Expecting too much from newly skimmed walls?

Discussion in 'Other Trades Talk' started by Luke Redpath, May 8, 2015.

  1. Tee-hee - yes, I went through this on our current house, even tho' I'd been through it all many times before. It's amazing how you forget what to expect when not done for a few years... I even went through an initial stage of only using a large brush for the walls as I wanted a nice traditional look. I soon gave up on that...

    (Actually, my fav method these days is to use a short-pile mini-roller! Yes it takes longer on large areas, but it's great for getting into nooks and crannies and closer to edges and stuff - less wieldy :) )

    Yes, the very flat surface is unrealistic, I think, and again is only an issue if you like pressing your cheek flat against a wall and looking at it longways... It also tends to look 'wrong' to my eye, unless you do it 'properly' and that's to use a sprayer over a perfect base.

    But, short-pile would, I think, be the way to go.

    Yes, there will be a light texture on close inspection, but that's a fine even texture and the overall finish should look great.

    There should not be any visible roller lines. As the weather is becoming warmer and drier, this could become more tricky to achieve as the paint dries quickly. You might even want to add a splash of water to your emulsion paint to counter this, but only a small amount - a few %.

    Perhaps asking a new Q on the painter's forum about best rollering techniques?
     
  2. Luke Redpath

    Luke Redpath Member

    Thanks, I just looked at our second coat again and I'm happy with it. There's some small amount of snagging that will require a bit of very light sanding - it seems to be more around corners where its harder to get as good a finish, but nothing that a light sand can't rectify. I didn't bother taking a photo as you can't see anything on it. And comparing it to the paint finish in our kitchen - whoever did that did a terrible job. Really bad orange peel effect. So I guess I should be happy with what we've managed.

    That's just the bare plaster paint though; I have no idea how good the Farrow and Ball paint we're going for will be to work with. We're getting a professional in to quote to do the hall, stairwell and landing so I might get them to quote for the lounge/dining room but we're trying to save some money here as we seem to be burning through it!
     
  3. chippie244

    chippie244 Super Member

    The F&B paint will look great after about 16 coats and great expense, if you are trying to save money then run away.
     
  4. Chippie - you ain't looking so good these days.
     
  5. chippie244

    chippie244 Super Member

    It's the Ron Jeremy look :):)
     
  6. What a huge moustache...
     
  7. chippie244

    chippie244 Super Member

    I'm thinking of retraining as a plumber, or a pizza delivery guy.
     
    Deleted member 33931 likes this.
  8. FatHands

    FatHands Well-Known Member

    mario and luigi !
     
  9. chippie244

    chippie244 Super Member

    More like Ben Dover Fats :p:p:p
     
    FatHands likes this.
  10. DIYDave.

    DIYDave. Screwfix Select

    I've had similar plastering issues in my house over the years as bit by bit, had the whole house re-plastered, re-built, extended and changed the layout
    Always used plasterers that had been highly recommended, and/or seen their previous work but still had similar issues as yourself. Only the last guy, around 5 years ago, did a faultless job. So I've ended up doing a lot of the "making good" myself, and all of the decorating, and like yourself, I'm a fussy bugger, that's a compliment not criticism ;)

    Use ordinary trade emulsion for your mist coats, obviously thinned out with water, definitely not vinyl matt though. I've used mainly Leyland;
    http://www.screwfix.com/p/leyland-t...rch-_-SearchRec-_-Area1&_requestid=361401#_=p

    Even after scrutinising your walls and filling every imperfection in the bare plaster, once the mist coat dries, a whole load more issues will present themselves, much to your amazement

    I found the best method was to lightly sand all walls, remove any high spots, lumps, then mist coat, then fill, sand, fill again if needed, sand then mist coat a second time. This ensured that all nasty bits were filled and prepped, ready for 2 top coats

    Another benefit of mist coating first is that the bare plaster doesn't suck all the water out of the filler, so you can mix up a fair amount of filler (you cant beat powdered pollyfiller in my opinion) fill, flatten off and reuse the excess filler on the next section. When you've got loads to repair, this speeds up the process

    Any filled areas should really be spot primed before the top coat goes on, When there's loads of repaired areas to spot prime, again I found it quicker to just mist coat the whole wall a second time

    A short pile roller is fine on a really flat wall, although on a slightly bumpy wall, the pile wont get the paint onto any low spots, so you can end up with a patchy finish

    Medium pile is a good all rounder, although technique is a big factor as well. Emulsion starts to dry very quickly so don't be tempted to keep going over a previously rollered section. Just blend in your last roll with the next roll then move on. As the paint starts to dry, it gets tacky. If you then roll over this, you pick up the paint and leave a textured surface when dry

    Ordinary emulsions have a slightly rough, chalky feel to them when dry, also not very good for wiping over the occasional greasy finger mark or other stain. You may want to go for a vinyl matt or something like Dulux Diamond;
    http://www.diy.com/departments/dulu...43_BQ&ef_id=VScYkgAABeepw7lP:20150511224601:s

    These emulsions are great for wiping over and have a slightly silky feel to them, although still matt

    Lastly, cutting in .......... I always cut in with a 2" brush, angled bristles, then immediately roll over with a 4" mini roller, getting as close as possible to ceiling, skirts, etc When you then roll the wall with your main roller, all blends in seamlessly. I see so many rooms where the cutting in is done with a 4"brush and you see the brushmarks like a frame around each wall, doorframe, etc

    At least the guys have come back without a struggle. Something that I never managed to achieve over the years :eek:
    Hope all goes well from now on
     
  11. masterplaster1980

    masterplaster1980 New Member

    A bit late but thought I'd but in my opinion.

    Looking at the photos (turning laptop upside down) I would say most of those issues are to be expected in a 30's house when just patching and re-skimming. I'm guessing they skimmed over the original lime plaster? In which case you'll probably find cracks and blown plaster occasionally over the next few years anyway. The door frame looks like where they removed the masking tape, and other rough corners happen when the surface isn't perfectly flat, leading to plaster squidging (is that a real word??) out the side of the trowel.

    These are minor points I would have thought, especially for the price. I've seen much worse. Good to hear they came back too. If you're happy over all, offer them a little extra on the next job to include snagging. They'll see it as a bonus and want to make sure it's just right, but it sounds like they care about the finish and reputation anyway.

    As everyone else has said, the ceiling line isn't that bad for an original roof. Gotta follow the contours sometimes, unless you have oodles of time.

    Have fun painting, I hate that bit.
     
    warren a richards likes this.
  12. smooth finish

    smooth finish New Member

    You do expect a few bits and bobs to snag after doing a large project, plastering to a deadline is sometimes very challenging and can lead to lack of concentration which explains missing bits especially as the plaster setting time is 1.5 hours, but its evident here that some areas have been rushed. As long as they are coming to finish the snagging ready for the painter then it should be fine in my opinion

    plasterer doncaster
     
  13. I know it's an old post but we are going through the same and mine is even is even worse than yours.
     

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