Plastering FAQ’s

Frequently Asked Questions:-

Q. I have artexed ceilings and I’d like them to look nice and flat again. Would this be possible, and is it messy?

A. A lot of people these days are falling out of love with Artex and I’m constantly being asked to make them look lovely and flat again.

This is usually done either by over-tacking with new plasterboard and then re-skimming with new plaster. Or applying a good coat of Uni – bond ‘PVA’ over the existing artex if it’s perfectly ‘sound’ and then re-skimming. (The latter is usually the preferred option if you have coving already fixed which you’d rather leave in place).

Either procedure need not be messy at all, we always sheet up thoroughly before any work is started, and clean up just as thoroughly when it’s completed. (With all of our private dwelling jobs that is)

Q. I have stripped my wall-paper off of the walls and lumps of plaster have come away with it as a result. Is there a good and simple way to put this right again?

A. Depending just how bad the damage is will determine the remedy. If it’s just a few areas of the top-coat of plaster that’s fallen away we can usually get over it by making sure there is no other loose plaster and then Uni-bonding the whole wall, filling the affected areas with a suitable backing coat and then re-skimming the whole wall. Patching can be done, but it is just as quick to do the whole area, and besides, it will look as if you’ve got a whole nice new wall and you or your painter will be very happy bunnies 😉

If there is more damage though, where chunks of render have come away. (Usually by over exuberant use of the dreaded steamer) The same procedure would apply, but the job would be more time-intensive because of the preparation time needed before re-skimming.

Q. I have cracks in my ceilings and walls, is this something you could help me with?

A. Generally speaking cracks are often caused by the settling of timbers and footing in new-builds or new extensions. These cracks are often able to be dealt with by anyone a little bit handy with a painters filler tool, sanded down and then decorated again as normal. If the house is old though it could be the backing coming away from the old brickwork or plaster lathes. The same with the ceiling cracks.

Of course there is always the dreaded ‘damp’ in houses which cause all the timbers to swell and shrink with the moisture content. This is something you should get checked out ‘First’ before you commit to any repairs, otherwise it could be your ‘hard-earned’ flushed down the pan 🙁

Do NOT!! …. I repeat – NOT! …. get in a damp-course company to assess your house for damp ….. this can cause you even MORE stress and ‘expense’.
Always get an ‘independant’ Survey or Pre-Survey done by a person/company that has no monetary gain other than the cost of a survey.

WARNING!! If you have an old house and you have cracks in the ceiling, you should get them looked at ASAP by a professional. Don’t poke and prod around yourself, as large, very heavy lumps of plaster could seriously injure you.
(If the ceiling looks like it’s bowed ‘down’ don’t even sleep under it until it’s been checked out).
This isn’t scare tactics, it’s just years of painful experience that you can benefit from.

Q.  My walls are very bumpy and uneven. I’d like them to look flat, clean and tidy. Would this be a big job?

A. Again, like the artexing question, we get a lot of this work lately. It’s relatively simple to over-skim your existing walls and flatten them as we go. If the walls are extremely bumpy, we would first Uni-bond – ‘PVA’ glue the area, lay on a good coat of  Hardwall/Bonding/Sand&Cement render/or other backing coat dependant on the finish already in situ’ and then re-skim as normal. Either way, you’ll get walls that look like new.

Unless of course we find underlying problems like the backing coat coming away from the brickwork. It would then be a case of taking off the backing coat – Re-rendering and then re-finishing to bring it up to scratch. (A little more expensive)

Q. I am having my house revamped. New kitchen, skirting boards, achitraves and new bathroom as well. Should I get a plasterer in first to give me a price for any work or get them in later?

A. This is a very good question because it’s something that can cause a great deal of trouble for all concerned. Not least your bank account.

Whenever you’re thinking of revamping a property, it’s no good asking a plasterer to give you a final quote ‘before’ the other trades have ripped out, or off, their bits and bobs. This is because they’ll invariably do more damage than they originally thought they would. Not their fault, just Murphey’s law coming into play.

Once everything has been ripped out, you can then ask your plasterer of choice …. (Me of course) to give you a ‘revised’ price for the job. I know this can throw everything out of kilter, especially if the other trades need to crack on ASAP, but if you have a plasterer you can trust, you can provisionally book him for the proposed period in advance. Have him quote for the work as it ‘should’ be expected to end up as, but bear in mind that you could be faced with a higher quote when he re-visits (unless the damage is only as previously expected), so build that into your proposed budget first. Don’t get angry when the plasterer says there’s a lot more work than he found on the first visit. … As I’m sure you like to see fair-play all round I’m sure you’d agree with that anyway – Just saying 🙂

Any more questions? ……. Submit them  Here

Plus! …. Be Sure to check out the ‘Recent Posts’ below.

Pete Moring …….. pmplastering.net 

————————————————— 

Have a great day …..