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Painting and decorating

Plastering and skimming

Skimming a ceiling or wall, patching, and plasterboard work.
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Whether this needs a licence in Ireland

Ireland

No licence required

Taken from the statute below; not yet reviewed by a lawyer

Irelandwww.cru.ieChecked

Plastering and skimming: what the job involves

Putting a smooth new finish on walls and ceilings — a thin skim over existing plaster or board, patching damaged areas, or slabbing and plastering new or stud walls. It is wet, messy, skilled work that leaves the surface ready to paint once dry.

Also asked for as: plasterer · skim coat ceiling · plastering walls · artex ceiling removal · plasterboard ceiling

How the job is usually done

  1. Inspect the surface, tap for hollow or blown plaster, and agree what will be skimmed and what hacked off
  2. Clear and protect the room, cover floors, and mask sockets, switches and windows
  3. Hack off loose plaster, remove old textured coatings only once tested, and fix plasterboard where needed
  4. Fit angle and stop beads to corners and edges, and scrim-tape board joints
  5. Apply a bonding agent or base coat where the background needs it
  6. Lay on two thin coats of finish plaster and trowel up to a smooth finish
  7. Clean up and leave the room ventilated to dry

Plastering and skimming: what is included

Usually included

  • Protection of floors and fittings
  • Beads on corners and openings
  • Skimming the agreed walls and ceilings
  • Removing the plaster waste from the room

Usually not included — agree it separately

  • Painting, including the mist coat
  • Removing or refitting sockets and switches, which needs an electrician if wiring is disturbed
  • Removing textured coatings that test positive for asbestos — that needs a specialist
  • Fixing the cause of damp
  • Skip or waste removal for large hack-offs, unless agreed

Materials and who supplies them

  • Finish plaster, bonding coat and PVA or primer — usually supplied by the plasterer
  • Plasterboard, beads and scrim tape — usually the plasterer’s, priced in
  • Mixing buckets, paddle mixer, trowels and hawk — the plasterer’s

How long it takes

Skimming a room usually takes a day on site; ceilings, hacking off old plaster or boarding first add a day or more, and the plaster then needs about one to two weeks to dry before painting.

When to book

Plaster dries fastest in mild, airy weather; winter work needs the heating on gently and windows ajar, and allow extra days before decorating.

Plastering and skimming: the rules in Ireland

What the official sources say, checked against them on the date shown. A summary, not legal advice — follow the link to read the rule itself.

  • Textured coatings such as Artex on ceilings and walls commonly contained chrysotile asbestos until their supply was banned in the late 1980s. Buildings built or refurbished before 2000 should be assumed to contain asbestos until a survey or test says otherwise, and asbestos-containing material must not be sanded, scraped or drilled without the controls the asbestos regulations require.

    Applies to: the tradesperson, and the homeowner who commissions the work

    Health and Safety Authority — asbestos regulations (S.I. 386 of 2006, as amended) · hsa.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

  • Craft and general construction workers, plasterers among them, must hold a current Safe Pass card under the Construction Regulations; it is renewed every four years.

    Applies to: the plasterer and anyone working with them

    Health and Safety Authority and SOLAS — Construction Regulations 2013 · hsa.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

  • Repair, maintenance and redecoration of a home is charged at the reduced rate of VAT (13.5%) by a VAT-registered business, subject to Revenue’s two-thirds rule: if the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, the goods rate applies to the whole job.

    Applies to: the painter or decorator, if VAT-registered

    Revenue — Value-Added Tax Consolidation Act 2010, Schedule 3 · revenue.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

What plastering and skimming costs, and why

What jobs on Talqero came to

Not enough comparable jobs yet to publish a range here. Talqero shows a price range only once at least five comparable jobs, agreed prices or offers exist — a range from fewer would describe a handful of jobs, not the market. Post your job and compare the offers you get.

What affects the price

  • Area of walls and ceilings
  • Skim over sound plaster, or hack off and replaster
  • Ceilings, which are slower than walls
  • Boarding or slabbing first
  • Number of corners, openings and beads
  • Access, including high ceilings and stairwells
  • VAT: building work on a home is charged at the reduced rate of 13.5% by a VAT-registered business — unless the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, when Revenue’s two-thirds rule applies the goods rate to the whole job. Ask whether a quote includes VAT.

Paperwork to ask for at the end

  • A VAT receipt if the plasterer is VAT-registered

Safety

  • Do not let anyone scrape, sand or skim over a textured ceiling in a pre-2000 house until it has been tested for asbestos; skimming over sound Artex is sometimes the safer route, but only once it is known
  • Wet plaster and lime are caustic on skin; keep children and pets out of the room
  • Leave windows open and avoid blasting heat at new plaster, which makes it crack
  • Ask the plasterer to check for cables and pipes before fixing boards or beads

Plastering and skimming: before you hire

Questions to ask a tradesperson

  • Will you skim over this, or does it need to come off?
  • Have you checked whether the ceiling might contain asbestos?
  • Are beads, boards and waste removal in the price?
  • How long should I wait before painting?

What you can do yourself

Filling small holes and cracks is fine DIY, but skimming a wall or ceiling to a flat finish takes years of practice and is rarely worth attempting.

What to put in your task

  • What needs plastering?
  • How many rooms?
  • What is on the surface now?
  • Roughly when was the house built?
  • Will the rooms be empty?

Photos that help

  • Each wall and ceiling to be done, in good light
  • Close-ups of cracks, blown or bulging patches and any textured coating
  • Corners and window reveals
  • The room as it is now, showing what furniture is in it

Plastering and skimming by county

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Questions about plastering and skimming

Does plastering and skimming need a licence in Ireland?

No licence is required for this work in Ireland (source: www.cru.ie). Ask instead for references and photographs of similar jobs.

Can you skim over an Artex ceiling?

Often yes, and it is usually better than scraping it off. But in a house built or refurbished before 2000 the coating should be tested for asbestos first, because preparation can disturb it. If it is positive, removal is a job for a specialist.

Skim or replaster?

A skim is a thin finish coat over plaster that is still bonded to the wall. If the plaster sounds hollow when tapped, is crumbling or is damp-damaged, it has to come off and be replastered or boarded, which takes longer.

Why is my new plaster cracking?

Fine cracks usually come from drying too quickly, from heaters or very warm rooms, or from movement at board joints. Most are cosmetic and are filled before painting. Large cracks may point to movement in the wall and are worth asking about.

Often booked with plastering and skimming

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