I never made a post here about it, but last month I finally purchased the warehouse I’ve been renting for 5+ years. It’s located on the lower west side of Buffalo, 16,000 sq ft and was built in 1926 as a Chrysler dealer. I’ve got a ton of stuff to clear out (was a BMW part-out business prior) and have some deals pending to move it all in bulk. Once this 7 car deal goes down (supposed to be by the end of the month) I can move our 12 cars to another portion of the place and tackle this ceiling.
I’m working on finding some scaffolding so I can get up there and check this out, but I’ve got a large (40x50’) ceiling that’s had its share of water damage over the years. I’m getting the roof repaired in spring, but would like to explore my options for this ceiling before taking down the partition wall pictured in the rear of the photo.
It appears to be plaster (though it looks more concrete-like) with wire mesh behind it. It is flaking in some areas, and pieces are falling down in others. I’ve been told it would be pretty tough to take down, which would’ve been my first choice. If that is the case, I presume I would find a way to cover it ($ considering the size). I’m working on borrowing some scaffolding to get up there and see how much of the deck & joists have been damaged, how much space is between that and the ceiling, and what it would be like to anchor a cover if going that route.
Just wanted to add that plaster with wire mesh behind it is the worst shit in the world to work with/rip out. If you are DIYing I would lean heavily toward any option that doesn’t involve that. I have old school ceramic tile in my kitchen that has plaster with wire mesh behind it and after ripping out a little 3 foot section to put in a bigger fridge, it was enough to abandon my entire plan to ditch the rest of it and just have the tile refinished. Plus, I cant imagine how many thousands of pounds of shit you’d have to get rid of with something that big.
@fairgentleman_Z that’s what I’d like to do, but it’s sounding like it may be tough to get down
I don’t mind hiring someone to do it, but the cost/time it would take could be a big factor @llink78 if I can’t bring it down that’s the route I’ll have to take, but I’ll have to figure out a cost-effective way to do it. And something that can take the weight of the crap falling down on it for the next few decades
Spend zero dollars on it until you make sure the roof is in order. There are also tons of hacks in the local roofing yellow pages. Especially for flat roofs.
The water damage could have also degraded the structural decking which may be way more important than plaster.
@2TurboZ for sure (unless I’m able to somehow just take the thing down). Some decking needs to be replaced (and even a few joists) elsewhere in the building so I haven’t ruled it out from this space. Which is a shame because it has tongue and groove currently.
My dad brought a roofer he knew over to give me a general estimate before I bought the place. While I’m sure I’ll be hunting for some recommendations of various services in the future, I hope the people my dad recommends are worthwhile. My dad was a project manager for BRD Construction for ages.
the whole front of my house on the west side had this and stucco tiles over the first floor clapboard.
Bought a harbor freight electric jackhammer and got the stucco down then used a big crowbar on the rest.
Sucked but was an ok DIY and even on this large of an area shouldn’t be that much work. It being vertical would help with arm fatigue too.
Alternatively if its flat you should be able to drop any loose sections and skin it with 1/4 drywall. Land some sinkers into the joists and it wont be going anywhere.
