artex repair

[Stephen]

Hello,

We have artex on our ceiling but we had a small leak. This came through the join between two plasterboard sheets and when I tried to tidy up, I must have pulled on the joint tape, so I ended up with a narrow strip say 2" by 12" of bare ceiling.

I know many people think the best thing to do to artex ceilings is to skim over them but to save some money, I bought a small pot of "artex repair texture" from B&Q. The problem is that I haven't done a very good job of it and the new bit is not flush with the old bit and there is some overlap on the border. How can I get this off to try again?

I understand that old artex had some asbestos is, so I cannot sand or grind it off. Will it chisel, or is it time to phone a plasterer?

If I do go down the plastering route, should I rip off the ceiling and reboard it? I only ask because last time I had a ceiling plastered, the chap suggested it would be easier to plaster a fresh board rather than plaster over artex. I didn't mind doing that because it was a small room but I'm wondering whether it is strictly necessary considering that ceiling removal can be a mucky job.

Thanks, Stephen.

[David WE Roberts]

IIRC when we needed an artex ceiling repaired the plasterer told us that he could not guarantee plastering straight over artex - plaster might not bond despite using bonding stuff - so it was better to put up another layer of plasterboard and then plaster that.

Much the same price, but with a better chance of a good result.

We chose that option :-)

[NT]

Lot of people just knock the nipples off then plaster direct on the artex. I've never seen an artex patch look unnoticeable, it just doesnt seem to work that way.

NT

[NT]

Lot of people just knock the nipples off then plaster direct on the artex. I've never seen an artex patch look unnoticeable, it just doesnt seem to work that way.

NT

ps maybe an opportunity to try plastering yourself. Nothing to lose

[Steve Walker]

When we reboarded our living room ceiling after the seam on the hot water tank leaked, we just plasterboarded over the existing ceiling - there's no meed to take it down. Doing it this way was much quicker, easier and cleaner and allowed thinner plasterboard (easier to handle) to be used, as you we didn't need to worry about fire resistance, as the old ceiling is still there.

But if you are not too unhappy with the artex, I'd make the effort to get the repair right instead. I can't help you with how to do that though.

SteveW

[Stephen]

Did you fit the new plasterboard over the old, as suggested in an earlier reply?

[Stephen]

I would like to learn. I hear there are some courses you can go to; I'll have to look into that. However, I think I should learn on a wall rather than a ceiling.