How to get rid of Artex/Airtex ceilings

Ellechim

Hi there,

My brother and I inherited old family home in small country town. While it has been repainted, etc, it was remodelling in the mid-eighties when every single room in it was given airtex ceilings. We have been trying to sell for about 18 months, despite dropping price significantly have not had an offer - have equally struggled to rent it too.

Anyway, was thinking about makingover the whole house in order to put in on a level playing field with other new houses for sale or rent in the area (there are currently 100 houses for sale in this small country town, of which 90% are probably less than five years old). While stripping wallpaper, painting, carpets, new bathroom are something which I'm familiar with I have no idea to get rid of these stippled ceilings? Is it a matter of chipping all the airtex off and replastering or is there an easier solution - note, the house is about 1800 sqfeet so that's a lot of chipping :eek:

And, whatever the solution is, what kind of money should I be paying to have it rectified? I live about 2 hours drive from the house so can't drop down easily to check the work is being done well.......

Thanks in advance for any advice anyone might have.........

M

Poor Uncle Tom

Ellechim wrote: »

Hi there,

My brother and I inherited old family home in small country town. While it has been repainted, etc, it was remodelling in the mid-eighties when every single room in it was given airtex ceilings. We have been trying to sell for about 18 months, despite dropping price significantly have not had an offer - have equally struggled to rent it too.

Anyway, was thinking about makingover the whole house in order to put in on a level playing field with other new houses for sale or rent in the area (there are currently 100 houses for sale in this small country town, of which 90% are probably less than five years old). While stripping wallpaper, painting, carpets, new bathroom are something which I'm familiar with I have no idea to get rid of these stippled ceilings? Is it a matter of chipping all the airtex off and replastering or is there an easier

solution - note, the house is about 1800 sqfeet so that's a lot of chipping :eek:

And, whatever the solution is, what kind of money should I be paying to have it rectified? I live about 2 hours drive from the house so can't drop down easily to check the work is being done well.......

Thanks in advance for any advice anyone might have.........

M

I,m afraid that stuff sticks like s**t to a blanket, best re fit new slabs over and re-skim the ceilings. Been through it before, its the easiest way. A little work smoothing what you have and new slabs and either tape and joint or re skim and paint. sorry.

Ellechim

Thanks.

Do you mean plasterboard over it and then re-skim? Sorry, not very au fait with all the building terms.

If that's the case, would you have any idea what kind of cost i'd be looking at?

Thanks in advance......

RKQ

I'm afraid Poor Uncle Tom is correct. Care must be taken as some Artex was based on asbestos and any dust could be very dangerous. DO NOT TRY TO SAND IT OFF!!!

Wetting Artex can help remove it without making dust.
You could try X-Tex to remove it. Paste on and leave overnight. http://www.gogreen.cellande.co.uk/shop/products/ecosolutions/ecosolutions.php
Removing it will be messy!

It might be best to plasterslab over the ceiling. Then tape the joints between the slaps, then fill the joints, sand and paint. Cheap and safe.

A skim coat of plaster could also be applied to the plasterboard. Skim is a thin 3mm layer and shouldn't cost too must.

Get at least 3 quotes from reputable local plasters.

Ellechim

Thanks.

It was the next door neighbour who did the plastering - I will be able to ask him about the asbestos question. He did put it up about 25 years ago. His house is also covered in the stuff. mmmmmm Janey. I thought it might be a hassle to remove/fix but didn't figure on the asbestos. thanks for letting me know.

If I plasterboard over the artex does that remove/reduce the risk from the asbestos or just hide it?

RKQ

Hi Ellechim, glad to help!

Asbestos was the miracle material of the age, up to mid 1980's. It was in everything from Artex to man-made slates. I don't think its an issue if you slab over it as described above.

Asbestos is only dangerous as a dust, so drilling, sanding, chopping etc is extremely dangerous. Breathing in the dust can cause cancer.
However, if it is undisturbed its is safe. (Might be best to do some research! or google it)

Most people in your situation, slap over it. It is also possible to plaster directly onto / over it, but that requires a really skilled Plasterer!

sinnerboy

Agree with others - slab over and skim - you will impove on airbourne sound insulation in the process

Ellechim

Thanks - actually the ground floor of the house was built in the 30s and the walls there are about 2 ft thick of solid stone - so very soundproof......

Can anyone advise on potential cost of getting someone to plasterboard and finish ceilings? Would like to have a ballpark (will have to borrow the money to do this so may be prohibitive).

Ta

4400kevin

At 1800 square feet you need 60 8x4 sheets tacked and skimmed so the boards will cost about 480 and the skim 220 for 25 bags,thats the easy part labour wise 1500 and thats you ready for paint but at 2200 euro is it worth it.

Ellechim

that's brilliant Kevin, thanks a million. that's a lot less than I thought, great, thanks. Will just have to persuade brother now that it's worth it and source someone to do it.......