What about getting a plasterer or renderer to just render over the texture to make it smooth?

Rendering sounds good because you get a nice smooth surface without loosing any ceiling height. RIGHT? Well, while there are tradesmen around that may have the necessary skills to skim ceilings, there are other factors definitely worth considering before spending your hard earned money on this option.

Firstly, rendering the ceiling adds significant weight to the existing texture, thus increasing potential for de-lamination of texture from the surface it was originally bonded to.

Secondly, most plaster and lime compounds shrink significantly as they dry out causing surface tension. This too can put additional strain on the ceiling, once again creating a risk of de-lamination.

Another factor is that many textured ceilings have variations in height, thus causing subtle waves in the ceiling. This is often not noticeable until a smooth surface is applied, thus creating shadows on the ceiling. As already mentioned, troweling a ceiling is a highly specialised and labour intensive skill, so, once again, you usually get what you pay for.

How is RESURFACING different to rendering?

Our VermicuHIDE® is a proprietery system that mitigates the aforementioned risks. By using trademarked techniques, resurfacing puts negligible tension on the existing surface. At the same time, resurfacing helps to eliminate the highs and lows of the ceiling – thus causing your ceiling to look the flattest it has ever been. All of our tradesmen are highly experienced and trained in all aspects of our VermicuHIDE resurfacing system.