Durock Cement Board - Bathroom Ceiling

16 years ago

Hi there, I don't mean to post this twice but my other post seems to have not made it.

My question is, how and what do you use to finish off a ceiling? I have the fiberglass tape and thinset to finish off the joints, but what about the rest of the board? I have some pitting in some places and it looks a bit rough to just paint over. Should it be floated with thinset like you would a house foundation or is joint compound an option then just sand off to a smooth finish?

Thanks and sorry if this shows up 2x!

Bsticks

Featured Answer

msjay2u

15 years ago

I did my bathroom over because I also had mold in the walls. The bathroom was added in the 40's. I used the smooth cement board because I wanted the option to tile everything if I wanted PLUS I had a piece of cement board left outside in the heat, sun, rain, sleet, and snow for months and it never warped, came apart or anything. Granted, cement board is usually only used under tile but I think using it instead of drywall in the bathroom was a smart idea. We wound up only tiling the shower area tub to ceiling and painted the rest. If I change my mind and want to put in tile on the ceiling or on other parts of the wall it is an easy fix. There was a skim coat put on the cement board and it is very smooth. You just have to get someone who knows what they are doing to skim the walls. It looks just as good as drywall, if not better, and you can not tell the difference at all.

Hope this helps

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Comments (12)

ventupete
16 years ago
I guess my question is why you have cement board on your ceiling instead of drywall? Cement board is usually used as a base for ceramic or stone tile - never seen it used as the finished surface. It is very rough, and thinset mortar is not going to give you a smooth finish. You might be able to skim coat it with joint compound but it's a lot of work, especially on a ceiling. Have you considered putting a layer of drywall over it?
bsticks
Original Author
16 years ago
Hi and thanks for answering. I had a mold problem that required a remediation to my second floor. Pinpointed to my bathroom. It's an 8'x 8' space and exhaust fans just couldn't get the job done. It was suggested and my code official in my town said put the time in and use the cement board. Long answer to why it's on the ceiling.

Actually about 60% of the space is pretty smooth and the 40% to skim coat are spots on only 5 boards. I just wanted to make sure that joint compound would bond well to the boards.

Thanks again!
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Thanks for the feedback and ideas. The varnish idea is intriguing; I think I've seen similar applications and they end up looking very shiny and not a match for the paint. This is not so terrible, but would be a bit of a different look. Are there any varnish-type products which would have a more neutral finish? Also do you think I'd need to varnish the ceiling as well to protect from condensation, or only on the walls which would be receiving direct 'splashes'? We are leaning towards keeping the tub, and retrofitting it with a shower. The idea of a hand-held European-style shower is very appealing; we're wondering if maybe a ceiling-mounted curtain ring would be sufficient to prevent splashes if the shower hardware were somehow mounted inside the curtain, maybe from a bar mounted to the ceiling? We did something similar to a clawfoot tub in our previous house - link added to show what that may look like. It would be a tricky install since the curtain ring would probably need to be mounted at the same angle as the slope of the ceiling. We would probably just leave the current tub faucet set in place and add another faucet set that operates just the shower. There's not really an economical way to create space for a separate shower, changing the footprint of the room is off-the-table for us at this point. Here is a link that might be useful: clawfoot shower system
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Are you by chance an engineer? :-) 1) Does everything look okay? Asked and answered. 2) Should I use the Laticrete Hydroban on all surfaces (floor, ceiling and walls) throughout the bathroom (as opposed to just the shower area)? Throughout the bathroom would give you no benefit at all. Actually, it's not needed at all, although you could use it in the shower instead of a vapor barrier. You could also use it on the floor, but again, unless you flood the floor on a constant basis, it's really not necessary. 3) Should I put up a plastic vapor barrier behind the walls and ceiling throughout the bathroom (as opposed to just the shower area)? No. Whichever you use-- the plastic or the Hydroban-- use it in just the shower. 4) If I should use the laticrete on the floor, I assume it should be on top of the Durock... Could it be effected by the heat of the radiant heating mat? I don't think so, but you might want to call Laticrete on that. (203) 393-0010 5) Any recommendation for a particular mortar? I'm assuming you're going with Laticrete products, so I'll give you their product names. Walls and ceiling-- 255 lightweight thinset. Under the cement board-- #17 unmodified thinset Between the tile and cement board-- either 253 or 254 modified thinset Grout? Again Laticrete has some good conventional grouts. For joints under 1/8", une unsanded grout. For 1/8" and over, use sanded grout. Sealer for the limestone? Sealer for the grout? Before I give you a recommendation, take a sponge and put a small puddle of water in the center of a tile. Let me know if it just sits there, or does the tile suck it right in? 6) Regular Drywall or greenboard? In every place but the shower, either one is fine in most places. However, some do require greenboard by code. You might want to check to be sure. 7) Anything else I should know or keep in mind? Not that I can think of off hand!!
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ventupete
16 years ago
Almost any finish material (plaster, stucco, drywall compound, etc) will bond well to cement board. A friend of mine put cement board in his bathroom and then decided to only tile it part way. He skim coated the rest of the wall with drywall compound and it ultimately came out well. However, he had to put a second coat on to achieve a smooth finish - don't know if it was because he didn't do a good job on the initial coat or because the cement board absorbed the compound unevenly.
bsticks
Original Author
16 years ago
Get information. Thank you very much...
kboeckman
15 years ago
My husband and I are going to tile our bathroom. What is the usual size of grout line for a 13 x 13 tile and
what is the minimum width the can be used for that size of tile.
homebound
15 years ago
3/16 or even 1/8 if the floor is fairly flat and even. (BTW, 3/16 often appears larger than that when finished, given rounded tiled edges, etc.) Other views may differ.
bill_vincent
15 years ago
The only view that SHOULD differ is if it's rectified porcelain. Other than that, 3/16" should be the minimum grout joint, unless you want to take the time (or pay your installer a little extra so HE can take the time) to fool with it and make it come out nice with the 1/8" joint. But be forewarned-- due to sizing, some culling may be necessary for the smaller joint.
brickeyee
15 years ago
"It's an 8'x 8' space and exhaust fans just couldn't get the job done. It was suggested and my code official in my town said put the time in and use the cement board."

You needed a larger exhaust fan.

Cement board was overkill.

Skim the surface with a setting type joint compound, prime and paint.
mightyanvil
15 years ago
Why would someone tag a different question on to a year and a half old thread and force people to read the old one to find the new one? That makes it necessary to read the date of every thread before reading it. Am I the only one who finds this inconsiderate?
davidro1
15 years ago
I agree with the above. CBU can be good as an anti mold surface.
bill_vincent
15 years ago
That makes it necessary to read the date of every thread before reading it. Am I the only one who finds this inconsiderate?

Sorry you had to go through "all that trouble". You just might be (the only one).

Durock Cement Board - Bathroom Ceiling

msjay2u

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Durock Cement Board - Bathroom Ceiling

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