Vermiculite ceiling - skim coat plaster

[ownthing]

Hi guys,

We recently purchased a unit that has an ugly vermiculite ceiling, we've googled as much as we could and the option of skim coating a few layers of plaster really appealed to us. However we couldn't find much information about this method. Has anyone had this done this before?

We prefer this method over a false ceiling as it doesn't require strata approval and our ceiling is already pretty low.

My only concern is whether it will hold and whether we might encounter problems later on? What are people's experiences?

Much appreciated!!

 

[DaveM]

It crumbles away, if you are going to skim then scrape all the vermiculite off. Otherwise get it battened up and a drop ceiling.

 

[wylie]

It crumbles away, if you are going to skim then scrape all the vermiculite off. Otherwise get it battened up and a drop ceiling.

This could be better all round, especially if the skim coat might not stick well.

Last year on The Block, the Sky High units had this type of ceiling and the contestants had to chisel channels through it to allow battens to attach to the flat ceiling under the bumps, then plaster ceiling sheets went up. It needed to be done (apparently) due to being a bit low if they battened over the top.

Just be careful about doing it. I'm not sure whether this stuff has asbestos in it?

 

[sash]

Why not spray paint???

 

[saiman]

I sprayed mine....it looks better but be warned it sucks up A LOT of paint

I'll probably just gyprock over it when i can be bothered

 

[Scott No Mates]

Why not spray paint???

It is super absorbent - it will suck up about 4-5 times more paint than you would expect, and then some.

Simplest solution is use furring channel and screw 10 mm pb to it, run all your cables in the minimal space including the smoke detector.

 

[ownthing]

It crumbles away, if you are going to skim then scrape all the vermiculite off. Otherwise get it battened up and a drop ceiling.

Crumbles away in the process of plastering or do you mean later down the track?

The vermiculite has already been painted white by the previous owner but it still doesn't look great, I'd rather get a plasterer to cover it up and now is the best time as it is vacant.

I appreciate people's suggestion of other methods but they all seem to involve drilling into the ceiling and a considerable drop in height which we would like to avoid. I'm still keen on finding more info from anyone who has gone down the path of plastering the ceiling. Whether they experienced any problems later?

 

[DaveM]

Crumbles away in the process of plastering or do you mean later down the track?

It was a spray on product so has no load bearing capability to support the weight of plaster etc. So if it loses adhesion with the slab its stuck to, down comes your plaster as well.

 

[handyandy]

An interesting youtube of tradie relining a vermiculite ceiling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=mVqkR_EXjgA

Discussions about my experience of relining 5 units here.

http://somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85266&highlight=Vermiculite

I would think the only way to plaster the ceiling is to scrape off all the vermiculite and then skim coat it. We have some units with this instead of the vermiculite and it doesn't look any better as the concrete isn't that smooth.

Cheers

 

[The Y-man]

Just be careful about doing it. I'm not sure whether this stuff has asbestos in it?

No, but the vermiculite itself can be an irritant if inhaled (not as dangerous as asbestos - basically like breathing in cement powder).

The Y-man

 

[willair]

Hi guys,

We recently purchased a unit that has an ugly vermiculite ceiling, we've googled as much as we could and the option of skim coating a few layers of plaster really appealed to us. However we couldn't find much information about this method. Has anyone had this done this before?

We prefer this method over a false ceiling as it doesn't require strata approval and our ceiling is already pretty low.

My only concern is whether it will hold and whether we might encounter problems later on? What are people's experiences?

Much appreciated!!

Depending on the age of the building if it is pre 1980,then be very carefull
prior 1980 they did use a asbestos base in the mix to get the fire rating up best way take a small sample and have it tested,also if you apply a paint base it will just suck it up-several coats then that adds to the weight factor
a low cost way is just grid the area and tile it..imho..

 

[Scott No Mates]

Willair - how would you propose to tile the ceiling?

Ownting - 28 mm Battens and 10 mm pb would be a maximum of 40 mm - is the height that critical? ie already less than 2400mm?

 

[willair]

Willair - how would you propose to tile the ceiling?

Ownting - 28 mm Battens and 10 mm pb would be a maximum of 40 mm - is the height that critical? ie already less than 2400mm?

Scott,i'm talking about putting a metal suspended grid in just below the ceiling then install the tiles elec's fitoff in the grid,i know a few people that used to spray that gear on,i don't think any are alive now most died from lung,kindeys failure..

I f the ceiling height is now 2400 then the suspended grid would not work but most units are set a bit higher the 2400,but I could be wrong..imho..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0tjAvgt1V8

 

[Scott No Mates]

That's what I thought you meant but you'd be sacrificing about 200 mm due to ceiling hangers & tbar.

 

[Tools]

You can use direct fix clips and get it a lot less than 200mm, in fact a lot less than 100.

Tools

 

[handyandy]

The Direct fixing is the only way you are going to do it.

Any suspended method simply doesn't work as the 'suspended; action needs some space to hang and 30mm of hanging is just not enough. We did try it but the whole thing just wiggled around so much they couldn't even set the heights.

Cheers

 

[jasont]

Skim coat vermiculite ceilings proyalbi white set

Hi Guys

I successfully skim over vermiculite ceiling all time, using bond crete and proyalbi which is a high performance white set. Saves time money, space and no strata approval required.