All Things Gypsum<br>Proper Use of Control Joints

All buildings move and flex, and nearly all building materials expand and contract. Unfortunately, the installation of stress relief to mitigate the impact of any type of stress on a building system, such as a gypsum board partition, is too often an afterthought. Proof of this can be observed in the occasional long corridor that exhibits cracking from the top corner of a doorframe to the ceiling.

The usual explanation for cracking in a gypsum board system is movement in the building's structure that was not properly accommodated; however, gypsum board systems can also expand and contract as they react to extreme changes in temperature. In every instance, some sort of control joint or stress relief device is needed to accommodate possible system movement and to inhibit potential cracking of the gypsum board membrane.