubble. They would split it open, and do what is needed to make it sealed and flat. Then texture to match the wall, and paint over that area. Not costly to do, and permanent. It is not something that requires a structural engineer. It is a very common problem. Have just had a leak sealed on our roof edge under guarantee for the roof that was replaced, and are waiting for the man to come in and take care of the blister similar to yours and repaint the area.
It may prove to be as simple, as someone left the window slightly open, etc. and water leaked during a storm.
Thank you, Electrician4you and oldtrader. The window in question is fixed, it does not open. There are 5 more windows exactly like this one in the house, but with no noticeable problems. The house was built in '89, and I'm afraid these are the original windows.
It's hard to see from the pics, but this window also has some faint "bubbles", around the two lower corners. We sent an email asking the agent about it, and we are waiting for an answer from the owner first, to see if this house is worth pursuing.
Those two bubble areas show that widow is the source of the water leak. It needs to be properly sealed which is easily done. It is leaking around the window itself, and needs to be properly sealed. If you don't know how, then any decent contractor or handyman can solve that problem in minutes.
Get a dry wall contractor to give a bid to repair, then talk them out of a discount for you to take care of the problem after closing. Discount should be quite a lot above what the actual repair cost will be.
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