New house walls issue

[blueagle78]

I've just bought a new house and I've got couple of walls in the house which need some work done to it. I'm not sure what's best way of doing it. One forum member has suggested removing the plaster from the wall and re-doing the wall. I would like to know what others think what would be the best and cost-effective way of doing this.

 

[Richard C]

God knows what the crazing is, is it paint or does it go through the skim? This dictates what repairs it needs. The finish is badly blown & needs to come off (didn't use a steamer on it did you?) but the base may be OK; does it sound hollow when tapped? If the base is sound, all you need is a re-skim, you don’t need to remove the base coat as well. Even if that’s damaged, you can always remove locally & patch repair before re-skimming. The other option is to board over the top & skim but the boards must have something to stick to & blown plaster won’t be suitable; you can mechanically fix the boards but over boarding would be a shame IMO; it has it's uses but is a bit of a bodge really.

The crack in the ceiling is along a board joint; caused either by insufficient support, poor taping or someone jumping around in the loft. A decent spread will be able to successfully repair it after checking/fixing what caused the crack in the first place but it does involve rather more than slapping on filler/plaster.

Which Forum did your advice come from?

 

[blueagle78]

Richard C thanks for your detailed response. The reply was from this forum but the poster clearly stated to get the opinion in the Plastering section hence I've posted here.
I've checked the whole wall, it doesn't sound hollow apart from the area around this damaged plaster. I'm thinking of tapping the plaster gently and anything that's loose would come off and then I can use filler or something similar and even the wall. Do you think that'll work out?
I've got absolutely no idea who did this damage. The previous owner, cleaners who cleaned the house for the bank or the guys who boarded the doors and windows.

 

[Richard C]

Yes I subsequently spotted your other thread . If the blown areas of plaster skim are manageable for filling, Easyfill is probably your best bet but it can be a lot of work & very dusty. Nothing wrong with the advice you’ve been given as such but, as a plasterer, I’m not a fan of filling & sanding. It may be a cheap option for DIY but it’s very often far more work, will never look as good or be as hard wearing as a quality plaster re-skim. If the areas are fairly large then it’s much quicker & easier to get a plasterer in; but get someone who knows what they are doing, surprisingly many don’t seem to.

If the base coat is also blown it will need far more remedial work or may even need a full re-plaster of base coat & skim or board & skim.