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Alternatives to plasterboard/plastering as a wall finish?


Chris HB

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Having just stripped and dumped a tonne of old plasterboard, I’m loathed to go that way again.
 

So on an internal stud framework, with all options open for consideration, what other materials could be used? Open to all ideas, pics or examples would be great! 😎

 

For example, just wondering if primed and painted OSB could work?

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There’s nothing to stop you Battening out and using Osb If you are ok with the rustic look A bit more expensive on materials But you will save on labor if you do it yourself 

The reason why plaster and now plasterboard has stood the test of time Apart from being relatively cheap Is its fireproofing properties 

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10 minutes ago, nod said:

There’s nothing to stop you Battening out and using Osb If you are ok with the rustic look A bit more expensive on materials But you will save on labor if you do it yourself 

The reason why plaster and now plasterboard has stood the test of time Apart from being relatively cheap Is its fireproofing properties 

I was wondering if the fireproofing aspect was it’s main saving grace!

 

I’ve seen some nice crisp/clean interiors finished in high grade birch ply which looked very cool 😎

 

OSB would be more rustic, but it’s a solid stone wall construction, so wouldn’t look that out of place.
 

Although open to something contrasting or minimalist as well. Even different materials for different zones as it’s only a very small building, so I won’t be dividing it into rooms as such. 

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3 minutes ago, Chris HB said:

I’ve seen some nice crisp/clean interiors finished in high grade birch ply which looked very cool 

 

Even in a small property, I'd price it up before falling too deeply in love with this option. High quality plywood is insanely expensive.

 

Personally, I can't stand the look of OSB. 

 

Someone was recently talking about cement board as a lining material. I think that could be an interesting option.

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I'm thinking about this as well both to create something more distinct than normal PB finish AND to allow diy (and hopefully to a reasonable finish. I have two ideas - a decent ply but as @jackmentions there is a bit of sting in the materials' cost> Birch seems over £100 a sheet but I am hoping to just some samples of Poplar and Maple which are (from memory ) around £60 at least for the poplar. I have also seen D Fir used which looks pretty rustic and could have its place. Anyway I was thinking to mount with maybe 10mm (shadow) gaps around the panels. Originally with hidden fixings but not thinking making a feature of a star head screw and using those rebated.

 

Other idea is to use Fermacell board again with the gaps as a feature. Either hidden fixtures and leave the exposed face as finish or screw just below surface, fill, sand and paint.

 

My thinking is that I can do all the steps and with a bit of care there is the potential to achieve a quality result that is maybe cost neutral over PB ignoring my labour of course.

 

With plywood I have yet to get me head round (Scottish) building regs re fire hazard so that needs more research

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7 hours ago, jack said:

 

Even in a small property, I'd price it up before falling too deeply in love with this option. High quality plywood is insanely expensive.

 

Personally, I can't stand the look of OSB. 

 

Someone was recently talking about cement board as a lining material. I think that could be an interesting option.

Yeah I have my doubts about OSB in its natural state, but it could look more ‘interesting’ when painted, possibly, I might have to reserve judgement and do a test piece to see…

 

cement boards, emmmm, like your thinking on that! 😎

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6 hours ago, gaz_moose said:

just leave them as bare brick.

Current regulations require I have insulation installed, so unless I do that outside the building, then it’s not an option unfortunately 

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10 hours ago, Chris HB said:

I’ve seen some nice crisp/clean interiors finished in high grade birch ply which looked very cool 😎

 

Yes, look very cool, but as @jack said, the price is insane right now. Was expensive before even Brexit - here's my cost trajectory: I bought 3 pallets of interior birch ply (1525mm x 1525mm) @ 15mm thickness for flooring just before Brexit - cost was about £18/sheet. Just over a year ago in December I bought Birch plywood for making the kitchen, this time exterior grade (2440mm x 1220mm) @ 18mm thickness at £84/sheet. My wife and I then decided to build a new bit to the kitchen a few months later. Then, just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the price went to over £240/per sheet for the same stuff (so we left this plan). It's now gone back down to £170-180/sheet and that's for BB/BB. I dread to think what S+ is going to cost.

 

If you're into plywood, then I'd recommend you look into softwood such as Pine as you'll get it in a B grade face at a fraction of the price. Also look at some of the construction grades as they can be more rustic with knots etc. but still be a good finish. Clear Poplar ply is over £100/sheet atm for 15mm and over £120 for 18m althought the red faced construction poplar ply can be had for about £40/sheet.

 

The problem with any timber interior finish is fire protection and you'll most probably be required by BC to treat it all and it's not particularly cheap.

 

I like the plywood look and have a lot of it going in but don't do it for budgetary reasons, it'll be far cheaper to plasterboard and skim. I actually think it might be cheaper to do internal wood cladding!

 

With wood wool boards you'll need minimum thickness of 25mm, especially on the ceilings and you'll also need to check batten spacing on both walls and ceilings.

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23 hours ago, SimonD said:

 

The problem with any timber interior finish is fire protection and you'll most probably be required by BC to treat it all and it's not particularly cheap.

Hi @SimonD how do you normally treat it? Some sort of coating? How much does that add per full size panel in material costs?

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You can get melamine faced ply. Same stuff that is used to create shower rooms.

Some is able to be clipped together with the joint hardly showing.

But pricey, but after filling the nail/screw heads, would give a better finish that plastering.

Would think it is fairly fire resistant as well. Never seen a kitchen worktop slight. 

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14 hours ago, markharro said:

Hi @SimonD how do you normally treat it? Some sort of coating? How much does that add per full size panel in material costs?

 

It depends on the finish you want to achieve. Companies like envirograf have clear varnish and paints and uses a multi coat system. For a clear 'invisible' finish that requires no further coating, there's products like Flametect C-WD

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From experience, osb does not react well to paint, which causes wood flakes  to spring clear of the surface. That was using intumescent paint. I agreed with the bco to use external masonry paint ( internally).  This was for extensive lining as a backing instead of blockwork in portal frame buildings.That wouldn't look good in a domestic situation.

Thereafter we used mdf instead, very successfully. It needs a gap as otherwise there are inevitable lips. We chamfered all the edges.

 

The idea of clip-on boards is interesting. I think you could use ordinary panels (kitchen/ shelving) and get the clips, rather than proprietary systems.

 

You can get very hard (thin) chipboard, also available fire or damp proof. They are coloured pink and green. Screws would show.

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