Any idea of cost of sorting this ceiling?

[CluelessDIYer1]

We had intended to just have our walls sorted & leave the ceiling papered as it is but as per usual, things have gone wrong in the process.

In getting the coving off, which was a bit faffy, we put the steamer behind it to make the job easier. This was great until getting to the far end of the ceiling & it's bubbled the ceiling paper really badly & not just in a small area either. The bubbling has got worse over the weekend.

SO...we were thinking of having it skimmed, or boarded & skimmed or whatever it is you actually do with ceilings.

It's reasonably rectangular, although there are shapings for the chimney breast & where there's one window.

MEASUREMENTS: 6.7mtr x 3.3mtr (at its widest point).


With the coving off, we've noticed a few cracks - typically in the corners. These wont be a problem will they when skimming/boarding/whateveritisthat'sdone?




Everything is fairly straight other than the 2 bits that jut out i show here:






Now when i ask what should we be looking at, i don't mean to the penny, but a rough idea. I know it'll vary from plasterer-to-plasterer and region-to-region, but roughly? I.E. if the chap says £1000 we could all agree that's OTT.

And what is it they do? Just skimming or do they board it also?

Will be a nightmare to remove that ceiling paper in prep for it

 

[skhudy]

I've posted this before, but it will give you a guide to the price (of a ceiling half the size of yours) http://www.buildingsheriff.com/plastering-ceilings-costs.html
one of the plasterers will hopefully give more guidance on what they'd recommend when they see the pictures

 

[ree]

The ceiling is plaster lath (ie. no plaster boarding).

It looks ( except for the noted cracking) to be in good nick.

If you were to board over it, and skim, then its a waste of time fixing cracks or removing paper.

Unfortunately, best practice for ceiling boards is for the boards to go "into" the wall plaster ie. almost as though the wall plaster was supporting the edge of the board. Its actually blinding it, and once taped, you've got a no crack angle.

Its simple enough for an experienced plasterer to make the inside angle good.

Perhaps, you would rather take the time to steam off the remaining paper, and check out the whole field. Push it up and see if it sags down.

The price site listed above and the other various price comparison sites are worthless. Deal with the tradesperson on site, and get a real quoted price not some weird guess.

 

[Alastairreid]

Personally and if the ceiling is sound! a steam stripper, elbow grease, and patience followed by a couple of coats of pva scrim tape a tight coat of bonding and 2 of finish.

Save a few bob as well.

 

[CluelessDIYer1]

The ceiling is plaster lath (ie. no plaster boarding).

It looks ( except for the noted cracking) to be in good nick.

How would you expect this to take to a steamer?

Only reason i ask is because we removed some kitchen wallpaper yesterday & it lifted the old plaster. It ended up with the majority of it coming off.

Basically what i'm trying to say/ask is - is my ceiling likely to come crashing down on me?

Unfortunately, best practice for ceiling boards is for the boards to go "into" the wall plaster ie. almost as though the wall plaster was supporting the edge of the board. Its actually blinding it, and once taped, you've got a no crack angle.

Since the lads have only just plastered the walls, how would they approach this then?
I bet they'd be non too pleased, but to be fair we never intended on getting the ceiling done this way.

The price site listed above and the other various price comparison sites are worthless. Deal with the tradesperson on site, and get a real quoted price not some weird guess.

I spoke to a plasterer who came in to work today & showed him the photos i've posted here.

He said approx £110-£120 for labour & approx £170-£200 in total (inc materials) for the entire job. I think that was for boarding & not just skimming.

One thing the wife is concerned about is the light fixing...

We're in 2 minds whether to renew or keep. She's concerned about fixing it in place if going the boarding approach - how it may or may not look snug.
I suggested getting it fitted first & then if it gets boarded, it's already in place.

The plasterer i spoke to today said they wouldn't even remove it, they'd just board around it. Hmmm.

Personally and if the ceiling is sound! a steam stripper, elbow grease, and patience followed by a couple of coats of pva scrim tape a tight coat of bonding and 2 of finish.

Save a few bob as well.

What would that be for then? Skimming or boarding? Sorry to be dim.

At any rate, the most we'd do ourselves on this is ceiling paper removal. We're not very DIY minded.

 

[nicksey]

Between 4-500 inc mats

 

[CluelessDIYer1]

Well we've had a quote from the guys who did the walls.

They've stripped off about half of that ceiling paper (any idea we had of maybe getting away with just sticking coving back on & seeing if it'll cover minor tears has now gone).

