sheetrocking old walls and ceilings


  #1  
Old 10-04-02, 03:41 PM
enigma65
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sheetrocking old walls and ceilings

I've got a kitchen remodel under way and have had to remove the old plaster and wood lathe from one wall and the ceiling. I don't want to replaster... just new sheetrock. I have two problems which I'd like to know the best way to handle.

1. The wall studs are rough cut and they're all set differently so when you place a straight edge across three or four studs some stick out farther than others at certain parts of their span. Not uniformly either. In some spots a particular stud might need 1/8" to be flush and in another 3/8".

Should I sister new 2x4s to the old ones and flush/plumb them or is there another way?

2. The Ceiling is sagging slightly in the middle of the span and one end of the room is about 1-1/2" lower than the other due to a structural sag that has been partially corrected and consolidated. So basically the ceiling plane is off in multiple dimensions.

Should I sister some new lumber to the celing joists and create a new, flat ceiling plane? If so, what dimension lumber should I use?

This is an old house. Over 100 years old so correcting the existing sags to 100% perfect is not an option (we've already corrected significantly) without busting out all the plaster in the upstairs walls and tilework in two bathrooms directly overhead.

Any suggestions would be helpfull
 
  #2  
Old 10-04-02, 06:47 PM
C
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Location: Taylors, SC
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You are right, nothing will make your old house perfect. Mine is 63 years old and has many of the same problems. The lathe you took down likely was shimmed to make the wall flat. I bet sistering to the variable studs is the best way to flatten the wall, now; or furring strips.

As far as the ceilings are concerned, I consider the uneveness to be part of the character of my house. On the other hand, a drop ceiling in the kitchen would provide a flat surface.
 
  #3  
Old 10-04-02, 07:19 PM
tedn333
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If you're gonna do it right, especially in a kitchen where cabinets and counter-tops like a straight wall, put in new studs (straight). Same on ceiling if you think it is stabilized, run new 2x's along joists.
 
 

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