Plastering advice
Common Ceiling Problems and How They're Repaired
Short answer
The most common ceiling problems are cracking, sagging lath and plaster, water damage from leaks, nail popping in plasterboard and dated textured coatings. Depending on severity, ceilings are repaired by filling and skimming, overboarding and skimming, or removing and replacing the ceiling entirely.
Sagging lath and plaster
In Victorian and Edwardian homes across Sutton, Carshalton and Wimbledon, original ceilings are held up by plaster pushed through timber laths. Over a century those keys break and the ceiling begins to drop. If it is still largely intact it can often be overboarded and skimmed; if it is badly gone, it comes down and a new ceiling goes up.
Water damage
Stains, bulging and flaking usually follow a leak from above. The leak has to be fixed and the ceiling allowed to dry before repair. Small areas can be cut out and made good; widespread damage is generally better replaced.
Cracks and nail pops
Fine cracks along board joints are usually movement rather than failure and can be raked out, scrimmed and skimmed. Nail pops are refixed and made good. Skimming the full ceiling afterwards avoids a patchwork appearance in the paint.
Textured ceilings
Dated textured coatings are normally covered with a flat skim rather than removed, which is cleaner, quicker and avoids disturbing older coatings that may contain asbestos.
Need this doing?
SJF Plastering covers Sutton, Surrey and South West London. Call 07967 302162 or message us on WhatsApp for a free quotation.