Ceilings

[peterkonczak]

Hello all,
Am about to put up a load of ceilings - joists are completely exposed as the place has been gutted...
I plan to cut and friction fit some insulation slabs in between the joists and then fix some plasterboard directly to the joists with coated screws before the plasterer comes to tape and skim.
Does anyone have any advice on this please or better ways of doing it?
I am planning on using quite small boards as holding them up while I fix them is not going to be too easy!
I may even try to rope in an extra pair of hands as there are 8 rooms and a staircase!!
Any advice greatly appreciated.
Cheers,
Pete

 

[Richard C]

Hello all,
I plan to cut and friction fit some insulation slabs in between the joists

Friction fit insulation slabs? why are you fitting them? Where are the ceilings?

Hello all,
and then fix some plasterboard directly to the joists with coated screws before the plasterer comes to tape and skim.

Use (black) drywall screws 150-200mm spacing; it’s what they are made for. I would advise you talk to your plasterer before boarding & follow his advice. Personally I prefer to do my own boarding & always do my own prep &, if it’s wrong, I won’t touch it although I’m sure you will find someone that will.

Does anyone have any advice on this please or better ways of doing it? I am planning on using quite small boards as holding them up while I fix them is not going to be too easy!

You should be using full size (1200mm x 2400mm) boards to reduce the chance of cracking; smaller boards are strictly DIY. Use 12.5mm boards (nobody uses 9.5mm for ceilings any more), they are not difficult to fit, it’s all about technique & many spreads can fix full size boards on their own using boards props & a few tricks. Board close butted with the long edge across the joists & stagger the board joints. You may need noggins with 12.5mm if the joist spacing is greater than 450mm centres & with thinner, smaller 9.5mm boards you certainly will or it will most likely crack all to hell within a year.

I may even try to rope in an extra pair of hands as there are 8 rooms and a staircase!!

Probably a good idea, you can then use full size 12.5mm, as you should be!

 

[^woody^]

Make a dead-man - timber in a 'T' shape to the height of the ceiling and use this to hold one end or middle of the board while you fix the ends.

The longest side of the plasterboards should span across the joists and remember to half-bond them

Some plastic [garden] mesh across the joists first will hold the insulation better

 

[mointainwalker]

If plaster-board not foil-backed, fit a vapour-barrier (continuous plastic sheet ) between plasterboard and joists.

 

[DAZB]

If you do opt to use 8 X 4 boards then use the advantage of getting to the upper rooms by passing them up through the bare floors as you might struggle to get them up a staircase in one piece. Also I agree with the thicker boards but 6" - 8" spacing for the screws seems a bit OTT. I generally screw drywalls around 18" - 24" apart but each to their own.

 

[Richard C]

6" - 8" spacing for the screws seems a bit OTT. I generally screw drywalls around 18" - 24" apart but each to their own.

Sorry 450mm - 600mm is way, way too much even with 9.5mm boards. The recommended spacing for direct fix ceiling boards is 230mm; by choice I fix at 150 – 200mm max depending on circumstances. 40mm drywall screws are cheap, fixing sagging ceiling boards cracking along the boards joints after a year or so isn’t!

 

[DAZB]

That's why I said 'each to their own'. I have never had a problem with my fixing methods and I still work in and on dozens of the properties I have renovated.

 

[simonjay]

Make a dead-man - timber in a 'T' shape to the height of the ceiling and use this to hold one end or middle of the board while you fix the ends.

The longest side of the plasterboards should span across the joists and remember to half-bond them

Some plastic [garden] mesh across the joists first will hold the insulation better

Another trick I picked up somewhere. If you screw a bit of board (OSB etc) in the middle of the previous board so it sticks out past the end, you can slide the next board above the little ledge created, and it magically stays there ! When done, take this down and use for the next board.
A dead man on the other end and you can wang up the board and have a cup of tea before you put the screws in. One-man fitting is then possible, and you can get the board properly lined up instead of trying to screw a board up when its flapping around above your head !
Simon.

 

[peterkonczak]

Thanks very much for the advice guys.

I will make a 'dead man' to aid me - is 2 x 2 ok for this? I presume its easiest to lean it against a wall so it balances, slide the board up to be laying on it and then get on a hop-up at the other end and lever that side up to touch the joists and screw in place working my way towards the 'dead man'?

