Fitting Skirting board to new plaster

[DunstableDIYer]

Couple of quick questions ........................

Have had some old walls skimmed and will be fitting skirting board, how long should I leave it to fully dry before I fit?

I will be fitting with No More Nails or similar - do I need to score the bottom part of the wall to create a key or will the adhesive hold on new plaster?

I will be mist coating it too before all this

 

[dcdec]

A skim will dry pretty quick, once its become a uniform salmony pinkish colour its ready to paint. You don't need to score the walls as far as i know but its a good idea to prime both sides of the board

 

[misterhelpful]

Allow to dry as dcdec says, and I agree about priming both sides of the skirting - especially on solid and ground floor walls. Scoring isn't really necessary but won't hurt, providing you remove the dust.
In my experience, some grab adhesives don't always stick to a mist coat and I always like to add a few screws to ensure the skirtings are well fixed.
The best way to ensure a good grab with adhesive is to press the skirting firmly in place then remove and wait 30 seconds before pressing back in place.

 

[Richard C]

how long should I leave it to fully dry before I fit?

Leave it at least 10 days, it will look dry but there will still be residual moisture in there which could cause mould to form & may affect the “grab” of the adhesive.

I will be fitting with No More Nails or similar - do I need to score the bottom part of the wall to create a key or will the adhesive hold on new plaster?

Not sure about using NMN, go for a trade grab adhesive; TBH I’ve tried many & found BNQ trade grab adhesive to be as good as any & it’s relatively cheap. Something to remember is that if your using a dual profile skirting, make sure you tell your carpet fitter; if they whack the bottom of a dual profile skirt with a knee stretcher, the lack of support right at the bottom will most likely pop it off the wall; a real bummer!

Won’t do any harm to score but I don’t.

Skirting needs to be true & flat for grab to work effectively so choose it carefully.

I will be mist coating it too before all this

Do not mist coat the bit where the skirting is going or it will only be stuck to the mist coat. Neither do I prime the back of the skirting as, again, it affects grab adhesion.

As a plasterer, my advise for misting is to use cheap own brand matt white emulsion, thinned 25-30% & apply 2/3 coats in quick succession; leave at least 24 hours before applying your chosen finish.

 

[DunstableDIYer]

Thanks everyone - some good advice

I am fitting MDF pre-primed dual -sided skirting board as I find it much easier to cut a scribe into MDF - thanks for the tip about the carpet as we will have one fitted and I do not want an over enthusiastic fitter to overstretch and pop the board off! I am fitting to plaster coated brick so will pop a few screws in to make this dosen't happen

I will leave it a while to fully cure as I have dado/window ledge to gloss and ceiling to paint as well

I will probably fit skirting board then mist coat to make sure I don't coat behind the board and will also score a bit to get a good grip

 

[BIG BOY]

please make sure you screw your skirting,i've just fitted mdf skirting to my newly plastered walls with solvent free grip fill,great job and looked lovely but one slight knock the next day and it popped off luckily before it was painted and carpets fitted.SCREW IT