I think my ceiling was put up by Escher, how to fix?

[Rsian]

Hi all,

After some advice on a bit of a dodgy ceiling.

New house, doing lots of redocorating.

I have just removed some cupboards from a bedroom, and they were hiding a bit of a problem with the ceiling (see picture).

Untitled

• Rsian
• 26 Feb 2012
• 1

Untitled

• Rsian
• 26 Feb 2012
• 1

Over a 2' section towards a wall edge, the ceiling rises by around an inch, but the surrounding part of the ceiling all falls back level.
It looks like the width of plaster board, so I first thought something had dropped, but the part circled in red actually looks like an inch if skim.
Both parts of the ceiling 'appear' very solid with no obvious movement when pushed upon, but I'm wondering how easy it will be for a plasterer to correct - or how I explain to him over the phone what the problem is so he knows if he needs anything before he gets here - planning on him skimming the whole room in around a week (he lives not that close so may not be able to get over to have a look first).

Any advice please, is there a term (other than the obvious ), for what has happened here?

Also, using a scraper I can peel away, in several inch secions, the 'paint' (if that's what it is), which is attached to this section of ceiling. It appears fairly well bonded, yet does come of easily if you get under an edge quite nicely. Will the whole ceiling need to be taken back to the plaster, or should a skim bond ok?

Help please, a lot of work in the worst case scenario!

 

[peaps]

You should take all loose paint and plaster off before you re-plaster. You can level that out with some bonding before you reskim.

I would invest in some bondit before you reskim.

 

[Rsian]

Thanks.

What is coming off the ceiling is thicker than paint, and is flexible.
It comes off quite easily if you get under it, but is stuck quite solid to the ceiling.

Does all of this need to come off, as it is now taking layers off of a previous shabby repair/skim job?

It looks like the original stippled ceiling has been skimmed and textured over, then had a portion repaired, and just the repaired area was skimmed (really badly), and blended into the previous texture and then they tried to texture the repair to match the old.

I find I'm starting to get a grip on a piece of the textured finish, and pulling down on it and it's taking skim off and revealing the old stipple.

Although it comes of fairly easily with myself pulling on it, I don't think it would come off if it was just skimmed as it is.

Any ideas?

 

[Rsian]

Is "bond it" thick enough to bond to a ceiling without dropping off, as the area on the ceiling requiring filling is about a square foot of one inch thickness.

And is this Thistle Bond It, is there an alternative if I cannot get this brand?

 

[peaps]

Thanks.

What is coming off the ceiling is thicker than paint, and is flexible.
It comes off quite easily if you get under it, but is stuck quite solid to the ceiling.

Does all of this need to come off, as it is now taking layers off of a previous shabby repair/skim job?

It looks like the original stippled ceiling has been skimmed and textured over, then had a portion repaired, and just the repaired area was skimmed (really badly), and blended into the previous texture and then they tried to texture the repair to match the old.

I find I'm starting to get a grip on a piece of the textured finish, and pulling down on it and it's taking skim off and revealing the old stipple.

Although it comes of fairly easily with myself pulling on it, I don't think it would come off if it was just skimmed as it is.

Any ideas?

You need to remove anything loose, flaking or powdery. I would bond out the uneven areas (apply thistle bondit first) filling any areas that need it, Then when dry and ready to skim bondit the whole ceiling and skim.