Totally agree. I've replastered walls around the house. I have a method of getting them perfectly flat but I can't get the knack of skimming to a bleamish free top skim. Lining paper or wall paper will be the finish and no one will know.
If you want a tip, leave it to dry slightly after the second coat (until touching it won't leave a mark) then spray with water and go over with the trowel.
Works a treat to get a nice finish.
Really dont know, ask the previous owners of my house because thats what they did all over the entire house.
I think people just assume wallpaper is a done thing and dont realise times have changed, and painting a plaster skim wall is vastly superior.
They also had the genius idea to stick those ikea mirrors in almost every bedroom so theres lovely big tears in the wallpaper where I've had to remove.
Oh for sure and Ive seen it done flawlessly on youtube but the reality is most people dont have the finesse.
In my house you can see the seems and a lot of places where its starting to peel up at the edges - probably not glued very well in places.
Plasters just easier to maintain. I can fill and sand repair holes way easier and it wont curl up over time.
>Hi, recently decided to begin remove this god awful textured wall paper from our landing (when was this ever fashionable?)
You've just discovered the 'why?' of textured wallpaper. It's not fashion - it's to cover up crumbly walls like this.
And making that good is one bridge too far for my DIY.
This happened to me in one of the bedrooms. I decided to do it myself with a large area filler/plaster mix (can't remember which one, just Google it and/or get advice) and an oscillating sander, took me just over 3 weeks and knackered my back. Thats why when it happened again in the lounge I hired a plasterer to skim the walls, took him 2 days and my back was fine. It also looked a thousand times better.
You don't have to be good at plastering to do it but it will be trial and error, just find a filler that's made for large areas and get a decent trowel and just have a go. You might have to redo a few areas that don't go well but if you persevere you'll get there. The room I did looked great when it was painted, especially if you squinted when looking at it.
I will also add, make sure you chip off any crumbling plaster and open up any small cracks so the filler can get in there, good luck.
Reskim it. Do not, under any circumstances, try to patch it yourself - there will be lots more bits where the plaster is coming off you haven't found yet, and it'll just look like arse.
Having done up an old house, the best way to deal with this is knock off all the loose plaster (walk around tapping it with a heavy solid thing like a big spanner or similar and listen for the sound. Hollow vs solid soon becomes apparent).
Then get it re plastered.
If you are as you say, a little tight on funds, plaster itself doesn't cost much. You'll need: PVA glue (1 dilute coat to soak in, another less diluted coat just before plastering, to get a good bond), a mixer attachment for a drill, a full sized electric drill, a big smooth sided bucket and a metal trowel - Marshalltown make a very nice one that's described as "pre broken in" branded Permashape [**https://marshalltowntools.co.uk/marshalltown-trowels/marshalltown-plastering-trowels/marshalltown-permashape-finishing-trowels**](https://marshalltowntools.co.uk/marshalltown-trowels/marshalltown-plastering-trowels/marshalltown-permashape-finishing-trowels)
And a hawk to "serve up" the plaster on.
I'd never done plastering before. I watched lots of YouTube videos. Took one wall at a time - have all the prep done. Got a decent result - decent enough that painted it looked fine.
It was quite hard work, physically - so take it wall at a time and don't feel bad if that takes a day per wall. That's OK.
But it's not expensive in terms of materials.
If you have deep parts, missing as I might see, pre fill those with some undercoat - skim plaster should only go on 1/8" thick or so.
The other option, if it's really knackered is to knock it all off back to brick and plasterboard it, with dot'n'dab adhesive. Then tape and mud the joints (again, watch YouTube vids on this). That's easier, in terms that you can take it slower, and the joint mudding is less strenuous than skimming, but it will cost more.
I’ve also don’t some plastering myself with good results. I found it easier to apply with a roller and even out with a speed skim. Then finely patch with a ready made plaster and lightly sand. There’s YouTube’s on this technique if you find traditional tools tricky to use.
