Plastering advice

Hi,

I've removed the skirting board and a radiator in my lounge.

Behind the skirting is just bare brick and behind the radiator was plaster but the whole lot fell off so there is now bare brick here too. The walls are to be skimmed in a few weeks time but I'd like to cover the brickwork up now. The depth to bring in line with the existing plaster is about 10-15mm.

Would it be OK to fasten plasterboard to the brickwork? The reason I'd like to do this is that when the new skirting board is fitted it should have a nice, flat surface to attach to so would be easier to install and would be a better finish. I'm concerned though that when it is skimmed the plaster will react differently to the original plaster and the plasterboard and that this may cause cracking.

Also, has anyone any ideas on the reason for the plaster blowing behing the radiator? I'd expect it's just because of the age and the heat it's had from the radiator but if anyone knows of anything else which may have caused it I'd be eager to know.

Thanks, Matt

Reply to
Lunny
Loading thread data ...

Reply to
Dr Wu

£6.00, thats dear where are you? £3.75 in my builders yard.

-- Sir Benjamin Middlethwaite

Reply to
The3rd Earl Of Derby

In message , Lunny writes

It's quite likely there will be some cracking at the joins between the plasterboard and the plaster due to differential movement over time.

not sure about the bit about putting plasterboard along the bottom, if the walls aren't flat already then the plasterboard will have to follow the finished surface anyway.

Personally I'd leave it to the plasterer to do. Probably not take very long or cost much/any more

Reply to
chris French

If the plaster is not attached in other places maybe its not worth skimming over. Does it sound hollow when you rap your knuckles on it?

If its just this one area, phone the plasterer and explain. If you did a bad job of patching it yourself he'd charge you extra for repairing your repair.

Reply to
marble

Cheers for the help. Just got a few questions about your replies....

Dr Wu

----------

"Leave it down about 3mm for the skim and run it down below the top of the skirting."

Wouldn't I level it up with the existing plaster? The whole lot is to be skimmed over.

Chis French

-----------------

"not sure about the bit about putting plasterboard along the bottom, if

the walls aren't flat already then the plasterboard will have to follow

the finished surface anyway."

Was thinking that the plasterboard would give a more "forgiving" surface because of it's rigidity or would the skim be able to sort that out?

"Personally I'd leave it to the plasterer to do. Probably not take very

long or cost much/any more"

I'd love to but he's weeks away from being able to come round and would like to cover the exposed brickwork ASAP. Unfortunately the skirting has had to be removed to level the floor.

Marbles

------------

"I the plaster is not attached in other places maybe its not worth skimming over. Does it sound hollow when you rap your knuckles on it?"

No all the loose plaster in the area has been removed. The rest of the wall is sound. There are other areas in the room which are loose but the plasterer will sort this out. You say it may not be worth skimming

- is the other option to remove all of the plaster and start again?

"If its just this one area, phone the plasterer and explain. If you did

a bad job of patching it yourself he'd charge you extra for repairing your repair."

It would be easier to get in touch with Elvis! I know the contributors on here are very helpful and knowledgable so thought I'd check on the best way to do it on here before starting.

Cheers again, Lunny

.
Reply to
Lunny

There is supposed to be a gap between the floor and the plaster to stop rising damp. There are bare stones behind my skirting boards. Not sure if this still holds true with newer houses that have damp proof courses built in. My house was built around 1900. When I had a couple of rooms replastered, the plasterer left a reasonable gap between the floor and the plaster all the way round.

Reply to
none

In message , Lunny writes

Personally I think it's better to reply to the original messages, not to put them all in one message.

Yes, I think they were thinking you were just talking about skimming the patched bits.

TBH, I'm not sure what you mean here.

Presumably the room is in a bit of a state anyway, can't see the problem with bit of exposed brickwork myself.

Hmm, I'd be very wary of tradesperson you have difficulty getting hold of....

Reply to
chris French

Plasterboard adhesive from B&Q or Wickes is less than £4

I've just done some similar work. Stick bits of plasterboard onto th brickwork, then fill in any gaps. Bring this new plaster up to the SAM LEVEL AS EXISTING (since its best to skim the whole wall anyway).

I've used britich gypsum Multi-finish from B+Q £3.75 to fill bits in its very strong when set, mixes well, cheap, easy to apply. Only thin with this is that it does shirnk a bit when drying, so if you put it o thick it can crack. BUT this will not effect its strength as it doe bond well to plasterboard/brick. (if this concerns you, then us 'browning' plaster)

Buy some PVA glue (general purpose pva will suffice) and water thi down a bit and apply to the wall before you start. This will seal i any brick dust and help the plasterboard adhesive (or multifinsh) t set.

The existing plaster on my walls was very absorbsive, so use plenty o water or the plaster will dry too quick and crack.

When the final skim coat of plaster is put on it will dry out differen depending on its background

-- MGreen

Reply to
MGreen

Oh. Sorry!

Me neither, SWMBO won't have any of it though! So the question is "how do you do this?" and not "would you bother or not?"

Thanks.

Reply to
Lunny

Yeah, It's had a damp proof course but I'll be leaving a bit of a gap anyway

So can anyone please tell me the best way to do this?

One coat plaster? Bonding plaster? Dot and Dab?

Cheers all! Lunny

Reply to
Lunny

Use one coat plaster and it'll be fine. One coat is very flexible, doesn't shrink like bonding and it sticks really well.

Reply to
daddyfreddy

Dont dot and dab, because you want a solid wall to re attaching the radiator if its a heavy one. Maybe you could put a big dollop of adhesive behind where the brackets will go if you can be sure of that.

Bonding coat is good for repairs because it, err bonds, but it will not give you a smooth finish if thats important while you await the plasterer. Even if you decide to use One Coat, I'd still use 2 coats if its 15mm deep scoring a key on the 1st coat.

Use a straight edge, a piece of straight timber long enough to span the patch, then using the existing plaster as a guide pull the straight ege over the patch to make it all level with the old stuff.

Reply to
marble

I reckon I'll go with the one coat. Cheers to everyone for the advice!

Reply to
Lunny

Reply to
Dr Wu

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.