hi all,
just looking a little advice here on what to do next... a short story -
I recently had a local plastering firm install a new living room ceiling, they used all gypsum products.
The ceiling was 12mm plasterboard onto timber flooring joists. Currently no one is living in the property but the central heating is on at a constant 19 degrees. The plasterer did not stagger his boards and used a skrim tape rather than paper tape (as is used throught the rest of the house on its ceilings). He skimmed the ceiling and when finished the skrim tape was visible in a couple of areas through the plaster, the following day lines proud of the surface were visible in several places where the boards met. Another couple of days later a crack appeared on the new ceiling from one side of the room to the other. The plasterer returned and skrim taped directly over the crack and covered with an easy fill dry wall compound and sanded it back. A few days later a second crack appeared from one side of the room to the other on a different joint, again he returned and did the same repair. a week later and cracks running length and width of the ceiling were evident with the joints on virtually all of the ceiling boards being evident. He again returned and performed the same repair directly over the cracks stating the Gyproc had agreed that everything he had done was in accordance with their recommendations. Another week later and the ceiling now decorated is again beginning to show signs of cracks appearing where it was repaired. I have been given every excuse under the sun from cold weather (even when the heating was on!!) to vibrations from the electrician putting the ceiling lights up!
He was told of the conversation I had previously had with gyproc technical that his original use of skrim tape was not adequate and his repairs were not adequate either and he replied that it should not crack with skrim tape and he has told me to complain to gyproc as he has acted within their recommendations and have them advise.
I should mention that we have lived here 15 years with a ceiling that was crack free, it was only being replaced due to a small fire damaging one corner of the room (no water involved!)
The plasterer seems currently to be denying all responsibility and we have already had to pay the decorator to repaint the ceiling once after the last repair was done. I even got the gypsum rep to call out, and he said they would alway recommend paper tape being used on ceilings over timber flooring joists.
As no one is even living here yet and the room above is empty the only movement can be expansion and contraction of the timber joists which should not in itself cause the cracking??
Either way we now have a new ceiling which is cracking in several places which replaced a ceiling with no cracks so I am not at all happy with it.
Where do I go from here?? Anyone any ideas?
just looking a little advice here on what to do next... a short story -
I recently had a local plastering firm install a new living room ceiling, they used all gypsum products.
The ceiling was 12mm plasterboard onto timber flooring joists. Currently no one is living in the property but the central heating is on at a constant 19 degrees. The plasterer did not stagger his boards and used a skrim tape rather than paper tape (as is used throught the rest of the house on its ceilings). He skimmed the ceiling and when finished the skrim tape was visible in a couple of areas through the plaster, the following day lines proud of the surface were visible in several places where the boards met. Another couple of days later a crack appeared on the new ceiling from one side of the room to the other. The plasterer returned and skrim taped directly over the crack and covered with an easy fill dry wall compound and sanded it back. A few days later a second crack appeared from one side of the room to the other on a different joint, again he returned and did the same repair. a week later and cracks running length and width of the ceiling were evident with the joints on virtually all of the ceiling boards being evident. He again returned and performed the same repair directly over the cracks stating the Gyproc had agreed that everything he had done was in accordance with their recommendations. Another week later and the ceiling now decorated is again beginning to show signs of cracks appearing where it was repaired. I have been given every excuse under the sun from cold weather (even when the heating was on!!) to vibrations from the electrician putting the ceiling lights up!
He was told of the conversation I had previously had with gyproc technical that his original use of skrim tape was not adequate and his repairs were not adequate either and he replied that it should not crack with skrim tape and he has told me to complain to gyproc as he has acted within their recommendations and have them advise.
I should mention that we have lived here 15 years with a ceiling that was crack free, it was only being replaced due to a small fire damaging one corner of the room (no water involved!)
The plasterer seems currently to be denying all responsibility and we have already had to pay the decorator to repaint the ceiling once after the last repair was done. I even got the gypsum rep to call out, and he said they would alway recommend paper tape being used on ceilings over timber flooring joists.
As no one is even living here yet and the room above is empty the only movement can be expansion and contraction of the timber joists which should not in itself cause the cracking??
Either way we now have a new ceiling which is cracking in several places which replaced a ceiling with no cracks so I am not at all happy with it.
Where do I go from here?? Anyone any ideas?