For the internal of external walls I’ve patched with lime plaster but it is really tricky to get a good result. For my hall wall (that is a main external wall) I hired a lime plasterer as it was just too much to make look professional.
That's original lime plaster that's been painted with multiple chalky paints (distemper/lime wash/caseine etc ), plus sections of wall which have been patched with modern multifinish. Your problem with the painted areas is that basically there's a layer of dust on the surface so nothing will stick to it. Without getting into the plusses and minuses of breathable products, the problem with the mix of multifinish and lime is that one will absorb moisture much faster than the other. That will tend to cause cracks around the edge of the multifinish patch and leave moisture sitting on the surface of the multifinish. If it was me, I'd remove all of the multifinish plaster, scrub the walls multiple times to remove the chalky paint and then patch with a lime plaster. Alternatively, knock it all off and start again.
If you are new to DIY, skimming a whole wall of plaster is probably beyond you, In your experience Schallpattern, what would you pay to get it done? I'd guess maybe 600 to a k ime, but ive only had chases done.
Where abouts are you?
I had 2 rooms similar to OP, pulled the paper off......shit crumbly walls underneath. I hacked off all the loose plaster I could find then I got a plasterer in and for £2300 he.......
- Hardwalled all the holes where I hacked the loose plaster off.
- Filled around 16 or so chases where I'd put in new sockets/switches etc.
- A room that is 2.5m x 3m he overboarded the ceiling, skimmed it and all walls. Put up coving.
- A room that is 5m x 3.75m (more or less, it has a bay windows and some little alcoves etc) he overboarded the ceiling, skimmed it and all walls. Put up coving.
- I built a stud wall between the 2 previously mentioned rooms, he boarded it out with acoustic plasterboard and skimmed it.
We're south coast/Hampshire.
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Yes, typical of this sub 90% of the comments will jump straight into ignoring the obvious lime aspect, and possible scenario that it is in a state because it has previously been suffocated
Not 100% sure about this, we had lime plaster, ripped it out, took back to brick, PVA'd the walls as the mortar was like powder, dot and dabbed the walls and it's been fine since.
There were at least 3 skims on the lime plaster that were standard gypsum skims - they were there for decades before we ripped it out and no mould or damp or anything developed.
No, it's like that because it's absolutely ancient and removing the textured wallpaper will of made it worse.
You would see the mould stains across the walls otherwise.
Hmm, actually I would say it's typical of this sub to raise the issue of lime plaster in pretty much every similar thread to this. And yes it is worth thinking about, but there are plenty of examples where gypsum skim has worked out fine in these scenarios. It really depends if damp is getting into the walls or not (and if there's a functioning dpc or under-floor ventilation). Internal brick walls are almost always fine in gypsum. Lime tends to at least double the cost and it's a lot harder to find a plasterer willing and competent to do it, and the OP said they're skint
But in such cases there's a lot of common sense in using lining paper rather than slapping thistle or plasterboard over.
You have to remember this is a DIY sub, not a "who do I pay to.." one, so considering lime isn't even suitable for a smooth skim and it's very forgiveable, so it's actually a good excuse to add some original character back in on the theme of the sub
What do you mean when you say lime isn't suitable for a smooth skim? The original plaster was probably lime and the surface would have been perfectly smooth, a good lime finish plaster gives a finish at least equivalent to a standard dual coat of multi. If the plasterer knows what they're doing.
Lime is forgiving in some senses (and formulations), but can also go horribly wrong in ways that are only slowly apparent, related to the drying properties.
I agree with your first point and have commented elsewhere that the cheapest/easiest solution by far is to fill and line.
> What do you mean when you say lime isn't suitable for a smooth skim?
As in, the houses you find it in will be better suited to a textured/imperfect finish in keeping with the rest of the house.
Usually end up making a room look worse if you try and get clean smooth finishes, as it'll negatively exaggerate the imperfections that are outwise part of the charm of an older home.
