On Sat, 17 Jul 2004 10:54:37 +0100, Grunff wrote:

Steve Gontarek wrote:
snip
Taking down lath and plaster is a horrible, horrible job. So, if, and
only if your current ceiling is totally flat (not sagging at all), then
simply board on top.

If OTOH it isn't (like all of ours werent :-() then your only sensible
option is to pull it down and board onto the joists.

As for putting in battens, I'm not sure this gains you a great deal, and
it will lose you some height.

I already done this in another part of the house and basically want to
avoid doing it again: it *is* a horrible job. The ceiling I want to do
isn't sagging, but it has been cracked and repaired alot and no matter
how much you paper over it, you can still see the repairs

As for the battens, well, it strikes me it would be easier to fix to
(and locate) the joists first using the battens so that when I come
to fix the plasterboard on , allI have to worry about is lining them
up with the battens, which will I set anyway at an interval useful for
fixing plasterboard! In addition, the wooden battens might support the
old ceiling a bit more, just in case it does decide to come adrift. I
have the height to play with anyway. Does that make sense ?

Steve