Artex/asbestos ceilings and walls

rubuhoeikanaika

Hi fellow moneysavers!

We recently bought 'the worst house on the best street', just got the test results back... lots of artex ceilings and walls. Because the ceilings are old (1885, lathe and plaster) and may not be great at taking extra weight, we are considering skimming over the artex on the walls, but having it removed from the ceilings. Just a couple of questions I've not been able to get a clear answer to:

1. Does skimming over artex on the walls meaningfully reduce the size of the rooms?
2. If artex is removed from a lathe and plaster ceiling, what is left? I assume it would have to be replaced with something? Or just plastered over again?

Thanks!

FreeBear

This is a (small) lathe -

These are laths -

Skimming a lath & plaster ceiling will reduce the height of the room by 3-5mm and add maybe 50-75Kg. The danger of skimming over artex is that you have no way of knowing how well it has adhered to the plaster above. If the original ceiling had been painted with distemper and artex applied over the top, there is a good chance that the skim+artex will fall down within a few months.

There are stripping chemicals (X-Tex being one) that can be applied to artex to aid in the removal - I have used some in the past. It is messy and got some of it off (long story, but ended up taking the whole ceiling down). I have heard of some people using steam strippers to get artex off, but I can't comment on the effectiveness of it.

rubuhoeikanaika

Fair point on the spelling, thanks! Would the size reduction be similar for walls? Just looking at the artex pattern the bumps look higher than 5mm to me -- big, 70s bumps!

FreeBear

3-5mm would be the same regardless of walls or ceiling. But.... If you have the stuff on exterior walls, stripping it off and skimming with a lime plaster is going to pay dividends. Solid brick walls (most likely with an 1885 property) need to be treated with respect and the appropriate materials used.

That said, if you have a modern render on the outside, then the damage has been done, so you may as well slap gypsum up on the walls inside.

rubuhoeikanaika

Sorry for the basic questions, but by stripping it off you mean what an asbestos removal company would do?

FreeBear

Have you had the artex tested for asbestos ?

No, or the test came back negative - https://www.ecosolutions.co.uk/homestrip-xtex/

Yes and the test was positive - Your call.

rubuhoeikanaika

Positive test I'm afraid.

Gavin83

If you’ve had a positive test for asbestos you really need to get a professional asbestos removal company in to do the work. No it won’t be cheap but it’s dodgy stuff.

Phil4432

I'd second the above; get a pro company to do it.

I have asbestos artex ceilings, painted them a few years ago and forgot about them. 

rubuhoeikanaika

Cheers all, I'm disappointed but we knew this was a risk when we saw the textured walls! Just a bit unlucky - the walls were done in different decades and they're all positive. Having it out should help with the resale value of the house in any case, at least a bit. Just waiting for a quote from the removal company.

fenwick458

if you're getting a company in to strip the ceilings, you may as well get the walls done at the same time!