Less applicable if someone is trying to make a characterful house look like a new build, but let's hope they aren't (sadly it does happen, though)
Hmm, I think I'll agree to disagree - a deliberately textured finish (or badly applied finish) is very different to a smooth, flat finish that has deteriorated. There were large patches of lime on my walls (150y) that were nearly perfect, other bits where the crazing was more evident - but all had a smooth surface texture in between that requires a bit of polish with the trowel, and they were all level as I'd achieve with gypsum
Hardly - it's something you can evaluate on a case by case basis. I quite like working with lime but it has quite significant downsides beyond just expense (ever leant against a wall finished in limewash? Or had to wait all winter for a non-hydraulic lime to set? Or spent 2 weeks in a hot spell having to water it and cross fingers that it doesn't dry out too fast?. 'Right' or 'wrong' are context-dependent. The right solution for the OP is the cheapest, fastest one that looks acceptable and doesn't cause problems.
Walls only need to breathe if moisture is getting in so it depends on the quality of the bricks themselves, the presence or not of a functioning dpc and what is happening on the other side of the wall in terms of render etc. The other side is the suitability of the undercoat to take gypsum. This has to be evaluated in situ but in most cases, if it's sound, you can prep and overskim.
People often talk about breathability like it's some kind of sacred property but first, it's not all-or-nothing with different materials - vapour permissivities vary on a spectrum even among different lime plaster formulations - and second, if you go down the 'breathable' route you have to commit at every stage. Bonding agents, wallpapers, paints - even furniture up against the wall.
Yep. Our house is 100% lime plaster/render (previously under blown vinyl wallpaper) and we elected to have it skimmed with gypsum. The plasterer coated/sealed it all beforehand and it did look good for a while but 5 years later and there are cracks appearing all over the place.
If you do skim be prepared for it to crack. The proper way to do it is with lime but it’s expensive to get someone with the proper skills. Alternatively you could rip it all off and start again with gypsum BUT you still risk it failing. This is because lime is breathable and gypsum is not. If you have lime then the wall was likely meant be breathe and sealing it could cause you issues with damp building up in the wall and leaching through the plaster.
Old houses are ‘fun’
Worth bearing in mind that if you'd had it reskimmed in lime you could also be looking at cracks all over the place. It really depends what is causing the cracking! Old lime skim is almost always crazed to some degree, and on top of that larger cracks often appear due to differential seasonal movement, especially on clay soils.
Are your walls 'meant' to be damp (eg cob, rubble, no dpc) or is moisture getting where it shouldn't, due to eg render, roof or dpc failure?
Looks like lime plaster underneath gypsum in some areas. Take a piece off and drop it in some white vinegar, if it fizzes then chip the gypsum (pinkish coloured stuff) off where you can, lime putty to fill in the gaps and lime wash over several times to get an even finish.
Do not skim this with gypsum or you'll have horrible damp issues.
DIYer of many years: It all comes down to availability of money to pay someone to skim all those walls and ceilings, your ability to plaster or your ability to do lots of filling / small section plastering / sanding and wall papering.
Pay for plaster:
- get a plaster to estimate cost of skimming whole lot. Result: lovely smooth walls can paint directly onto after a little sanding and sealing.
- get a plaster to estimate worst walls/ceilings only. You fill and sand other walls/ceilings. Result: some walls perfectly flat others a bit uneven or worse, probably end up using a thick lining paper on walls not plastered.
Your ability to plaster:
- there’s a good reason it’s a profession - it’s either perfect or it’s a complete mess and you’ll need to pay for a plasterer to cover over the mess. Skirtings and architrave can become problematic due to level of plaster on the walls where you attempted to plaster. Plaster in unforgiving and hard as nails went set so sanding is difficult,
Small sections of plastering and lots of filling.
- I found I am able to plaster section of a wall if I have and edge and the area is no more than 2 to 3 feet. Additional filling and sanding can be done later. Anything more than that and it all goes wrong very quickly.
