Whats the best way to fill a gap in between plasterboard walls??

[jon.p.weaver]

My house its a newish type with the external walls being brick, block and "dob-n-dabed" plasterboard and the internal ones are just plasterboard fixed to metal 'studs'.

On impulse, I decided to rip down a stud wall between my 2 little bedrooms, to make way for a 'games' room' .

I found that the end which met the external wall, the stud wall was errected first and this means that there is a gap of about 4" between the plasterboard of the 2 old rooms (I hope this makes sense) which goes back to the block work.

I have salvaged some of the old plasterboard and cut it into strips which I will use to fill the gap, but I have a number of quesitons.

1. What should I use to fix the plasterboard into the gap. I realised that Plasterboard Adhesive is the correct stuff, but these is just an

8ft x 4" strip and I wonder if there is anything else i could use.

1. Is it worth "tapeing" the new joints at either side of this new strip of board?

2. What should I use to 'finish' the surface so that its a close match to the rest of the room.

I have already bought a tub of 'jointing compound', but I am starting to think that it might be the wrong stuff for this kind of job..

Can anyone else recommend something which would be ideal for a job like this?

I look forwards to your thoughts

Jon

[Guy King]

The message from [e-mail] contains these words:

I just mixed up a load of filler I had kicking about when I did it. Held it in place with a lath from the other side of the corridor till it set.

[jon.p.weaver]

On thing I want to point out that may not be clear in my original post is that the 'strip' of board that I am fitting goes against a block wall.

There are already 2 board (From the original rooms) fitted and finished against and external wall.. There is simply a 3-4" gap between them (where the old stud wall used to be) which I need to fill.

I was wondering if I could simply screw the strip of board to the blocks (using some off-cuts of timber to give me the required gap)?

Jon

[The Natural Philosopher]

Could do. Or better get some insulation the right thickness and gripfill it all together etc.

skim, sand and paint..

[jon.p.weaver]

Insulation?? What type of insulation are you talking about?

I just want to use the Plasterboard, as its simply scrap from the wall I have taken down and costs nothing...

When it comes to 'skimming', whats the best kind of product for largish areas like this? Will the 'Joint Filler' that I have bought do the job?

The reason I bought its that as well as the gap in the wall, I also have to finish the ceiling and the opposite wall too and figured that i would use the same stuff that they used when the house was built!

Jon

[The Natural Philosopher]

Ah. Of copurse..its twin bockl outer with insulation between..

Just about any filler - from real plaster to polyfilla #

make teh board a little 'low'. and skim as best you can a little 'high' and sand it all flat with an orbital.

you always get a slight variation in texture with a fill..try it and see. They may have skimmed with finishing plaster..

[John Rumm]

The simplest would be to fix the plasterboard to the wall on a few dabs of adhesive. Try and set its level just a fraction below that of the existing bards.

Yup, use the joint filler[1]. Once the filler has gone off, give it a sand and job done.

[1] If you can get yourself a nice wide trowel or taping knife all the better - a cheapo wickes version of:

do nicely and makes it easier to get a nice even smoth finish to the filler which saves too much sanding.

[Tony]

I did this exact thing myself a month ago and I agree with John Rumm - cut a piece of plasterboard to size and set it on adhesive into the gap onto the blockwork (I actually used coving adhesive - long story but it worked and dried real strong). Set it just below the level of the two existing boards. Then, when it's all set, use a trowel to lay joint filler over the whole new 3-4" board, scraping off the excess to the level of the existing boards using a jointing knife. It's important to use a nice, wide, flexible jointing knife to get a level finish. Finally, when the jointing compound is dry, sand real well to leave a smooth surface ready for priming before you paint it.

To get a good result, focus on getting a smooth, level finish with the jointing knife and lots of sanding.

To avoid cracking at the joints in future you might choose to also use some scrim tape over the joints.

[PeTe33]

Only problem with that is the tape will be going on to an already finished surface, which I found is more trouble than it's worth.

You have to feather the finished surface over the tape and well onto the finished wall. This leads to loads of dust and sanding and leaves the "new" bit of wall higher than the wall either side. You just won't ever get it not noticeable.

I'd give the tape a miss. Even on tapered edge P.Board I found the tape troublesome when using Jointing compound to "fill in" the joint.