How Much Does It Cost To Plaster A Ceiling Over Artex?

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster A Ceiling Over Artex?

Artex was popular in the 70s and 80s as a decorative covering for ceilings and sometimes walls. However, in modern times, this isn’t such a favourable design and many people are looking to rid their homes of this dated feature. But if you want a plasterer to do the work for you, you’ll likely be wondering how much does it cost to plaster a ceiling over artex?

How much it costs to plaster over artex will vastly depend on the size of the room. Your plasterer may first have to prep the area by removing some of the texture if it is particularly deep. Generally speaking, you can expect to be charged between £25 and £50 per square metre.

These costs may be further affected by various factors including how easy it is to access the ceiling in terms of height and whether the artex contains asbestos. Taking everything into consideration, it may cost between £500 and £600 to have artex ceilings plastered over. 

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster Over Brick?

Plastering over brick won’t cost any more or any less than other plastering jobs. This is because brick is an excellent surface for plastering and the material will bond well. This means that, when getting a quote for plastering over brick you can expect to be charged the standard rate of between £25 and £50 per square metre. 

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster A Ceiling?

If your ceiling does not need any preparation work and is a pretty straightforward job to plaster then you will normally be charged the average rate. For a small ceiling, you might only pay around £200 but this price could increase significantly as the size of the ceiling gets larger. For a bigger room, you may pay in excess of £700.

It can be tempting to try to DIY but without the correct training, there is scope for making mistakes which may mean forking out even more for remedial work. 

Furthermore, do keep in mind that the cost of plastering a ceiling will vary according to your location. If there are parts of the ceiling that aren’t as easy to access, you may also find that the price increases. 

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster A Whole Room?

If you are looking to plaster an entire room then you would expect to be charged between £400 and £600 per day. The time it takes to complete the work will depend on the size of the room but generally speaking, you would expect a small wall to take around three to four hours with a whole room usually taking no more than a day. 

However, some plasterers may charge differently and may set a fixed price per wall and per ceiling. Walls are usually charged at around £200 each while ceilings may be up to £350 each. In some cases this could mean that the cost of plastering a room may be going into quadruple figures. 

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster An Average Sized House?

You could be forgiven for thinking that it would be easy to work out the cost of plastering an entire house based on the price for plastering a single room. However, you’ll normally find that it works out slightly less per room because of the overall size of the job. 

For this reason, the cost of plastering each room when working on an entire house may be between £600 and £700 per room, depending on the size. The reason that it is so much cheaper is because the plasterer will be able to better manage his or her time since they will be already set up to do the job. Moreover, the job can be done quicker as they can be plastering opposite walls while one cures. 

How Much Does It Cost To Plaster A Wall?

It may cost around £200 to plaster a single wall but as with everything else we have discussed, this price can vary based on the size of the room and the complexity of the job. In some cases, you may pay a lot more if the wall needs a lot of preparation, for example, if artex containing asbestos has previously been used. 

While some plasterers charge per wall, others will charge an hourly rate which is between £8 and £19 with an average of £12 an hour. Usually it shouldn’t take any longer than three to four hours to complete a single wall. 

FAQ Problems With Plastering Over Artex

It is possible to plaster over artex but this must be done by a trained professional as if it isn’t done correctly then you will soon notice problems with cracking or the plaster coming away. There are horror stories out there of this happening where the artex has not been correctly prepared before plastering. 

The artex, depending on how thick it is, will need to be scraped first to remove any deep texture. However, since artex applied before 1999 is likely to contain asbestos, its removal must be done by someone licensed as there are serious risks involved. 

Moreover, if you attempt to apply plaster directly onto artex without first applying a bonding coat and PVA, it won’t have the desired finish. 

Related article: What Jobs Does A Plasterer Do?

Conclusion

The cost of a plasterer in the UK will depend on what work needs to be done and how complex it is. When plastering over artex, you will normally be charged a rate per square metre which can be anywhere between £25 and £50 depending on things like your location, ease of access to the ceiling, the complexity of the job and other factors.