Hi,

I'm thinking of replastering a wall myself, but I've heard that plastering can be a bit tricky. Also, on DIY programmes you always see a specialist plasterer come in to replaster a wall!

Is it that difficult to do ? Is there any advise/pointers worth knowing about ?

Cheers
Darren

deffo not as easy as the pro's make it look -

me & a mate replastered/skimmed most of his house with pretty good results, here's a few tips we picked up en-route:

Always add the plaster to the water - easier to mix and no lumps that way - invest in a proper stirrer for the drill, you can pick them up cheaply enough.

Mix the skim until when you pull the stirrer out it leaves a nice little walnut whip type thing in the plaster, any thinner than this you will have a trauma keeping it on the hawk.

Buy a hawk :D

plan the job out so that you are not plastering up to "wet" edges. i.e, if you were doing an alcove you would do the back face and then leave it until it is hard. then do the sides, let them go hard and then do the top.

Always enure the walls to be skimmed are as clean as possible and bonded - theres nothing worse than picking up a chunck of sh1te and dragging it across your nice smooth plaster.

take your time when fitting skim beads, as this will make a massive difference to the end result if you make a balls of them, remember to use galv nails.

it doesn't take that long to go off - bear this in mind as you will need to be working the first plaster you put on before you finish the wall.

dont be too eager to try and get a smooth finish immediateley - you need to get it on the wall and leave it a while before you can rub it smooth - in truth you are never really stood about as you will still be plastering the rest of the wall - depending on the size of it of course. Buy yoursely a water sprayer for rubbing the plaster smooth - this is the hard bit.


We were lucky as my mate is a floor layer by trade so he was quite tidy with a trowel, If you are not that way inclined practically, I would say get someone in, especially as its only one wall you say needs doing.


Failing that why not batten across the wall and plasterboard it. Use tapered edge board and all the right fillers and tapes and you will never see the joints.

get a pro in.

if you do it yourself, you're likely to make an ar5e of it and when you get a plasterer in to sort it he'll take the pi55.

At least that's what my plastering mate does...

Is it that difficult to do ?

For a whole wall, if you haven't done it before, almost impossible :D

There's the consistency to get right, the ally stuff you put on to support any corners, the number of coats to do, the drying time to leave etc etc - before you even get to try and make it anything like flat

Even patching an area is difficult even when you've got surrounding existing plaster that you can 'bridge' with a long straight edge.

I wouldn't even bother to put a base coat on and get a plasterer to do the finishing coat - he'll probably say 'you didn't want to do the base coat like that!' and he'll want it all taken off!

Cheers for the prompt and detailed reply MJ. I'll digest the info and see whether I'm up to the job!

I'm not too hot with a trowel to be honest so could possibly make a complete balls up of it. The wall could end up with more curves in it than a lap dancer! :)

Cheers
Darren

my mate done his wall and he said it was ok, yet to see it. Anyway it looks a difficult job to me. I have dabbled in a small area of patching and i had to sand it once dry to get it flat. Infact thats the only reason i did it coz it was more of a filler job.

anyone can slap some plaster on a wall, getting it flat and even is the hard part.

I would not want to tackle a large area myself it is a skill that takes time to learn.

get a professional in.

Cliff

Thanks for the replies. Looks like I'll get someone in then. I don't want the walls ending up on the floor!

Cheers
Daz

right.. A few things posted above are wrong..

Dont use nails.. Screw the boards..

Use drywall screws, screws shouldnt pierce the paper the should be just flush.. if they rip then they arent holding the board..

Ill get my mate to post, he is a plaster'er and posts on here..

David

David

good points.

It amazes me that people can think without much experience they could skim a wall...........!! bet it looks terrible. Plastering is a skilled and very well paid job for those who do a good job.

right.. A few things posted above are wrong..


No they are not, you just didn't read the post. I said use galv nails on skim beads not boards. In fact, No one mentions fixing methods of boards in any way.

You said a "few things" - so where's all this other misinformation then?

You said a "few things" - so where's all this other misinformation then?

Well, the bit about sanding down the first coat ;) :D

A pro-plasterer will NEVER sand down the 1str coat.

Get a plant sprayer and wait for the 1st coat to nearly go off, then spray the wall with the water sprayer.

This is what gives your plaster the "sheen".....

I know, coz I've just done it in my conservatory.


you should be aiming for a silky smooth surface

Dan ;)

just to point out as plasterer myself that most of the comments sbove are correct including the advice not to try doing it yourself but there are alternatives to paying someone a lot of money or even paying them at all. how big is the wall?
is it a very uneven surface? what is the surface i.e old plaster on sand and cement render, or a lath and plaster stood wall,

hope i can be of some help

the term would be floating or troweling up not rubbing up,
that is what you would do to render or browning.

forgot I had this piccie - some of the handywork, we framed and boarded the ceiling aswell. Not bad if I say so myself, especially for a sparky & a floorlayer :)

http://www.maj.clara.net/upload/stairs1.jpg

you've missed a bit ;) :D

Dan :p

just do it its so very easy,, Im sure I could do it with my eyes shut ??? alan.

Cheers guys for the info, loads of good advise.

Some conficting opinions, but that gives me a good idea of the pros and cons.

Mj,

Oh so sorry didnt read.. :p

Why dont you nibble on my dick? ;) :D

David,

Apology accepted,

Now go and boil your head.

:D

LMFAO

Any advice for plastering the fiddly bits on a wall?

I'm planning to skim a couple of rooms, after doing an evening course in plastering & getting some decent results, i'm up for doing my own plastering.

However, the walls i did at college were obstacle free. Now i have radiator pipes to contend with. Also a small gap (approx 5cm) between the door frame & corner to fill. Is it a case of using a filler knife to get a couple of coats on & smooth it down as best as possible? Or is there a more proffesional way?

dazzler

it all depends which room you are doing if you want to have a go your self, if its a bedroom have a go if its a living room and you expect to paint it get someone in:D ive seen all the efforts of peeps who think they can do it and its not often i can say someone has done a good job;)

Wouldnt dare have a go meself - plastering after chasing a cable is hard enough for me!

Do you think it poss to skim unibonded clean walls in my hallway, stairs and landing in a day? They are ALMOST good enough to paint, but not quite. Std 3 bed 1930 semi... I'd pay £200 but no more than that cos I'm skint and that's a good wage!

Hope its still on topic :)

NO >>>> pva walls leave for at least 4 hours then skim . I WOULD PVA AND BEAD ALL ANGLES ONE DAY THEN SKIM NEXT DAY £400 isshhhhhh . if you are re skimming over exsisting plaster you do need to fit a thin wall bead over all angles for a good clean finish ?????? so Im told ,>>>> Alan.

2nd what alan says, i have a 30's semi but there is no way i would plaster the staircase for £200, can be done in a day easy but a hard day and materials alone would be £60, i would start expecting to pay from £300;) £300 if your lucky

Steve, he wants hall , landing, and stairs for £200 ??? it would be at least 2 hours prep , then two VERY BIG GAUGES ?? its in to 2 days for 2 men, £400 min , cheers alan,

i live in a 30's and house have plastered a huge staircase for some one as well in a day which was a 30's houses, all i do is plaster houses:D his stair case unseen is a days work but £200 is laughable;)

Thanks chaps - looks like its lining paper for me then as its a big plastering job. Cheers D.