1950s Ex Council House: How much for a full replaster

PasturesNew

I've viewed a house I might wish to buy, trouble is the walls have all that funny wallpaper on (not the woodchip, the raised pattern stuff), the ceilings are all swirly artex (with some natural minor cracking areas).... so, as a ballpark, 1000 square feet (500 on each floor), how much would it be likely to cost to have that lot stripped back, skimmed, made smooth?  And how long should it take? 

Cheers

FreeBear

I suspect you are referring to anaglypta wallpaper - In the right setting, some of it can look quite nice...

On the bright side, it should be fairly easy to strip. If you can lift a corner, it should peal off leaving a backing paper - That can then be sponged or sprayed and then gently scraped off. I wouldn't advise a steam stripper..

As to cost for a skim, that would depend on where you are in the country, whether scaffolding is needed in the stairwell (some will use ladders, others will want a scaffold tower at a minimum). and just how bad the ceiling cracks are. But before you do any plastering, it would be worth looking at the electrics. If you want/need a rewire or increase the number of sockets, get that done first.

PasturesNew

FreeBear said:

...it would be worth looking at the electrics. If you want/need a rewire or increase the number of sockets, get that done first.

Thanks for your reply.

I had electrics at the back of my mind ... trouble is, not owning the house, one can't get people round to poke/prod and quote.  I just figured that the electrics would be what they are ... but the whole concept of replastering an entire house was a figure I couldn't make up/guess at   Especially timescales. 

dunroving

PasturesNew said:

FreeBear said:

...it would be worth looking at the electrics. If you want/need a rewire or increase the number of sockets, get that done first.

Thanks for your reply.

I had electrics at the back of my mind ... trouble is, not owning the house, one can't get people round to poke/prod and quote.  I just figured that the electrics would be what they are ... but the whole concept of replastering an entire house was a figure I couldn't make up/guess at   Especially timescales. 

If you make an offer and it is accepted, it's reasonable to request access for an electrical inspection. 

Re: embossed wallpaper, you could save yourself a load of money by stripping the wallpaper yourself. It will take days, but it's something anyone can do. No point spending lots of money getting a professional decorator or plasterer to do it.

(And re: plastering, the cost will be very different for a skim than for a complete reboard/replaster. You may not know which is needed until you get the paper off, so it's going to need a leap of faith. I'd assume you will need to get every wall completely skimmed.)

markin

My first guess of around 1K per room wasn't far off according to the site below. Is the still a skills shortage?

https://trustedtraders.which.co.uk/articles/cost-guide-plasterers#cost-of-re-skimming-over-plaster-on-internal-walls

PasturesNew

Thanks for replies. I've decided to dip out of this particular property, but most I see seem to require this work doing (which is why I've finally got round to asking).  No doubt the next few I see will, too, need doing and at least I now have an idea that it's actually a possibility to consider (if a house isn't too close to top of budget). 
I think the trouble I see is that if you're doing all the plaster... £1 says 'everything' else will need to be fiddled with too   and then it all starts to get daunting. 

macman

The electrical condition, or at least it's age, can easily be assessed by a purely visual inspection. No necessity to poke and prod. Look at the number of sockets and circuits, the type and condition of any visible wiring, and the type/age of CU. 

JIL

A friend of mine did a plastering course. She took a week off work and did an intensive course. She saved her an absolute fortune on her own house. It's a good skill to have.

HRH_MUngo

markin said:

My first guess of around 1K per room wasn't far off according to the site below. Is the still a skills shortage?

https://trustedtraders.which.co.uk/articles/cost-guide-plasterers#cost-of-re-skimming-over-plaster-on-internal-walls

We paid £1000 a room for our bungalow in 2015.

longwalks1

If you can strip the walls yourselves, or pay a youngster/odd job man to do so, you'll probably save loads.  Our plasterer who is based in Stevenage (Herts), charges us £250-£300 per room, and his work is second to none.  Hes done 3 properties for us now.  He has his son helping/learning and does a room a day on average. (bedroom sized)

kdotdotdotdot

Anaglypta wallpaper is pretty easy to remove (I've done four rooms of it so far).  It's woodchip you want to worry about - and what's underneath. If you're lucky, the previous owners stripped the wallpaper before putting theirs up, but if not . . . oh boy!  I needed a steamer and a little doofer to make pinprick holes in the wallpaper to let the steam through and it worked like a dream.