27 February 2018

Ask RiotACT: Re-screwing sagged gyprock ceilings - to prop or not to prop?

| Tim
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Hi Rioters,

The gyprock ceilings in my old house have pulled away from the ceiling batons as a result of the glue failing. I have since got two quotes to re-screw the gyprock to the batons, reset the joins and patch over the screw holes.

The quotes vary markedly in price. The more expensive quote (double the cost) involves propping the ceilings prior to re-screwing and sanding back the entire ceiling (not just the patches), which they believe is the only way of making the ceiling look brand new.

I would be grateful to hear from other Rioters on their experiences repairing sagged ceilings and techniques used, and perhaps recommend a plasterer so that I can get a third quote.

Thanks very much.

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Capital Retro9:16 pm 01 Mar 18

I don’t think horse hair is compatible with Gyprock which is the standard plaster sheet one uses these days and it is probably the one you already have.

One can only sand Gyprock so far so if the saggy bits are propped and screwed on there will still be distortions everywhere.

For $2,000 and some DIY you can have a brand new garage ceiling. Sometimes, I don’t know why I bother to try and help.

Capital Retro9:06 am 28 Feb 18

Was your garage ceiling constructed in the 1990’s? If so, it is likely that the plasterers used fewer screws to affix the sheets believing the new glue method was faster and cheaper. The glue has since lost its adhesion with ceiling sagging being the sad outcome.

Some plasterers were also using galvanised clouts which over time have shed the galvanised coating and are slipping downward with the ceiling plaster sheet.

It will eventually collapse (onto your cars) if it is not fixed so there is only one solution and that is to replace the ceiling. For an average 2 car garage you could expect to pay about $8,000. I thought this was excessive so I removed the saggy ceiling myself, bought new plaster, ceiling cement etc., found a couple of weekend plasterers with electric sanders and had the job done completed in a few hours. I did the painting myself the next day. The total cost was about $100 for hire of a trailer to take the old ceiling to the tip, $600 for the new plaster, glue/screws etc. $1,200 for the plasterers and $200 for the paint.

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