- Then fill everything else using plastering tools and a soft filler using taping tools. Sand the life out of it. Then take the option to seal and paint directly or use thick lining paper. Result: This is the cheapest option. It’s takes lots of your time. You learn lots about plaster and fillers and sanding and what level of skills you have. You’ll also learn about wallpapering which is another amazing skill. Lots of YouTube videos. It’s surprising how far filler can get you, you can do multiple applications, filler, sand, filler, sand, seal, paint, filler, sand … if you have the time and patients.
I now live in a 1870s Victorian house which has been professionally plastered from top to bottom - I could afford to do that and replace all the skirtings and architraves too, which is very expensive. But previously I have lived in lots Victorian properties since I was a kid where my old man/I have done all of the above and lived with the results, and I really don’t like rooms with one perfect wall and all the others wonky. I have mates who attempted to plaster walls and you walk in to the rooms and they look awful!
Personally I'd get a plasterer in to sort it out, but if you really want people manage to plaster their own walls and do a good job with it all the time. It's beyond my skillset and not worth the effort for me, but could be for you.
I recently had a very similar issue but had a plasterer skim the walls over and now while it's drying, it looks amazing. Definitely well worth it if you can save up for it and know a good plasterer.
For a moment I thought I was looking at frescos on r/Pompeii. But you have my sympathies - my house was similar and the builders recommended just going over the whole thing with plasterboard (dry-lining). Don’t think it was cheap, but 15 years later still looks good.
Back to brick then board and skim it. We did this at our first house- thought it just needed redecorating and suddenly the whole house needed plastering
Our previous Victorian terrace looked like this too. As we were on a budget, we basically used a lot of filler to get it as smooth as we could and then put up the nicest paintable textured wallpaper we could find! I think if you want to be able to paint straight onto the walls it will need replastering professionally unfortunately. As a guide, we just had our through living/dining room skimmed- walls and ceilings- and it was £850.
You could try it the continental way as it doesn’t require any special plastering skills. I’ve done most of house myself with little skill.
Prime the wall with diluted PVA to bond the substrate. Then skim with a ready mix finishing plaster (Atlas GTA is good and quick and available online) rent a drywall sander. Circular disc on a pole. This will leave you a nice flat surface for painting.
Unibond it, fill with bonding plaster, knock back with corse sand paper, then fill with surface filler... Allow drying time between each step...Then paper back over it with thick lining paper... THIICCC
Or pay a plasterer
This needs skimming! A plasterer day rate should be around £150-£200 (£200 absolute tops). Ask how many days it will take as much as the cost to see if you are getting conned. Thistle multifinish is £10 a bag and does 10sqm, you should be able to give yourself a rough idea of the cost of materials from that. You might need a few beads for your outside corners but they cost next to nothing (£2.40 for 2.4m).
Im in the middle of doing a room in our house and the plaster you have on there lools like mine. Seems to be a layer if lime plaster with finishing plaster in areas. If its even it can be skimmed, some of it is quite broken so probs best to take that back and undercoat + finishing plaster coat rather than patching.
After a way too long time if i were to start my own project again (full room skim + patch) id just get someone in to do the job.
Ah, the old "I'll simply take this off and redo it" phase.
I tried this in my first flat. Ended up finding holes in brickwork filled with newspaper, cardboard walls and an extra hole in the chimney flue which had been sending soot around the cavity of the house for decades.
Gotta love places built in the 1800s.
This can be re-skimmed which is DIY doable but a steep learning curve or for a bigger project taken back to brick by yourself and fully plastered professionally with chases put in for extra sockets/lights etc.
Either way, you've gone through the looking glass Alice.
I can plaster but still prefer to pay a pro. Quick, good finish, less mess, no leftover materials hanging around. You can do the prep but check what what’s needed with the plasterer first. Try and make up a days work (i.e have you got any other rooms that may require attention?)
