Ceiling falling down...

popularfurball

This is possibly a stupid question, but who would be the appropriate trade to fix this?

We were asleep in bed when there was an almighty crash - the plaster appears to have perished. I have been in the loft but can't tell if more than just plastering is needed. It is an old property (1850s) so unsurprising but not sure who would e best placed to fix it? A plasterer? Loft conversion? A joiner?

Apologies for the dense question!

missprice

Plasterer would be the trade needed.
They will board the ceiling, then skim.

Messy job to some extent.
Not certain of cost but I have had a whole house plastered for I think about £400 a room. Avg ish. As some rooms big/small hallway etc.

May want to check other rooms, including walls, to see if they are also perished.

popularfurball

If the beams need replacing, who would be able to tell - and or fix them?!

nickcc

Sounds like its the old lath and plaster ceiling. Just needs the original stripping out, boarding with plaster board and skimming. If the original had been fairly sound you could have boarded on top but not if it had already started to break up. Depending where you live I would estimate the cost of boarding and skimming to be in the region of £300 to £500. Joists should be ok as long as they don't have worm or are rotted due to water.

wallbash

popularfurball wrote: »

If the beams need replacing, who would be able to tell - and or fix them?!

1850's ceiling is ( guessing ) a lath and plaster job. No failure as in beams. When you look up do you see a mass of thin strips of wood all running in the same direction . Plaster is pushed into the gaps and then smoothed over.

1) Board over .......... easy , clean and fairly cheap

2) remove and replace with plaster board..........even easier

BUT .the mess is horrific, think shoving your head in a bucket of dust/soot and trying to breathe, a job which every DIY should attempt at least once in his life, and vow never to do again.

wallbash

Snap ..........

missprice

popularfurball wrote: »

If the beams need replacing, who would be able to tell - and or fix them?!

You can probably tell by yourself, are they soft, do they smell. Full of little holes?

But as others have said, its very unlikely that beams are the problem. Its just old plaster.

popularfurball

There are beams up there which look like they have been chewed by a dog - but have been replaced with new beams. I can't tell where the ceiling is going through as there is lots of bricks/rubble/black coal looking stuff over everything. I was too frightened to move it as when I did the hole got bigger! Poor OH was stood underneath!!!

Glad it's happened right after we moved in as we haven't decorated anywhere yet!!!!

popularfurball

There are beams up there which look like they have been chewed by a dog - but have been replaced with new beams. I can't tell where the ceiling is going through as there is lots of bricks/rubble/black coal looking stuff over everything. I was too frightened to move it as when I did the hole got bigger! Poor OH was stood underneath!!!

Glad it's happened right after we moved in as we haven't decorated anywhere yet!!!!

popularfurball

There are beams up there which look like they have been chewed by a dog - but have been replaced with new beams. I can't tell where the ceiling is going through as there is lots of bricks/rubble/black coal looking stuff over everything. I was too frightened to move it as when I did the hole got bigger! Poor OH was stood underneath!!! And when your in the loft the plaster looks corrugated, but the beams are above it. - if that makes sense - the plaster hasn't been shoved between the beams.

Glad it's happened right after we moved in as we haven't decorated anywhere yet!!!!

popularfurball

There are beams up there which look like they have been chewed by a dog - but have been replaced with new beams. I can't tell where the ceiling is going through as there is lots of bricks/rubble/black coal looking stuff over everything. I was too frightened to move it as when I did the hole got bigger! Poor OH was stood underneath!!! And when your in the loft the plaster looks corrugated, but the beams are above it. - if that makes sense - the plaster hasn't been shoved between the beams.

Glad it's happened right after we moved in as we haven't decorated anywhere yet!!!!