cracks in exterior wall, what should one seal with?

[BirgitS]

What does the wall consist of, e.g. concrete, brick, wooden studs, planks?

 

[bertt]

What is the wall made of, e.g., concrete, brick, wooden studs, planks?

The exterior walls are non-load-bearing with a frame of wooden studs, insulation with mineral wool boards, and paneling on both sides. The short side with the balcony outside, where the smoke is coming from, mostly consists of windows with a balcony door in the middle. At the top, there is a wall and a small piece on the sides and under the windows, of course. The cracks are here and there; by one window, it's as if the window trim doesn't cover, so there's a gap almost all the way. But there are also cracks near the ceiling and on the sides; you can feel air coming in there.

 

[BirgitS]

I have taped them, I'll take a picture tomorrow when it's light🙏

Has the smoke stopped when you taped the cracks?
Still missing the pictures.

The exterior walls are non-load bearing and have a frame of wooden studs, insulation with mineral wool boards, and paneling on both sides

Do you mean there's some sort of wooden board facing the room that is wallpapered or painted?
Then maybe it helps to put plasterboard on top.

 

[bertt]

Has the smoke stopped when you taped the cracks?
Missing the cards.

Do you mean that there's some kind of wooden board towards the room that is wallpapered or painted?
Then maybe putting plasterboard on top would help.

It's better, but I don't know if it's because of the tape or the smoker after our complaints last time.
There's very little wall, in this picture you see a bit

 

[BirgitS]

For if sealing the cracks with tape doesn't work, then sealing with anything else probably won't work either.

 

[bertt]

For if it doesn't help to seal the cracks with tape, it probably won't help to seal with anything else either.

of course not but I have to try anyway, the alternative is to move,
so if anyone has tips on which material is best to seal an exterior wall with, I would gratefully accept advice

 

[BirgitS]

I assume the yellow stripes are tape, and the lower one appears to be in the middle of the window trim. If the trim is cracked, you replace it. In the angle between the wall and the ceiling, you use a paintable flexible sealant, e.g., called painter's caulk, which you paint over.

There is a black line above the window. If it's an air supply vent, sealing any cracks on that wall won't help, as air comes through that vent. It's also important not to seal the vent because if enough air doesn't come in, it can make you sick due to, for example, mold growth.

 

[bertt]

I assume the yellow stripes are the tape, and the lower one seems to be in the middle of the window casement. If the casement is cracked, you should replace it. In the angle between the wall and the ceiling, you use an overpaintable flexible seal, such as painter's caulk, which you paint over.

There is a black line above the window. If it is an air vent, sealing any cracks on the wall will not help because air comes through that vent. It's also important not to seal the vent because insufficient airflow can make you ill, e.g., due to mold growth.

Thanks but the picture is just to show what a small snippet of wall it is, the tape has been moved, there is no crack in the casement and no crack between the wall/ceiling,
I know I need to seal the cracks that are everywhere since the entire wall leaks in smoke, and it becomes much more smoke than from two vents,
I will look into this. Happy Easter