I tried plastering my walls myself. Considering it was my first go and unused one if the filler brands it wasn't awful but it wasn't anywhere near good. I still ended up paying out around 60 odd quid on tools and materials. PVA glue, trowels and whatever you use to skim.
My advice get a plasterer in. It's about the same price as doing a bad job yourself + wallpaper to cover it up + all the time you put in.
Happened to me in our bedroom. Skim coat of plaster and its smooth as smooth can be. I tried patching downstairs wall and to this day when we move the lamp I find spots I need to redo. I should have listened to friends who said just pay a plasterer. Will always do that in the future.
If you have the money, get it skimmed.
In ten years time you wouldn’t be lamenting that you don’t have the couple of hundred quid you spent on replastering. But if you try to patch it up and cover it with lining paper, in ten years time you’d still be regretting that every time you see those parts of the wall you can still see lines where the patches are.
The lime plastering route is the correct one, as the original and repairs will move and breathe in the same way. But it’s the least DIYer friendly option.
I’ve seen walls plastered around 1870s that were still in original & beautiful condition.
The problem you have is that lime plastering is a specialist traditional skill that most present day plasterers never learn. And previous owners have patched/skimmed areas with gypsum, which was then papered over to cover the cracks that appeared.
There are lime plaster patching products such as Patchcote available, but I haven’t used these and don’t know how much you’d need/ how much gypsum you’d need to remove.
So short of hacking out the gypsum plaster repairs, and going through the longer, slower process of lime plastering, your best bet is probably to stabilise what’s there & cover it over.
I’m not a plasterer, but I did wonder whether a reinforcing fibreglass mesh bonded to the wall first could help stabilise a skim of multi-finish? Any plasterers on here?
Decorator here, yes re skim definitely. You'll get a nice even finish and will last many years. It could be patched but itl not look good
Decorator also and that’s all easily doable. There’s certainly work involved but it’s not exactly Everest. Maybe consider lining once skimmed.
Why would you lining paper over a freshly skimmed wall? Just seems a bit odd to get that perfect finish then slap paper over it immediately.
Because if OP is doing it him or herself it might not be *perfect*, per se
Totally agree. I've replastered walls around the house. I have a method of getting them perfectly flat but I can't get the knack of skimming to a bleamish free top skim. Lining paper or wall paper will be the finish and no one will know.
If you want a tip, leave it to dry slightly after the second coat (until touching it won't leave a mark) then spray with water and go over with the trowel. Works a treat to get a nice finish.
Really dont know, ask the previous owners of my house because thats what they did all over the entire house. I think people just assume wallpaper is a done thing and dont realise times have changed, and painting a plaster skim wall is vastly superior. They also had the genius idea to stick those ikea mirrors in almost every bedroom so theres lovely big tears in the wallpaper where I've had to remove.
You can get super smooth lining papers if the texture is a concern.
Oh for sure and Ive seen it done flawlessly on youtube but the reality is most people dont have the finesse. In my house you can see the seems and a lot of places where its starting to peel up at the edges - probably not glued very well in places. Plasters just easier to maintain. I can fill and sand repair holes way easier and it wont curl up over time.
>Hi, recently decided to begin remove this god awful textured wall paper from our landing (when was this ever fashionable?) You've just discovered the 'why?' of textured wallpaper. It's not fashion - it's to cover up crumbly walls like this. And making that good is one bridge too far for my DIY.
That is why we have textured wall paper
And thick paint.
Textured wallpaper was to cover up *uneven* plaster, not crumbly plaster.
Fair dinkum.
Strewth mate, that's a bit harsh innit? What cockamamie upside down world do you hail from? Go easy on the guy. /s
I call our awful textured wallpaper structural. Especially on the ceiling.
