Shrinking House

boydsdodge

I went to a customers house today to look over the job, when I got there I saw that all the trim and some furniture have shrunk.
The shrinking is from the dry winter air, the house thermostat set at 74 and a dehumidifier running in the basement.
Every piece of trim in the house is shrinking and cracking in some places, all joints are opening on cabinet doors in kitchen, waynescotting and miter joints.
If humidity is added to the house will it return and if so how long should I wait before prep and paint?
Ideas and thoughts will be great.

neolitic

How old is the house?
When did they notice the
joints opening up?
Do they know anything about
the history, i.e. floods, burst pipes,......

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boydsdodge

I thought of water damage as well. but she told me that there has never been and it is also all over the house.
The house was build in the mid thirties, it is what I would call a four square, 4 bedrooms bathroom, dinning room, living room, side hall,
I'd say 3000sq ft.
the shrinking was first noticed maybe a year ago.
She thought it was just wear and tear on the house since last paint.
The house was originaly dark hard wood untill she bought the house 8 years ago and had it completely painted over.
The paint is in great shape cept for the spliting of the wood on large panels and opening of joints.

neolitic

Something changed.
Did she go for a summer or two
without A/C?
Did she switch from hot water
heat to forced air?

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AtlRemodeling

Every house that I have built, remodeled or lived in has had that problem. In Atlanta, 99% of the houses are forced air gas and we go through a yearly cycle of shrinking materials followed by expansion in early spring.

I always assumed the high humidity in the South was the cause but I would not expect that to be the issue in Canada. If she switched to gas heat then that could be the cause.

As I type this I am looking at every joint in the crown, casing and base in my home and there are shrinkage joints in nearly all of them.

neolitic

But you live in a swamp!

Seriously, we have really humid
summers too.
That used to be a problem,
before A/C.

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AtlRemodeling

True it does feel like a freakin' swamp half the time. I did not realize that humidity could be more than 100% yet it still not rain. We are still in the middle of drought down her.

All jokes aside, the problem for us is the dry as hell natural gas heat. Sucks the moisture out of everything. Humidifiers help but it sounds as if you client had a dehumidifier running. Might be overkill during the winter.

jfman

They sell humidifiers and dehumidifiers. My cous has both in his home to control the humidity due to health problems.