Hello All, I need some advice. I have just moved into a 5 Bed /3 Reception Victorian house. Unfortunately the previous occupants had an Artex Fetish and every wall, ceiling and even Kitchen cupboard is covered with every pattern imaginable.
I am an experienced DIY'er and have extensive experience with Plasterboard, however, I have never had to plaster a whole wall/ceiling before. Could someone please help me with tips on how I can do this in the most cost effective and efficient way possible. Many Thanks

Hell of a job for DIY and it would probably be worth getting some quotes from a pro. In essence you level it off as best you can with a scraper, dilute PVA it to seal it a day or so before plastering. But scraping back is dusty and the dust might have asbestos in it as early Artex contained asbestos. Also with lathe and plaster ceilings under you might find chunks falling off if you attack it too hard. So I think a pro would be worth considering for this job.

DWD

Throw away the kitchen cupboard, plasterboard over the ceilings and get he walls skimmed. Skimming is not really a DIY job.

thank you for your posts was not sure what to do with it or whether i could plasterboard straight over the top of it.

you could try steaming it off.

Not if it contains asbestos.

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Not sure if you are aware but right up until the early 1990’s it was common for artex to contain asbestos. Generally, artex has been free of asbestos for around 20 years now.

However, if you’re uncertain it’s best to get it checked out by specialist

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Nick

If UHM's helped then please check out UHM's Nominated charity - http://www.donnasdreamhouse.co.uk/

http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/essentials/coatings.htm

This is the gospel on Artex and Asbestos.

so long as you dont disturb the asbestos in the artex itself via scraping or sanding it is relatively safe to remove with the correct equipment, i have been told in the past that asbestos removal firms paint a chemical on it which turns it into a mulch and then they scrape it off safely.

This chemical is apparently available to the public but i may be wrong. if you are in any doubt as to the removal of the artex then get a qoute from a company to remove it all for you.

I only qoute for overboarding these types of jobs and have refused jobs where the entire house, ceilings, walls n all have ben covered in this sh*t. its safe to say i feckin hate artex.

steam it off, it's safe to do so. Strong washing up liquid helps alot.

Telling you this now, that is one hell of a job. Why anyone thinks artex looks good boggles the mind, even on a celing I think it looks outdated and tacky. I was roped into stripping it off our kitchen celing after a particularly bad flood from the bathroom which basically destroyed it.
Never again.

Skimming celings is a fecking nightmare as well, walls aren't too bad when you've done a few and luckily I had people to learn from for walls.
But when I did the celing it was quite simply "f*ck, why did I take this on" all the way through, hated it so much and it looks dodgey in places.

Get it all tested for asbestos before you start work!