Cement peeling off problem remedy ( 10 year old house)

[artem0nnospam]

After a year I have the following problem, pieces of plaster (1+ inch deep, 4"x5" on the surface) from vertical walls occasionally (every 4-5 months) fall off. The problem according to a contractor is the cement. I think that's without doubt as the plaster falls of with a small piece of cement always ( about 1/8" ) .

The reason for this was attributed to bad cement mix: The original fault I was told was the addition of too much water to the mix. does that sound plausible? provable? The gravel seems to be also a bit too oblong, slits rather than rounded, but of medium/fine size.

The remedy is quite expensive, injections into the cement. But only local treatment. Given the rather rare occurrences, and since I repaint every 2 years maximum, does it really worth it? ( total house surface

1600sqf)

Other solutions - total replastering ? ( with global cement treatment) - glass fiber cloth ? ( on existing plaster, without cement treatment) - covering with prefabricated plaster on metallic trellis base, on top of existing regular plaster.

Your ideas?

I could also pursue legal remedies but... am not sure what is best. it's a bit of gutting experience.

[SQLit]

Cement and plaster are two completely different applications. Stucco does have cement in it. Stucco can chip and peal if improperly installed. If you bought the home new use your warranty.

Plaster is typically used inside on very high end homes.

Your statements for me are confusing and hard to understand.

[artem0nnospam]

As I say it's an 12 year old house, and I have it for a year now. no warranty I belive, still looking into it.

As for the problem I have, it appears on the load bearing walls only, these walls are made of reinforced concrete (with gravel & cement ok, my mistake).

The walls are plastered on top of the concrete, it's an above average but not really high end home.

So a chunk of plaster falls off, with a small piece of the concrete attached. As if some stresses in the concrete act to expell the surface part of concreet. Is it clearer now? not a common problem right?

[No]

Still not totally clear - Are we talking about inside or outside?

Definitely no recourse (Legal, warranty or anything) You fix it its yours.

I do not know what "prefab plaster" or "metallic trellis base" is either.

Some of what you describe makes us think exterior, that's why SQLit mentions stucco, an exterior masonry product. Some of what you describe makes me think interior (plaster is used for interior wall finishes and is more or less common depending on where you live)

Water infiltration could be the cause of what you describe, regardless of interior or exterior.

Lets spend a bit of time on terms and better description of the problem so we can all be on the same page.

Stucco - Exterior masonry finish, generally has some texture, applied in layers. Usually has a wire lath for attachment. Lath - First step for stucco or some plaster finish techniques Wire lath - lath made of wire common with stucco, very unusual for interior plaster jobs except for maybe some south west adobe looking projects. Wood lath - lath made of wood, common on really old houses. Blue board - common underlayment for modern 'veneer plaster' applications. Veneer plaster - plaster applied over a gypsum board, similar to drywall, commonly called blue board. Plaster - basically gypsum and water - does not shrink. Used to make some moldings as well as wall finishes. Interior use only. Parge - This term may be regional. A masonry mortar skim coat over, usually, a block wall to give a smooth finish. Sort of similar to stucco but not textured and probably a higher Portland cement content, not lath is used.

OK, now can you use these terms, as appropriate, to describe your problem. Please tell us if its outside or inside, high on the wall or low. Near a window or any other commonality. Load bearing wall is interesting observation but may or may not be relevant. We'll see.

Pictures may be useful too.

[artem0nnospam]

ok right, indeed it's interior, and has happend already at different walls, various positions on wall, including on totaly indoor wall (no exterior side). No water infiltration I can rule this out for sure. Always only on load bearing concrete wall. The exterior is brick so no problem apparently there. The problem appered on ground level and 1st floor.

The plaster it's usual gypsum, about 6/16" thick, for interior, smooth mat finish. I used it already to successfully repair a few holes.

as for the options I proposed as remedy,

-the prefab plaster is the gypsum blue boards, on a metalic base safely attached on existing walls, without removing the existing plater.

- total replastering plus concrete treatment ( most expensive? )

- some durable glass fiber wallpaper (not the most aesthetic for sure)

or wait and repair/repaint as the problem appears, this is the cheapest but most taxing solution on our nerves. 1 wall per semester...if lucky

[hwm54112]

Prefab Plaster- How are you going to safely attach to defective concrete?

Total replaster- You're still going to be attaching to defective concrete (what type of concrete treatment)

Durable glass- The the plaster/concrete will still come off, only slower and less noticable. You'll eventually see bulges in wall

Wait and repair-repairs are still going to be on defective concrete-repairs will eventually come off- could be a year, could be

2. Causes-sand/cement ratio, too much water, contaminated sand (ie: beach sand), frozen concrete,

Permanent and definite fix- Stud up on both sides and and replaster

[artem0nnospam]

I'm not sure I see what you mean by "Stud-up on both sides".

I tend to think this is the best solution, the house withstood 10 years + and I have hung on walls heavy objects with no problem, so i think masonery screws should be secure for the blue boards base.

the contractor suggested doing "carrot" test for the concrete. would that be useful?

thanks