Repairing/replacing/covering a lath and plaster ceiling

[vagrantly3893]

We want to convert this room in to a kitchen. It currently has an old lath and plaster ceiling. It's quite uneven so overboarding directly isn't an option.

 

Could we leave the ceiling in place, remove the wood that is there, install a new wooden substructure by screwing in to the joists and then plasterboard?

[Temp]

How high is the ceiling? If the result wouldn't be too low I would fit wall plates around the walls and use small joist hangers and new joists below the existing ceiling. No connection between the two.

 

If the whole floor isn't really strong enough take down existing plasterboard. Sister the joists to strengthen. Sound insulation and new plasterboard.

[vagrantly3893]

1 minute ago, Temp said:

How high is the ceiling? If the result wouldn't be too low I would fit wall plates around the walls and use small joist hangers and new joists below the existing ceiling. No connection between the two.

 

If the whole floor isn't really strong enough take down existing plasterboard. Sister the joists to strengthen. Sound insulation and new plasterboard.

 

Perhaps 230cm. Would wall plates be something like 4x2 wood screwed in to the wall?

[TonyT]

Just copy the type of frame that’s there at the moment.

 

2x1 or similar fixed to the old ceiling installed to catch new plasterboard sizes

[vagrantly3893]

24 minutes ago, TonyT said:

Just copy the type of frame that’s there at the moment.

 

2x1 or similar fixed to the old ceiling installed to catch new plasterboard sizes

I was quite confused by the existing frame. The first layer is nailed to the ceiling, the 2nd layer runs adjacent to the first, and the 3rd level runs in the same direction of the first. It was stuffed with insulation so maybe it was just to add depth.

[TonyT]

The object is to save you having to pull the old ceiling down if you don’t want to, so screw/nail timber around the perimeter and in a regular spaced interval to catch your ceiling plasterboard.

In my area we call it brandering.

[Temp]

23 hours ago, vagrantly3893 said:

 

Perhaps 230cm. Would wall plates be something like 4x2 wood screwed in to the wall?

 

I think 230cm is a bit too low to build a separate false ceiling below it.  

 

Yes, wall plates normally same height as the joists.  If the existing ceiling is very irregular building it as a separate ceiling would avoid having to make lots of different thicknesses of packing to get everything to the same height. Also avoids any further movement of the existing ceiling causing movement of the new.