Mining, lace and local brick
Coal mining, ironworking and lace once kept Ilkeston busy, and its brick tells the story. Bricks were often made alongside the coal, at collieries such as Ilkeston and Carr Close, and Erewash Borough Council says local brick accounts for the strong character of the town centre conservation area, which runs along Bath Street and South Street to the Market Place. Wharncliffe Road, inside it, is mainly residential, with wider plots and detached buildings. The town's population went from under 2,500 in 1801 to more than 30,000 by 1911, and houses from that era usually have solid brick walls and, unless someone has already replaced them, lath and plaster ceilings.
Old ceilings and blown walls
A lath ceiling that has started to crack and sag can be overboarded if it is still firmly fixed, or stripped to the joists if it is not. Before boarding over, we check what runs through the ceiling: cable runs, light fittings and any pipework need to be known about, so screws go into joists and nowhere else. Taking a lath ceiling down releases a great deal of old dust and debris, often decades of dirt that has settled above it, so the room needs clearing and sealing off from the rest of the house first. On solid brick walls where the plaster has blown, plasterboard on adhesive dabs gives a flat surface, but it should only go onto a dry wall. If a wall is damp, the cause comes first.
Kirk Hallam and the post-war estates
Kirk Hallam changed a lot after the war. In the 1950s, Ilkeston Corporation and the Stanton and Staveley company built public housing in the St Norbert Drive area, and mixed public and private housing followed in the 1960s and 1970s around Godfrey Drive. Houses from those decades were normally boarded overhead when they were built, so the work is more often re-fixing loose boards, cutting out water damage, boarding a loft or adding a partition. In a bathroom, moisture-resistant board goes on the walls, with a tile backer inside the shower itself. Where an extension meets the original house, the join in the ceiling is a common place for cracks, and reboarding across it with staggered, taped joints helps.
Arrange a visit
Ilkeston's eastern edge is only two miles from Nottingham's western boundary, so it is an easy trip for us. We cover the whole town, including Cotmanhay and Larklands. Call 07877 353120 or use the enquiry form with photos of the job. We are available seven days a week, 7am to 5pm.
