Our Artex removal services
Artex removal and ceiling skimming across the UK: asbestos testing, safe removal or skim-over, and smooth ready-to-paint ceilings and walls.
Artex ceiling skimming
Artex ceiling skimming covers a textured ceiling with a bonding coat and two coats of finishing plaster, leaving a smooth surface without removing or sanding the original coating. It suits most homes with swirl, stipple or comb Artex, including coatings that may contain asbestos. In the UK a typical bedroom ceiling usually costs £300 to £550.
Full Artex removal
Full Artex removal strips the textured coating off the ceiling or wall, usually by softening it with steam or a chemical gel and scraping it away, then making good the surface underneath. It suits jobs where the original surface needs to be exposed. In the UK it usually costs £25 to £45 per square metre for non-asbestos coatings.
Asbestos testing for Artex
Asbestos testing for Artex involves taking a small sample of the textured coating and having it analysed by a UKAS-accredited laboratory to confirm whether asbestos is present. It is recommended for any coating applied before 2000 before it is sanded, scraped or drilled. In the UK a test usually costs £30 to £80 per sample.
Dealing with asbestos-containing Artex
When Artex tests positive for asbestos, the options are to leave it undisturbed, encapsulate it under a plaster skim or new plasterboard, or have it removed by trained operatives using HSE-approved wet methods, with the waste disposed of as hazardous waste. Encapsulation is usually the cheapest and safest. Removal in the UK usually costs £50 to £100 per square metre plus disposal.
Textured wall removal
Textured wall removal takes Artex and other textured finishes off walls, stairwells and landings, or skims over them, to leave a smooth surface ready for paint or wallpaper. It suits hallways, chimney breasts and feature walls with dated texture. In the UK skimming a textured wall usually costs £200 to £450 per wall depending on size and access.
Coving and ceiling repairs
Coving and ceiling repairs fix cracks, holes, old fixings and loose plasterboard, and fit or replace coving, usually alongside an Artex skim or removal so the room is finished in one go. They suit ceilings with damage or a dated edge detail. In the UK fitting new plaster coving usually costs £10 to £25 per metre, fitted.