I don't know how you classify a "sound ceiling". There's a few cracks but the ceiling isn't falling apart.

Anyway to board & skim, we were told 2 days & approx £700-£800. These guys seem to do building work & plastering i think & aren't just dedicated plasterers.

Have this week spoken to some plasterers who came into my work. 2 of them said around the £200-£300 mark which is also for boarding & skimming.



Any idea why the £400-£500 difference? That's not a small amount. Granted, the higher quote guys have actually seen the ceiling in the flesh whereas the others haven't, but i showed the others the photos & gave them the dimensions. £500 is quite a difference.

I'm happy with the original lads plastering work, but £500 is a fair whack.

 

[skhudy]

These plasters at work, why don't you ask them if they can do the job at a weekend? Or are they quoting without the intention of doing the work. There quote seems to be too low if you consider its a two man job and you'd allow two days (or one very long day!) and materials would be around £80 - 90. You're original plasters seem to be on the high side. nicksey's estimate seems to sound about right

 

[roy c]

Ask them their hourly rate and see how they justify their price..

 

[CluelessDIYer1]

These plasters at work, why don't you ask them if they can do the job at a weekend? Or are they quoting without the intention of doing the work. There quote seems to be too low if you consider its a two man job and you'd allow two days (or one very long day!) and materials would be around £80 - 90. You're original plasters seem to be on the high side. nicksey's estimate seems to sound about right

I don't know if they intended on coming out to do the job or not. One of them said he'd come round & have a look if we wanted (to give us a better idea), but said depending on condition, approx £200.

The original fellas did say it'd be a 2-man 2-day thing which we expected.

Ask them their hourly rate and see how they justify their price..

Don't even start!

It's the wife who's dealing with the plasterers. I'm the one dealing with the drive guy.

I said she should say it's a bit much although we would like them to do the job having seen their work so far, but that we'd been quoted £200-£300, so what's the difference all about.

She wont ask as she doesn't feel comfortable saying that.

We're considering (or at least were considering) getting a new light fitting for the room. We both know naff all about electrics & aren't very DIY minded, so i said can she ask them if they'll change the light fitting as part of the ceiling job since they're up there anyway.

She wont ask that as she doesn't feel comfortable, as she doesn't think they'll do it.

I've tried the - don't get if you don't ask line. No joy. They wired in a new socket/backplate for us, so i said they'd already done some sort of electrical work for us. Nope that didn't work either.

There seems too many stumbling blocks on the path to getting in to this house so i just said that's it - we don't get the light fitting changed at all.

1 less stumbling block at least.

In short, she wont ask their hourly rate as she wont feel comfortable.

 

[NickB_99]

Ask them their hourly rate and see how they justify their price..

Don't even start!

It's the wife who's dealing with the plasterers. I'm the one dealing with the drive guy.

I said she should say it's a bit much although we would like them to do the job having seen their work so far, but that we'd been quoted £200-£300, so what's the difference all about.

It could be as they are builders and prefer to be doing other things are giving you a higher quote.

I personally wouldn't push on the price.
For me, I do a bit of research and get 3 quotes from recommended tradesman.
I don't necessarily go for cheapest, but pick the one I feel knows their stuff and seem good value to do the job for a fair price.
I would feel rude questioning it. If they're too pricey - they know they'll prob not get the job.

You've got another thread with the walls, and I don't think you're 100% happy with them (use of board etc), so maybe give a specialist plasterer a chance that you've got quotes from?

 

[CluelessDIYer1]

Thanks.

It's not that we're not happy with their work. We are.

The wife just likes the job done & pays up, whether it be good value or expensive & asks no questions.

On the other hand I like to ask questions. I like to know what's going on - if everything is as it should be but more than that I just like to learn more about what's being done. You don't find anything out by being quiet. That's why I ask so much.

 

[roughcaster]

It always pays to ask for the opinions of others. Keep asking.

 

[CluelessDIYer1]

Well bonus, it turns out the ceiling will be £500 if boarded.

I'm not sure what's going on to be honest, as the missus told me it was originally £700-£750 which i was very reluctant over.

Now that it's £500 i'm happy with that & don't mind them doing the job as they've been good so far.

 

[NickB_99]

On the other hand I like to ask questions. I like to know what's going on - if everything is as it should be but more than that I just like to learn more about what's being done. You don't find anything out by being quiet. That's why I ask so much.

Well there's nothing wrong with that! Agree completely.