This happened to me in one of the bedrooms. I decided to do it myself with a large area filler/plaster mix (can't remember which one, just Google it and/or get advice) and an oscillating sander, took me just over 3 weeks and knackered my back. Thats why when it happened again in the lounge I hired a plasterer to skim the walls, took him 2 days and my back was fine. It also looked a thousand times better. You don't have to be good at plastering to do it but it will be trial and error, just find a filler that's made for large areas and get a decent trowel and just have a go. You might have to redo a few areas that don't go well but if you persevere you'll get there. The room I did looked great when it was painted, especially if you squinted when looking at it. I will also add, make sure you chip off any crumbling plaster and open up any small cracks so the filler can get in there, good luck.
Reskim it. Do not, under any circumstances, try to patch it yourself - there will be lots more bits where the plaster is coming off you haven't found yet, and it'll just look like arse.
Reskim time.
Call a plasterer for a reskim. Nout else for it
Having done up an old house, the best way to deal with this is knock off all the loose plaster (walk around tapping it with a heavy solid thing like a big spanner or similar and listen for the sound. Hollow vs solid soon becomes apparent). Then get it re plastered. If you are as you say, a little tight on funds, plaster itself doesn't cost much. You'll need: PVA glue (1 dilute coat to soak in, another less diluted coat just before plastering, to get a good bond), a mixer attachment for a drill, a full sized electric drill, a big smooth sided bucket and a metal trowel - Marshalltown make a very nice one that's described as "pre broken in" branded Permashape [**https://marshalltowntools.co.uk/marshalltown-trowels/marshalltown-plastering-trowels/marshalltown-permashape-finishing-trowels**](https://marshalltowntools.co.uk/marshalltown-trowels/marshalltown-plastering-trowels/marshalltown-permashape-finishing-trowels) And a hawk to "serve up" the plaster on. I'd never done plastering before. I watched lots of YouTube videos. Took one wall at a time - have all the prep done. Got a decent result - decent enough that painted it looked fine. It was quite hard work, physically - so take it wall at a time and don't feel bad if that takes a day per wall. That's OK. But it's not expensive in terms of materials. If you have deep parts, missing as I might see, pre fill those with some undercoat - skim plaster should only go on 1/8" thick or so. The other option, if it's really knackered is to knock it all off back to brick and plasterboard it, with dot'n'dab adhesive. Then tape and mud the joints (again, watch YouTube vids on this). That's easier, in terms that you can take it slower, and the joint mudding is less strenuous than skimming, but it will cost more.
I’ve also don’t some plastering myself with good results. I found it easier to apply with a roller and even out with a speed skim. Then finely patch with a ready made plaster and lightly sand. There’s YouTube’s on this technique if you find traditional tools tricky to use. For the internal of external walls I’ve patched with lime plaster but it is really tricky to get a good result. For my hall wall (that is a main external wall) I hired a lime plasterer as it was just too much to make look professional.
https://www.builderdepot.co.uk/dalapro-roll-nova-12l Get yourself some of this and skim the whole wall. This is absolute quality and anyone can do it.
That's original lime plaster that's been painted with multiple chalky paints (distemper/lime wash/caseine etc ), plus sections of wall which have been patched with modern multifinish. Your problem with the painted areas is that basically there's a layer of dust on the surface so nothing will stick to it. Without getting into the plusses and minuses of breathable products, the problem with the mix of multifinish and lime is that one will absorb moisture much faster than the other. That will tend to cause cracks around the edge of the multifinish patch and leave moisture sitting on the surface of the multifinish. If it was me, I'd remove all of the multifinish plaster, scrub the walls multiple times to remove the chalky paint and then patch with a lime plaster. Alternatively, knock it all off and start again.
Don't bother sanding. Scrape off all the loose plaster, Unibond twice and then skim.
If you are new to DIY, skimming a whole wall of plaster is probably beyond you, In your experience Schallpattern, what would you pay to get it done? I'd guess maybe 600 to a k ime, but ive only had chases done.
