First time plastering

Droolinggimp

Droolinggimp

Droolinggimp

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Joined
16 May 2004
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Derby
Hi guys. We are in the process of decorating the whole house. Done a few rooms so far and onto the living room currently. I stripped of pretty much all the wall paper and found the walls not 'great'. Paint-able, just.

Anyway, I thought why not have a go at plastering (skimming).

3 flat walls. One with a light switch, one with a plug socket and nothing on the 3rd one. Then the window wall which has windows believe it or not.

How hard can it be?:confused::D

Popped to B&Q, picked up a bag of plaster, trowel, that thing that you put plaster on and some paint for later.

I mixed the plaster as per instructions and started to slap it on. Now, the first lot was ok and sorted of smoothed it with a even layer, then it sort of got a bit messy. By the time I reached the end of the first wall it was good again if I say so myself. I left it a bit and did another stage, juts with the trowel and no plaster, it smoothed it off. I left it a bit longer and mixed a bit more but slightly thinner to skim over the little gaps and ridges etc.. Did another skim with a clean trowel and its all nice and smooth.

Just waiting for it to dry to take a proper look and see if I need to do another light coat

For my first attempt I thought it went well. The next wall will be easier as I got the hang of applying it and a bit of a technique

A few pictures.. These were taken before I did final smoothing stage with clean trowel..

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I would give myself a 7.5 out of 10 for this effort. It's actually quite rewarding doing this. Certainly going to save a few quid.:D
 
If thats before you smoothed it i would say job well done mate, did you put PVA the wall first?
 
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Better than what I can do, its not easy!

I get the pro's round, they do leave he walls with an almost glossy finish, they look so smooth!

I think they use a sponge at the end, or just shine with their trowel.
 
ohh thanks.. Yeah I am pretty impressed. Can't wait till the good lady sees it. Doing the other walls over weekend and Tuesday/Wednesday, still got to strip the little bits of paper that are still on other walls, thats a good hours or so work there.

I think it took me 2 maybe 2.5 hours to do that wall. Next one will be quicker I am sure of it.
 
Kimi said:
If thats before you smoothed it i would say job well done mate, did you put PVA the wall first?
Click to expand...

No I didn't put PVA on. I knew about it though. Its fine as it is though after speaking to a plasterer. He said the wall paper paste that is left on wall helps the plaster apparently..
 
Great job! Been plastering my new place over the last week and its tiring work!
Few tips that you probably already know that i've picked up over the days:

Prep the walls as best you can, e.g. remove all paper and any paste residue if paper has been previously hung and remove any raw plugs!
Keep the room tidy and dust free as possible.
Mix up some PVA and water and roll on the walls to stop them from wicking all the moisture out of the fresh plaster.
Dont try and get a smooth finish on the first application, trowl marks are to be expected.
When it comes to polishing keep your tools wet! (Oh er!)
 
Well. It's been drying over night and just had a quick look.

It's FAB:D

A few little patches (round the light switch and a few bits where there was a small bit of wallpaper remaining that the trowel slid across the wall) where it will need sanding a little bit but other than that pretty much perfect:p. Got to go to a wedding today so wont have time to prep the other 3 walls today but will do it tomorrow. I will post some more before pictures up later and when its all done. The obligatory money shot:p
 
I'm about to try to plaster one of the bedrooms in my house this weekend, any tips? Did you watch any good videos before hand?
 
Well done, looks like you have the knack. I'm good at diy, but to me, plastering is a dark art and a cruel master.
 
Still a lot to practice before I'm anywhere near proficient. It's like a drug. I need to start the rest of the walls but like I said, can't go to a wedding caked in plaster haha.. Lol
 
Try the two coat method, works much better.

1st coat smack it on the wall, second you can get it pretty smooth (dont worry too much about trowle lines.

Then leave to dry 10mins and use a water mist to trowel smooth.

Any crap bits you can always use some polyfiller finishing skim.
 
The art is to get it on quick the first skim will go off pretty quick. The second one will give you longer to work with. I use a 14" trowel which is a good compromise not too big. Don't mess around too much with the first skim.

For a standard size wall 2.5m2 or so if you take longer than 6-7 minutes to get the first coat on your taking too long and the plaster will start going off. If you have someone mixing for you and cleaning your buckets it's a breeze. It's a great workout too!
 
Well done mate. I started plastering a few years ago - I taught myself with the aid of various u tube vids, asking questions on forums ect. It's hard work but very rewarding. When I first started it needed a fair bit of sanding / filling after but now it hardly needs any.
 
Droolinggimp said:
No I didn't put PVA on. I knew about it though. Its fine as it is though after speaking to a plasterer. He said the wall paper paste that is left on wall helps the plaster apparently..
Click to expand...

you didn't put that gritty paste on the wall before?:eek:

I don't think it will last long if you haven't.
 
Simon said:
Gritty paste?
Click to expand...
Prepare your wall - Adhesion

If you are skimming a previously plastered surface or one that has been painted then adhesion may be a problem. PVA should be applied.

A background that provides no suction at all must be properly prepared or the plaster will not stick. The use of a bonding agent such as PVA will need to be painted to the wall to ensure adhesion. PVA should be diluted with water (follow instructions on can). A handful of sand mixed in with the PVA will provide a rougher texture when the PVA has dried – ensuring better adhesion. PVA can be purchased at any builders merchants or DIY store. The suction test should then be carried out on the PVA surface. If it is still very porous then anther coat of PVA should be applied to seal the wall and make it less porous.
http://www.diyplastering.co.uk/prepare.html
 
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