Coving installation

Fitting new coving

New coving is fitted before decorating. The wall and ceiling lines are marked, the adhesive is applied to the back edges of each length, and the coving is pressed into place and supported while it sets. Internal and external corners are cut with mitres or pre-formed corner pieces, and joints between lengths are filled and sanded so they disappear once painted.

Modern coving comes in plaster, lightweight polyurethane and duropolymer. Lightweight profiles are quicker to handle and suit most rooms; plaster coving is heavier and more traditional, and suits period properties where a sharper, crisper detail matters. The profile is chosen to suit the room’s proportions: a large cornice can overwhelm a low ceiling, while a small one can look lost in a tall room.

• Profiles in plaster, polyurethane and duropolymer
• Mitred corners and filled joints
• Sized to suit ceiling height and room style
• Fitted before painting for a clean finish

Cornice repair and matching existing profiles

Cornice repair covers cracked, loose or damaged sections of existing coving and ceiling cornice. Small cracks and chips are filled and reshaped; sections that have come away from the wall or ceiling are re-bedded or replaced. Where a length is beyond repair, a matching profile is sourced, or a section is made up to match, so the repair does not stand out.

In older and period properties, original plaster cornice is worth keeping where possible. Damaged runs can often be repaired in place, and missing sections can be matched with a profile taken from the existing cornice. This keeps the character of the room and avoids the odd look of a modern profile butted up against an original one.

Removing old coving

Where old coving is being replaced, it is prised away from the wall and ceiling, and the old adhesive is scraped back. Removing coving almost always damages the plaster behind it to some degree, so the wall and ceiling are made good, filled and sanded before the new coving goes on. If the plan is to remove coving and leave a plain wall-ceiling joint, the making good is more involved, because the joint has to be finished to the same standard as the rest of the wall. Either way, the dust and debris are contained and cleared as part of the job.

Coving as part of a redecoration

Coving work sits naturally inside a wider decorating job. The usual sequence is to fit or repair the coving first, then paint the ceiling, then the coving and walls. Painting coving is fiddly by hand, and a steady cut-in line where the coving meets the wall makes the difference between a sharp finish and a wobbly one.

If you are planning a room or whole-house redecoration, it is worth deciding on coving at the start. Adding it after the walls are painted means touching up around every joint, so fitting it first keeps the finish clean and the programme simple.

What affects the cost

The cost depends on the length of coving to be fitted, the profile and material chosen, the number of corners, ceiling height and access, and how much repair or making good is needed first. A straightforward run in a modern room is a very different job from matching and repairing original cornice in a period property.

Send us the room measurements, the profile you have in mind or photographs of the existing cornice, and we will give you a written quote that sets out what is included, so the fitting and the decorating can be planned together.