Skimming advise, overboard OR NOT??

tony58_3

hi,

i am just getting my whole house skimmed, after having it rewired.

virtually all the plasterers have said, they would overboard the cielings, with 9.5mm plasterboards and then skim on top. Rather than knocking out the excisiting ceiling.

I really didnt wana do that as i would lose about 12mm or height (i know stupid) :eek: However could it just not be skimmed over existing ceiling, after taking the wallpaper off??there are a few cracks in the existing ceiling but obviously they would be covered with the new skim.

ANy advise?

Thanks

latecomer

Trouble is that is the plaster is cracked then its likely that any new plaster would just crack as well. I would get them boarded and skimmed.

dampdaveski

Tony,
if the plasterers just overskim, there is a very strong liklihood, the cracks will show through, even if they tape them with scrim cloth.
Knocking out existing ceilings is a REALLY messy job, ultimately it can be a better job in the end, but overboarding is an acceptable way to do it, and instead of losing 12mm hieght, look at it this way, you have 12mm less room space to pay to heat.
Hope this helps
DD

tony58_3

right yeh thats exactly what i imagined, well the living room which is quite large, 8x4.5 meters has a crack running across in the middle, all the way, however bedrooms have no cracks so im guessing, they should be ok just to skim?? but the bedroom ceilings have been painted would that intefere with the new plaster?

dampdaveski

Hi tony,
If the bedroom ceilings are fine ie no cracks or loose plaster etc then overskimming should be ok, it's just a case of the plasterers priming the ceilings first with a couple of coats of PVA adhesive, which is cheap as chips

phill99

Overboarding is also a more cost effective choice for the plasterer and you! He is going to charge to remove and dispose of the old ceiling. Then he is going to put up new plasterboard. If he overboards, you are not paying for him to remove the okd ceiling and the cost of disposal.

kerri247

I had exactly the same decision to make in my 2 bed victorian house. The ceilings looked OK at a glance but looking closley you could see some cracks. In the end, after hearing many different opinions and views, I decided to get all the ceilings boarded and then skimmed. They look fab and (hopefully) I wont have to think about getting them redone for a long time. I also didnt have to worry about the mess and time spent removing the old ceilings.