Great tip re the OSB bard too, thanks SimonJay!

The house is a victorian detached property. The floorboards are down so getting the boards up the stairs won't be easy but it's a wide staircase so I should be ok...

Looks like I'll go for the full size 12.5mm thick boards which are foil backing all around then, and 'vapourshield' boards for the ceiling in the bathroom.

I had just assumed it's good practice to put insulation above every ceiling - on the ground floor and the 1st floor, as the floors are wooden boards so may reduce noise and help with the heat loss? Is that not a good idea then?



Cheers,
Pete

 

[mointainwalker]

I had just assumed it's good practice to put insulation above every ceiling - on the ground floor and the 1st floor, as the floors are wooden boards so may reduce noise and help with the heat loss? Is that not a good idea then?

It depends what type of ceiling we are discussing.

Ceiling to loft definitely because any heat going through is lost/wasted.

Between floors is more difficult. Heat passing through serves to heat the upper rooms however fitting insulation will reduce this as well as noise transmission. As far as the noise is concerned , by how much is another question as it depends what kind of noise it is ( foot-steps/talking/etc) and how susceptible you personally are to it.

 

[iaith]

When I'm fitting a ceiling by myself, I always use two dead-men. It can be quite tricky fitting ceiling boards by yourself, you'll need to be pretty strong, getting a helping hand is a good idea, tho too many hands can complicate things, you'll also need a few hop-ups, or good solid steps depending on the height of the ceiling. good luck

 

[geraint]

Hello all,
I plan to cut and friction fit some insulation slabs in between the joists

Friction fit insulation slabs? why are you fitting them? Where are the ceilings?

Hello all,
and then fix some plasterboard directly to the joists with coated screws before the plasterer comes to tape and skim.

Use (black) drywall screws 150-200mm spacing; it’s what they are made for. I would advise you talk to your plasterer before boarding & follow his advice. Personally I prefer to do my own boarding & always do my own prep &, if it’s wrong, I won’t touch it although I’m sure you will find someone that will.

Does anyone have any advice on this please or better ways of doing it? I am planning on using quite small boards as holding them up while I fix them is not going to be too easy!

You should be using full size (1200mm x 2400mm) boards to reduce the chance of cracking; smaller boards are strictly DIY. Use 12.5mm boards (nobody uses 9.5mm for ceilings any more), they are not difficult to fit, it’s all about technique & many spreads can fix full size boards on their own using boards props & a few tricks. Board close butted with the long edge across the joists & stagger the board joints. You may need noggins with 12.5mm if the joist spacing is greater than 450mm centres & with thinner, smaller 9.5mm boards you certainly will or it will most likely crack all to hell within a year.

I may even try to rope in an extra pair of hands as there are 8 rooms and a staircase!!

Probably a good idea, you can then use full size 12.5mm, as you should be!

i disagree...

the smaller boards are produced for the working man...

health and safety wise which is another sound idea..

 

[roughcaster]

Do the job properly Peter. Go for the "man sized 8x4x1/2inch sheets" as Richard said. Small handiboards are for DIY,,, joints all over the place.
A health and safety benefit??? my arse, they've been fitting big sheets of plasterboard for years without a problem,,, now, all of a sudden it's a hazardous job, what crap. 2 people or 1 person and a dead man,, no problem.

 

[geraint]

Do the job properly Get go for the "man sized 8x4x1/2inch sheets" as Richard said. Small handiboards are for DIY,,, joints all over the place,
A health and safety benefit??? my a**e, they've been fitting big sheets of plasterboard for years without a problem,,, now, all of a sudden it's a hazardous job, what crap. 2 people or 1 and a dead man,, no problem.

as always..... rubbish jock talk.... and no doubt you will be threatening again big man....

or will you be a pussy once again.....

 

[geraint]

Do the job properly Get go for the "man sized 8x4x1/2inch sheets" as Richard said. Small handiboards are for DIY,,, joints all over the place,
A health and safety benefit??? my a**e, they've been fitting big sheets of plasterboard for years without a problem,,, now, all of a sudden it's a hazardous job, what crap. 2 people or 1 and a dead man,, no problem.

as always..... rubbish jock talk.... and no doubt you will be threatening again big man....

or will you be a **** once again.....

pu**y and the missing letter is an S...

just to make myself clear...