Overboard an Artex ceiling with plasterboard

Cover a sound Artex ceiling with new plasterboard, fixed straight into the joists, without disturbing or removing the old finish.

OA-01Check the ceiling is fit to overboardTap the ceiling all over. A dull, solid sound is fine; a hollow drum or a springy feel means loose plaster that could fail under the extra weight. Stop and get a professional in if you find wide cracks, sagging, or crumbling material - overboarding won't fix a failing ceiling. If the ceiling was textured before 2000, run your asbestos checks before any scraping or drilling.

OA-02Clear the room and set upMove furniture clear or group it in the centre of the room and cover everything, including the floor, with dust sheets. Use a proper podium step or a scaffold board on trestles rather than a single stepladder - this job needs both hands free for long stretches overhead. Keep a torch, tape measure and pencil within reach on the platform.

2 pack · Dust sheets

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1 day · Podium step hire

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OA-03Work out what's above the ArtexRun a stud/cable detector across the ceiling, then drill one small 3mm test hole in an inconspicuous spot at right angles to the suspected joist line. Fine timber dust means a timber joist; grey metal swarf means a steel channel or resilient bar, common in flats and anything built or refitted since the 1990s. Tap along the ceiling to find the hollow gaps between fixings, and check the loft above if you can get up there, as it shows the joist run and spacing (usually 400mm or 600mm centres) at a glance. If the Artex sits on old lath and plaster, the joists behind it are often closer together, around 300-400mm - find them the same way, and ignore the laths themselves, they won't take a fixing.

1 each · Stud and cable detector

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OA-04Safety check before you drill or cutCables can run almost anywhere in a ceiling void, including looping back to a rose or feeding a room above, and pipes can be up there too if there's a bathroom or a tank overhead. A detector helps but doesn't prove a space is clear - it can miss deep cables, cables in metal conduit, and gets confused by metal ceiling channels. Find your stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink) and check it turns before you start. If you have any doubt at all, isolate the lighting circuit at the consumer unit before drilling into the ceiling, and turn the water off at the stopcock before cutting anywhere near suspected pipework.

OA-05Plan the board layoutMeasure the room and work out how the boards will run so that end joints stagger row to row and land on a joist or channel, never in a gap. Mark the position of the existing ceiling rose and any other fitting so you can cut around it as you go. Standard boards are 2400x1200mm - decide now whether you'll need help lifting them into place.

6 each · Plasterboard sheet 12.5mm, 2400x1200mm

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OA-06Make the light fitting safeTurn off the lighting circuit at the consumer unit before touching the ceiling rose - never work on a live fitting. Loosen it, lower it gently, and cap the cable ends securely out of the way; it's straightforward to reconnect once the new board is up. If the room is a bathroom, or you're not confident with this, get an electrician - electrical work in a bathroom's special zones must be carried out, or checked and certified, by a competent person.

RULES

KNOW THE RULES

Electrical work within a bathroom's special zones falls under Part P of the Building Regulations. It must be done, or inspected and certified, by a registered competent electrician.

OA-07Fix the first board - method depends on what's aboveTimber joists: drive 42-50mm coarse-thread drywall screws through the new board and the old Artex into the centre of each joist, spaced roughly every 150-200mm along the run - check the exact fixing centres on your board's packaging. Metal channel or resilient bar: use self-drilling drywall screws made for metal, never wood screws, which strip straight through thin steel; space them the same way. Bare concrete soffit: fix timber battens across the ceiling first with concrete screws or plugs, then screw the board to the battens rather than the concrete direct.

1 box of 200 · Drywall screws 42-50mm (for timber)

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1 box of 200 · Self-drilling drywall screws for metal stud

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1 box of 50 · Concrete screws (masonry)

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4 each · Batten timber 38x50mm, 2.4m length

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OA-08Board the rest of the ceilingLift each board tight against the old Artex using a board lifter or a helper - overhead boards are heavy and awkward alone. Work in one direction, staggering the end joints between rows, and cut the hole for the ceiling rose using your earlier marks before fixing that particular board.

1 day · Board lifter hire

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OA-09Support any edge that lands in a gapEvery board edge needs to land on a joist, channel, or a noggin - never on unsupported board. If an edge falls between fixings, screw a timber noggin between the joists before you board over it, so the joint doesn't crack later. It's far easier to sort this before the board goes up than after.

2 each · Noggin timber 38x50mm

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OA-10Tape and fill the jointsBed joint tape into a layer of joint filler over every seam, then apply two more thin coats, feathering each one wider than the last. Fill every screw head dimple at the same time, letting each coat dry fully before sanding lightly and applying the next.

1 roll · Joint tape, 90m roll

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1 tub · Joint filler, 5kg tub

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OA-11Sand, check, and reconnect the lightSand the filled joints smooth, wearing a dust mask, then shine a torch across the ceiling at a low angle to spot any ridges or flat areas you've missed. Turn the lighting circuit back on at the consumer unit and reconnect the rose, matching the wires to how they were before you disconnected them.

1 each · Sanding block

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1 pack of 3 · FFP3 dust masks

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OA-12Clear upBag offcuts and used dust sheets, and vacuum plaster dust before it spreads through the house - a normal vacuum with a fine filter is fine, unless testing confirmed asbestos, in which case follow the disposal advice you were given at that point. Take plasterboard offcuts to a household recycling centre; most take it separately from general waste.

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