Plastering is considered as an art which is quite difficult to master. This is evident by the fact that it is believed to take quite some time to become a professional in the skill. The question is should you be a professional to give a quality finished plastering job? The answer is NO. If you are a novice and wish to perform a basic painting job, these top tips from contractors who provide plastering will help you not only to do a plastering job but a quality one at that. That’s why we prepared this ultimate set of tips for plastering walls for regular homeowners.
Get the right tools for the job
To get a good job done, you need the right set of tools. An effective plastering job can be achieved with the following tools: Plaster, sponge, bucket, trowel, hawk, wire scratching brush, sandpaper, mixing stick, ladder, jointing knife and clean tap water.
Use drywall tape
Some of the walls you plaster may have joints. It is necessary that such joints are closed in order to prevent plastering disruption. This is where the drywall tape comes into play. It provides a high level of adhesion, thereby holding two walls firmly to each other to provide a smooth surface.
Prepare the surface
Before a good, smooth and long-lasting plastering job is undertaken, the basic thing one must do is to properly prepare surface. This is achieved by the removal of loose dust, dirt or materials that must have stuck on surface. Wash the surface to be plastered and brush down and then apply your primer (mixture of PVA glue and water) at the right amount. The primer is made basically of two coatings which serve different purposes. The first coating is designed to give plaster foundation and act as a barrier between plaster and moist wall surface. The second coating is applied in a moist state just before plastering and it provides the bonding surface and will make it much easier to apply smooth plastering which will stick to the surface and last long.
Get the right mix
There are certain rules one must follow to get the right mix. Never add water to plaster but rather plaster to water; this is necessary to ensure a uniform mix of the content. Plaster should be put in water until it rises above the water, then a stirrer or preferably your hand can be used to mix the content. You should know that your plaster is ready to be used when it does not slide off your bucket trowel. It is advisable to use clean water for plastering to avoid every form of contamination which could spoil the smooth nature of the work.
Always transfer plaster to a hawk
A hawk is a tool designed to hold plaster during application. By using a hand trowel, cut a section of the mixed plaster and transfer to the hawk.
Perform a clean job
A successful plastering job depends on the neatness of tools. The slightest contamination can make a plastering job almost impossible to get smooth. Wash all tools before and after use to prevent some debris from drying up. They could pose a real problem on your future plastering operations.
Never over polish a surface
When you finally get that finished work, don’t get too carried away by the smooth nature of the wall by trying to give it a smoother look; you might end up peeling off some parts of the plaster while other parts are still stocked and this will ruin your job.
Being a professional is not all about the number of years you spent in your plastering career, but how well you can do the plastering job. Get your perfect plastering job done today with the quality tips above. If you managed plastering you can move forward to painting the walls with our Painting tutorial.
