Plasterers in the North East
Plastering is one of those trades where the difference between decent and rubbish only shows up once the light hits it and the paint goes on. A flat wall costs the same in materials as a wavy one.
We take on skims, full re-plasters, boarding out, partitions and ceilings, plus the making good after structural or damp work. If the wall underneath has a problem we will say so rather than plastering over it and letting it come back through in six months.
What we take on
- Skim coat over existing plaster or fresh board
- Full re-plaster, float and set on brick or block
- Plasterboarding, dot and dab, and stud partitions
- Ceilings, including overboarding old lath and plaster
- Coving and simple decorative work
- Renovating plaster and making good after damp treatment
- Small repairs, patches and reveals after new windows
How we do it
Check the background
Different suction on brick, block, board and old plaster all need a different approach. This is why patches sometimes crack out later, somebody skimmed straight over the top without sorting the background.
Prep and protect
Sheets down, sockets covered, edges taped. Plaster gets everywhere, we would rather spend twenty minutes than have you cleaning for a week.
Board or float
Board fixed at correct centres and scrimmed, or floated out in browning or bonding depending on the wall.
Skim and trowel up
Two coats of finish, trowelled at the right time. Rushing this stage is what leaves the ripples.
Clear out
Waste bagged, floor cleaned, and we tell you honestly how long to leave it before you paint.
What it tends to cost
Skimming is priced per wall or per room and depends on the state of what is already there. A room that needs the old plaster hacking off is a different job to a straight skim over sound plaster. Ceilings cost more than walls, and old lath and plaster ceilings cost more again because of the mess coming down.
Questions we get asked
How long before I can paint new plaster?
Wait until it has gone a uniform pale colour all over, with no dark patches. On a normal skim in a heated room that is around four to seven days, but a full float and set on a solid wall can be three to four weeks. Then put a mist coat on first, watered down emulsion roughly 70:30, or the plaster drinks the paint and it peels later. Painting too early is the single most common reason new plaster fails.
Can you plaster straight over artex?
If it is a light pattern and sound, yes, usually with a coat of bonding agent then a skim. If it is heavily peaked it wants overboarding instead. Important one though, artex from before the year 2000 can contain asbestos, so if the house is older than that we do not sand it or scrape it. Overboarding leaves it undisturbed, which is the safe option.
Why has my new plaster cracked?
Hairline cracks along a board joint mean the scrim tape was missed or the board is moving. Cracking in a random map pattern usually means it dried too fast, often a heater blasting at the wall. Cracks in the same place coming back repeatedly are structural and no amount of filler will fix them, that needs the cause sorting first.
Where we cover for plastering & plasterboarding
Other trades we cover
Want a price on plastering & plasterboarding?
Send a few details or give us a ring. We will come and look at it, and you get a written price with no obligation attached.