Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?

Thanks, Rob.

On Sat, 29 Jan 2005 19:34:42 GMT, "Rob Nicholson"
wrote:

Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?


I'm not sure if the pros do, but whenever I've skimmed plasterboard I
ALWAYS seal before hand. It just gives you so much more time to 'get
the stuff up there' before you level off. You can get away with one
coat, depending on what your joins are like, but I'll invariably give
it too - applying the second one just as the first is setting.

With plastering I've always found two things are always worth
observing:
1. Make sure the surface you're applying the finish too isn't too
dry....wet it with water and/or pva.
2. Get it 'up there' as quick as you can. Don't mess around trying to
smooth it out straight away, just concentrate on getting a coat on.
3. You're finish is only as good as the surface you're plastering. The
more uneven the surface, the more coats you'll need.

God, it's knackering work. How those blokes do it day in day out.

Kind of satisfying though, when you start to get near those pros :-)

Garry

1. Make sure the surface you're applying the finish too isn't too
dry....wet it with water and/or pva.

I've been doing quite a bit of patching so far as I find a spray
indespensible for damping the wall down.

2. Get it 'up there' as quick as you can. Don't mess around trying to
smooth it out straight away, just concentrate on getting a coat on.

I'm going to have a bash at the partition wall :-) It does take a certain
knack doesn't it! I'm not sure I've got it either... But I agree with
getting it on there as fast as possible. On the first attempt, I messed and
meddled around trying to get it flat as I went along. Second patch and I go
it on there, got it pretty level and then came back about 30 mins later and
went over with a slightly sloppier mix and fill in the dips.

Of course, a small 2' square patch is a lot different to a 9' high wall :-)

God, it's knackering work. How those blokes do it day in day out.

Practise makes perfect I guess. Working with computers all day doesn't tone
up the old upper arm muscles which seem useful when plastering.

Kind of satisfying though, when you start to get near those pros :-)

That's what I'm thinking - I'll have a go. If it's crap, then I can still
scrap it all off before it dries and get a pro in.

Cheers, Rob.

"Rob Nicholson" wrote in message
...
Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?

Thanks, Rob.


No

On Sat, 29 Jan 2005 20:26:48 GMT, "Rob Nicholson"
wrote:

1. Make sure the surface you're applying the finish too isn't too
dry....wet it with water and/or pva.

I've been doing quite a bit of patching so far as I find a spray
indespensible for damping the wall down.

To do this, I'd pva 5:1 and let dry, then do another coat and when the
second coat is just about dry [ie, sticky] the off you go. That will
give you plenty of working time.

Don't forget to tape the joins too....very important. Wood moves.
Scrim will facilitate the plaster not cracking at the joins where the
boards meet.

2. Get it 'up there' as quick as you can. Don't mess around trying to
smooth it out straight away, just concentrate on getting a coat on.

I'm going to have a bash at the partition wall :-) It does take a certain
knack doesn't it! I'm not sure I've got it either... But I agree with
getting it on there as fast as possible. On the first attempt, I messed and
meddled around trying to get it flat as I went along. Second patch and I go
it on there, got it pretty level and then came back about 30 mins later and
went over with a slightly sloppier mix and fill in the dips.

It's all about picking up tips as you go along. I first saw a builder
plaster a wall. After he'd applied the first coat, it looked like
somebody trying to simulate the waves of an ocean. I remembering
thinking, 'what a mess, surely can't leave it like that''. He went
outside for a smoke, came back, wandered around for a while then began
troweling out. Then he gave it another coat.

Of course, a small 2' square patch is a lot different to a 9' high wall :-)

Walls and 'oles are mere trifles grasshopper....ceilings is where you
is heading!

God, it's knackering work. How those blokes do it day in day out.

Practise makes perfect I guess. Working with computers all day doesn't tone
up the old upper arm muscles which seem useful when plastering.

Kind of satisfying though, when you start to get near those pros :-)

That's what I'm thinking - I'll have a go. If it's crap, then I can still
scrap it all off before it dries and get a pro in.

You can do it. Remembering of course, it also depends on what you're
going to do afterwards. Are you looking to paint the wall, or apply
wallpaper? But even if you're painting, there's always the 'lining
paper' option.Don't forget there's always good old
filler/artex/whatever to sort out any imperfections subsequently.

Something else to consider is tools and access to your mix. Get a flat
board mounted on a table of similiar and pour your mixed plaster on
the board and use a plasterers hawk to help move the plaster as quick
as you can. You can easily bodge a hawk out of 4mm ply with a piece of
thick dowel or rounded 2"x2" or something - again, makes the job
easier. A hamk can carry several trowel fulls, meaning you're not
going back and forth incessantly. And you can clean the trowel and
hawk on the edge of the board every so often. Unfortunately you won't
have the luxury of using a nice 14" trowel that's had 10 years of use
with rounded edges and a razor blade edge! Plasterers get very
attached to their trowels!

And get the surrounding area well sheeted, don't worry about the stuff
flying everywhere, par for the course - certainly is with me.

And....use decent plaster too - and mix it well. Get plenty mixed for
each coat. It's cheap enough. Thistle Mutifinish is about as good as
it gets...IMO.

All just my 2p.

Good luck

Garry

In article ,
"Rob Nicholson" writes:
Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?

I don't bother when using multifinish. However, make sure the mix
is nice and sloppy -- should slide off the trowel when held vertical.

--
Andrew Gabriel

Rob Nicholson wrote:

Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?


Thistle Multifinish onto dry plasterboard worked fine for me....

--
Cheers,

John.

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Do you need to seal plasterboard before applying the finishing plaster?

Now sitting here sipping a pint of Black Sheep to celebrate my first big
plaster job. And although I say so myself, it hasn't turned out bad at all
:-)

Took best part of the afternoon though and completely knackered! I think you
need a helper to mix the plaster for you... Certainly something more than
hand mixing.

And I suppose the only tip I've got is "don't panic!". As somebody else
said, just get it on the wall first and worry about levelling it out later.
And don't worry if you carve out a groove - fill it, leave it slightly proud
and return about 30 mins later and level it off.

Cheers, Rob.

I'm impressed if you handmixed a wall's worth of finish coat.
I've done it with bonding coat, but it doesn't matter in that

It wasn't a complete wall - fortunately. About 5' x 9' with 1' edge where I
borrowed a bit of the bedroom in extending the bathroom so a full length
bath fitted. Still, that was enough thank you :-)

Rob.