Plasterboard & Ceiling Repairs, Sydney
Ceiling repairs Sydney wide — cracked cornices, sagging ceilings, holes in plasterboard walls and water damage, repaired and blended so you cannot pick where the patch was.
A Repair That Stays Repaired
Most callbacks we get asked to fix are someone else's patch over a problem that was never diagnosed.
We find out why first
A crack from normal settlement gets a different repair to one caused by movement or moisture. Patching over the second kind just means it comes back.
Cut back to sound material
Loose paper, crumbling compound and soft board come out. A patch is only as good as what it is fixed to.
Water damage handled honestly
We will tell you if the leak needs fixing before we close the ceiling up. Repairing over an active leak wastes your money and ours.
Blended, not just filled
Compound feathered well beyond the patch and the surrounding texture matched, so the repair disappears under paint instead of standing out in side light.
Ceiling Cracks: When to Worry
Most ceiling cracks are nothing. A few mean the ceiling is coming down. Here is how to tell them apart without paying anyone to look.
Probably fine
A hairline crack that follows a join and has not changed in months. Fine crazing in old paint. A single crack under 1mm with no sag around it.
Get it looked at this month
A crack wider than about 2mm. One that has grown since you first noticed it. Cracks running in more than one direction and meeting at a point. Nail or screw pops appearing along a line.
Get it looked at this week
Any visible dip, bow or curve in the ceiling plane. Sheets separating at the edges. Creaking or cracking sounds. A crack with a stain around it, which means water as well as movement. Anything that has already dropped debris.
The one that matters most is the bow
In Sydney homes built through the sixties and seventies the ceiling sheets were often fixed with too few nails and no adhesive, and the board slowly pulls away from the joists under its own weight. It does not fail gradually — it holds, and then the whole sheet comes down at once. Sight along the ceiling from a doorway; a curve is far easier to see from an angle than from underneath. If you can see one, do not wait for the renovation.
Water Damaged Ceilings
The stain is the last thing to appear and the least of the problem. By the time it shows through the paint, the board above it has been wet for a while — the gypsum core has softened and the paper facing has let go.
We find where the water is actually coming from first: the roof, a burst pipe, a failed shower membrane, the unit upstairs. Repairing a ceiling without fixing the source is money set on fire, and we would rather say so before quoting it than after. Then the affected sheet comes out and is replaced. We do not seal and paint over board that has been wet.
If you are claiming on insurance, photograph it now and again as it spreads. Once it is repaired the evidence is gone, and a dated record makes the claim considerably easier. We provide the itemised written quote and photos your insurer will ask for.
One thing worth knowing: mould can start in wet plasterboard inside 24 to 48 hours. That is the real reason not to leave it until the weekend.
- ✓Source found before the ceiling is closed up
- ✓Wet sheet replaced, not painted over
- ✓Itemised quote and photos for your insurer
- ✓Urgent jobs prioritised — call rather than email
Plaster Wall Repair — Cracks, Holes and Failed Joins
Most wall cracks in a Sydney house are the house settling, and they are cosmetic. Some are not. The difference is worth knowing before you fill one.
Usually cosmetic
Fine cracks running diagonally from the corner of a door or window frame. Hairline cracks along a join that have not moved in years. Surface crazing in old paint.
Worth a closer look
A crack you can fit a fingernail into. One that is visibly wider at one end. A crack that has reopened after being filled. Stair-stepping through brickwork. A door in the same wall that has started sticking.
What we fix
Holes from door handles and furniture. Failed tape where the seam has lifted. Previous patches sitting proud of the wall. Corner beads knocked or rusted. Cracked plaster around old openings. Full wall skims where there are more repairs than wall.
Blended, not just filled
Every repair is feathered well past the patch and the surrounding texture matched, so it disappears under paint instead of showing up in the afternoon light. If a crack is on the second list we will tell you at the quote — filling structural movement just means it comes back wider next summer, and we would rather not take the job twice.
From Photo to Finished
Most repairs are quick. We keep them proportionate to the damage rather than turning a hole into a renovation.
Send photos
A couple of photos and the rough size of the damage is usually enough for us to price it without a site visit.
Assess on the day
We check the surrounding joins, the framing behind and any sign of movement or moisture before we start cutting.
Rebuild the surface
Backing or replacement board where it is needed, then compound built up in controlled coats rather than one thick fill.
Sand, check and tidy
Sanded flat, checked in natural light where the flaws show, and the room left clean and ready for paint.
Wall Skimming & Level 5 Finishing
If the wall is not damaged so much as tired — old texture, patchy repairs from previous owners, ripples that show whenever the afternoon light hits — skimming is the fix. We apply a thin coat across the whole surface and sand it flat, which gives you a uniform wall to paint instead of a map of every repair that came before.
Finish levels are the part of plastering nobody explains. Level 3 is fine behind furniture and under flat paint. A Level 5 finish — an extra skim coat across the whole surface — is what you want under gloss or semi-gloss, on a feature wall, or anywhere a window throws light along the surface. Raking light finds every join that flat paint on a flat wall would have hidden.
It costs more because it is another coat and another sand. On the right wall it is the difference between a good job and a job you stop noticing, which is the point.
- ✓Old texture removed
- ✓Previous patches evened out
- ✓Level 5 finish for gloss and raking light
- ✓Ripples and waves flattened
Common Questions
Do you do plasterboard repairs near me?
Across all of Sydney, and quickest through the St George area — Bexley, Rockdale, Kogarah, Hurstville and Arncliffe. Send a photo and your suburb. Most repairs we can price without visiting, and you will know the same day whether we are the right people for it.
Will I be able to see the repair once it is painted?
A properly prepared repair should disappear — and if you can pick where the patch was, we come back and fix it. How invisible it ends up also depends on the paint colour, the sheen level and how much side light hits that wall; a gloss finish on a wall facing a window is the hardest test there is. We will tell you upfront if a patch is in a difficult spot.
My ceiling is sagging. Is that urgent?
It can be. Sagging usually means the fixings have let go, the board has taken water, or both. It is worth having someone look at it rather than waiting, because a ceiling that is coming away does not stop on its own. Send a photo and we will tell you how concerned to be.
Can you repair a water-damaged ceiling?
Yes, once the leak itself has been fixed. We assess whether the board can be dried and saved or whether the affected section needs replacing. Repairing over an active leak is money wasted, and we will say so.
Do you repair cracks that keep coming back?
Yes, and the first job is working out why. Recurring cracks usually mean movement rather than a bad patch, so the repair needs reinforcing differently. Filling it again the same way will get the same result.
How much mess is involved?
Sanding plaster makes dust, there is no way around it. We cover floors and nearby furniture, keep the work area contained and clean up properly. For bigger jobs we can talk about sectioning off the room.
How small a job will you take?
A single hole is fine. Plenty of our work is one wall, one ceiling or a bit of damage from a removed fixture, and we would rather do the small job well than turn it away.
From a Repair Job in Sydney
A really lovely team, they were able to come by quickly to replace our mouldy gyprock. They did an awesome job, left the place very neat and the area they worked on looks great.
When a Patch Isn't the Whole Answer
Sometimes the board is past saving, or the cornice has to be matched to the rest of the room. Both are still us.
Tell Us About the Damage
The room, roughly how big the damaged area is, and what caused it if you know. Photos help us quote without needing to visit first.
- Visit us25A Basil Rd, Bexley NSW 2207
- Call us0415 225 412
- Email usinfo@sydneyplastermaster.com.au
- Opening hoursMon – Sat: 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Sun: Closed
Get Your Repair Sorted
Send a photo of the crack, hole or water stain and we will tell you what it needs and what it costs.