which sand paper to use on artex

[Alan m]

hi there .
i have a few ceilings to sand i dont need them smooth as thaer is a wooden ceiling going on 2x1s. i only need a flat surface. they have artex (i think thats the name) with a stippled texture to it. there are millions of little bits hanging down (2-3mm) . i have a rotex 150 and ct 22 . and dewalt 125mm sander(but no paper to talk of , as i never use it since the rotex 150).

first question. should i use the rotex or the dewalt . i dont want to ruin my rotex but the dewalt doesnt matter too much .

second . should i use my ct 22. dont want to ruin it

third . should i use the ct 22 with a disposable bag or the reuseable bag with  my thien baffle.

4 th .what grit and type of paper should i use.i only want to level it not put a hole in it [tongue] [eek]

 

[AlexThePalex]

i dont want to ruin my rotex but the dewalt doesnt matter too much .

I don't know what artex (with millions of little bits hanging down) is exactly, but you don't ruin your Rotex just like that. It can stand heavy (ab)use without problem.

 

[Alan m]

sorry artex is a type of skim coat type finish that you mix with water and trowel onto the surface. various textures are applies with various brushes etc. it is hard and brittle .
[attachimg=#]

 

[peter halle]

I just did some research on Artex.  Depending on the age - it may contain asbestos.  Just wanted to let you know, because you kmight want to test before sanding it.

Over the last few months I have had to deal with similar ceilings with the materials used here.  I was able to sand with the RO 150, but with the volume and working overhead, I boght an ETS 150/3.  I chose the finer orbit not because it was the best for the job, but because I wanted the finer orbit for future projects.  It worked but was messy.

I ended up finishing using a wall paper steamer and scraping the stuff off.  Now what I had might have been more water soluble that Artex but it might be a suggestion to spray / sponge water on it and see if it softens.

Just food for thought.

Peter

 

[Alan m]

[scared] [scared] [scared]

it does soft easily. there is some in the bathroom and above the shower where the steam and water have wet it you can soften it easily. i use the word artex but over here in ireland that is the name for it even thogh it probably isnt the brand artex. i dont want to remove all of it , only a few strips for the 2x1 battons.

 

[Deansocial]

wall paper striper

 

[AlexThePalex]

sorry artex is a type of skim coat type finish that you mix with water and trowel onto the surface. various textures are applies with various brushes etc. it is hard and brittle .

No need to apologise. If it's hard and brittle I'd suggest some Saphir 80 or 100. Saphir paper will last long with hard materials and in a high grit is fine enough so you won't make a horrid mess of the underground.

 

[Ken Nagrod]

Why not, after veryifing there's no asbestos, just using a drywall tape knife, scrape what you want off in one pass, then sand the remainder?  That way the bulk of it comes off faster and you'll use up less sandpaper plus you'll save some time.  Just put some plastic sheeting on the floor so all you need to do is roll it up and throw it out.

 

[oldie]

Has a similar job to do once, in the long distance past. We thought of using belt sander - but the thought of all the dust put us off. Don't remember if asbestos was the concern (quite rightly) it is now.  Discussed with customer, and they were fine with approach we proposed.
We decided to put up a 'reference' strip pretty close to shorter length wall - the joists (which we screwed into) suited this approach, as the wood strip was going across the joists.
We used well sharpened bolster chisels to crudely level the artex (ie pretty much just knocking the 'bulk' of the tips off.)  Then chiselled again, whilst using a long level to ensure surface was true at the points where being screwed into joists. Having established our first strip, we then just worked across the room.  Packing had to used here and there.
It worked well - by the time we finished, we'd become quite skilled at it; but wouldn't have the stamina now - had lots of short breaks, particularly towards the end!
Deansocial idea sounds interesting. Perhaps soften in that way, and then gently chisel??
Another thought might be to just skim where the wood strips are to go (after knocking tips down) - but wouldn't know how to prepare - as surface painted.

Abrasive - maybe a lowish grade Saphir?

What we did seems a bit crude, but worked for us - it was followed up with tongue and groove, which was then stained; not the fashion today I dare say. Good luck.

 

[Deansocial]

sorry was about to go to bed, Right normally you can softer artex and stripit off with a wall paper steamer. Its is worth a try i think, or i would just skim the ceiling with a bit of bonding then put my battens up

 

[Alan m]

i did a bit of research . it is definitly artex brand. . the good news is it is only a few years old. asbestos was removed from artex 20 years ago so it should be safe to sand it

 

[jmbfestool]

I was scrapping a ceiling ready for a platerer using a plasteres trowel. After done most of the ceiling I was told that artex could have asbestos in!  Lucky for me it didn't.  Just using a scraper and then rotex got it smooth enough for the plasterer to plaster.

Jmb

 

[Alan m]

i did a bit tonight, i started  sanding with the rotex and 50 rubin(not ideal but only rough type i had at hand), i got fed up after a few minutes of being showered in the bits that were hanging down. i decided to scrape all them off using a scraper designed for scraping crap off of floors on site etc. it has a 8 inch blade bolted onto a handle . this kept the bits from falling on me  [big grin] . i might sand it down a little but i think it might be ok to screw the battons to .