Is overboarding my best option for this disintegrating lath and plaster wall?

[chriseastlondon]

Hi. I've been stripping the skim coat off the walls in a room in my house. One lath and plaster wall is coming apart. I'm trying to take off the top layer of multifinish only. But I've ended up taking off the lime skim coat underneath and large areas of the brown coat as well. The scratch coat seems to be reasonably solid and so far hasn't come away from the laths, apart from one small area by the light switch.

Here's a picture.

I think my best bet is to remove everything except the scratch coat and, if that survives intact, overboard it all with 12.5mm plasterboard. I can fairly easily see where the joists are to fix it to.

Is that my best option?

Thanks.

 

[Koolpc]

If it were mine, I would rip it all off and start again.

 

[chriseastlondon]

@Koolpc, when you say rip it all off, you mean the laths and everything? Right down to the joists?

 

[Koolpc]

Yes

 

[JohnD]

I don't think I can see lime there. If looks to me like sand and cement render under gypsum plaster. It is richer in cement, and I think finer sand, than used round here.

It is a real mess.

I'd hack it off and start again.

Run any pipes, cables and socket boxes while it's open, and pack the void between the studs with acoustic quilt, or cavity batts which are cheaper. An original L&P wall has a lot of weight and density to it, and is a better sound barrier than plasterboard.

 

[chriseastlondon]

Thanks. Yeah, I suppose you're right. If I'm going to use plasterboard, I guess there's no point in saving any of the original lath and plaster.