Ceilings- do I need to replaster?

[DespairingHomeowner]

Hello all, just wondering if anyone can give me their thoughts/experiences re ceiling repair or replaster

I’m buying a 1920s house, 3 lathe & plaster ceilings are in poor condition (living room, kitchen, hallway) - others in house have been replaced

I pulled down lathe & plaster ceilings, replaced (with board) & replastered in my current place 10 years ago : I still haven’t recovered

Is there another way? (Especially in the kitchen which is gorgeous and relatively new). Eg boarding over... what are pros & cons?

I’ve kind of resigned myself to living room ceiling coming down, but if I can find a workaround for kitchen or entrance hall it might save my sanity . PS - these were picked up in survey, plus I hate the look of cracks, so just living with it not an option

I wondered if some kind of thick paint might be enough in kitchen. Thanks for any suggestions!

PS - apologies for posting twice, I have asked for the duplicate/other thread to be deleted

You. Wed to reconcile yourself. Skimming them won't work as the base isn't secure so it will be a board and skim job

Overboard them then skim, that way you don’t get the mess and it also increases the insulation and soundproofs a bit more.

thanks @Chumleymouse & @Sunflowergirl1: its the mess I fear so overboarding does sound the way to go.

Have you had this done yourselves? Is it comparable in cost to just pulling down, & importantly... do you think it could be done with the kitchen units in situ and without damaging them? (I dearly hope so)

And of course, the ultimate question - does anyone know a good plasterer? (This is NW London) - thanks in advance

We've had this done in our kitchen. Can compare the cost as we never considered pulling the old ceiling down due to the mess that would produce. We fixed the plasterboards ourselves but got a professional to skim. The kitchen was empty at that point but I guess this can be done with the units in situ if you have enough room for manoeuvre. The principle is very simple and totally DIY-able but bear in mind that the plasterboard panels are quite heavy and unwieldy so lifting them up to the ceiling (and holding them there until they're fixed) will definitely require two fit people. We ended up using telescopic supports but that's an extra cost. Make sure to put screws into the ceiling joists, not the lathe.

*can't compare the cost...

Yes had it done once. The only disadvantage of not pulling down the existing ceiling is to be able to make sure that the boards are fully nailed into the ceiling joists. If not, then you risk the whole new ceiling pulling down the old one!.

I don't know the cost as was part of a wider job. I had a room ceiling skimmed and basic cornice out up which measured 4m x 6m and was £500

We have the same issue, and have been advised we need to board and skim them. Our plasterer Disney seem to think it was necessary to take the existing ceilings down, as he could find the joists. We were quoted £750 for a double bedroom, all walls and ceiling, plus the same on a small landing. (SE, near London pricing).

We had awful artex ceilings in our house, we just had them boarded over and skimmed as we decorated. No mess, just some extra cost and the effect is truly transformational - who'd have thought that such a basic thing would have been so key to a 'finished' look.

Ladies - thanks so much! Boarding & skimming it is. There is 1 kitchen unit which doesnt give much space so that might have to come off but otherwise hoping will all be ok

Also sounds like cost would be in £500 range, maybe a bit more if have to remove & then re-install one of the kitchen units. I definitely agree its a transformation :).

We managed to board this with the kitchen in place , about ten inches above units but there’s not enough room to skim it . The kitchen will be ripped out for that . But it’s ok for now.

@Chumleymouse - thanks for this, its helpful to know what can/can't be done. It sounds like i might have to deal with a temp/quick fix for the kitchen (ie fresh coat of paint & not look up) unless I am prepared to rip out the units (which are beautiful & a key reason I bought the hosue)

It makes me NUTS that the prev owners didn't just sort out the ceilings when they fit the kitchen which was probably around 2014... it would only have added a few hundred to the job

All our ceilings had cracks in them ( not as bad as yours ) . House was built in 1979 and is plasterboard not lath and plaster.

The reason ours were so cracked is that the original builders used about 10 nails in each sheet. The ones we have removed come down really easy in whole sheets.