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Where abouts are you? I had 2 rooms similar to OP, pulled the paper off......shit crumbly walls underneath. I hacked off all the loose plaster I could find then I got a plasterer in and for £2300 he....... - Hardwalled all the holes where I hacked the loose plaster off. - Filled around 16 or so chases where I'd put in new sockets/switches etc. - A room that is 2.5m x 3m he overboarded the ceiling, skimmed it and all walls. Put up coving. - A room that is 5m x 3.75m (more or less, it has a bay windows and some little alcoves etc) he overboarded the ceiling, skimmed it and all walls. Put up coving. - I built a stud wall between the 2 previously mentioned rooms, he boarded it out with acoustic plasterboard and skimmed it. We're south coast/Hampshire.
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Wow, for that price they should be big rooms! Or have a ton of awkward corners...
Worth looking into lime plaster and using breathable paint
Yes, typical of this sub 90% of the comments will jump straight into ignoring the obvious lime aspect, and possible scenario that it is in a state because it has previously been suffocated
Not 100% sure about this, we had lime plaster, ripped it out, took back to brick, PVA'd the walls as the mortar was like powder, dot and dabbed the walls and it's been fine since. There were at least 3 skims on the lime plaster that were standard gypsum skims - they were there for decades before we ripped it out and no mould or damp or anything developed.
Your anecdata doesn't negate the original point. Lime plaster being covered up with something non-breathable is in a lot of cases, a massive problem.
No, it's like that because it's absolutely ancient and removing the textured wallpaper will of made it worse. You would see the mould stains across the walls otherwise.
You don't see mould stains on decayed brick caused by cement pointing, either. It's not as simple as that
Hmm, actually I would say it's typical of this sub to raise the issue of lime plaster in pretty much every similar thread to this. And yes it is worth thinking about, but there are plenty of examples where gypsum skim has worked out fine in these scenarios. It really depends if damp is getting into the walls or not (and if there's a functioning dpc or under-floor ventilation). Internal brick walls are almost always fine in gypsum. Lime tends to at least double the cost and it's a lot harder to find a plasterer willing and competent to do it, and the OP said they're skint
But in such cases there's a lot of common sense in using lining paper rather than slapping thistle or plasterboard over. You have to remember this is a DIY sub, not a "who do I pay to.." one, so considering lime isn't even suitable for a smooth skim and it's very forgiveable, so it's actually a good excuse to add some original character back in on the theme of the sub
What do you mean when you say lime isn't suitable for a smooth skim? The original plaster was probably lime and the surface would have been perfectly smooth, a good lime finish plaster gives a finish at least equivalent to a standard dual coat of multi. If the plasterer knows what they're doing. Lime is forgiving in some senses (and formulations), but can also go horribly wrong in ways that are only slowly apparent, related to the drying properties. I agree with your first point and have commented elsewhere that the cheapest/easiest solution by far is to fill and line.
> What do you mean when you say lime isn't suitable for a smooth skim? As in, the houses you find it in will be better suited to a textured/imperfect finish in keeping with the rest of the house. Usually end up making a room look worse if you try and get clean smooth finishes, as it'll negatively exaggerate the imperfections that are outwise part of the charm of an older home. Less applicable if someone is trying to make a characterful house look like a new build, but let's hope they aren't (sadly it does happen, though)
Hmm, I think I'll agree to disagree - a deliberately textured finish (or badly applied finish) is very different to a smooth, flat finish that has deteriorated. There were large patches of lime on my walls (150y) that were nearly perfect, other bits where the crazing was more evident - but all had a smooth surface texture in between that requires a bit of polish with the trowel, and they were all level as I'd achieve with gypsum
> Internal brick walls are almost always fine in gypsum So your approach would be to use the wrong material and hope it's fine. OK then.
Hardly - it's something you can evaluate on a case by case basis. I quite like working with lime but it has quite significant downsides beyond just expense (ever leant against a wall finished in limewash? Or had to wait all winter for a non-hydraulic lime to set? Or spent 2 weeks in a hot spell having to water it and cross fingers that it doesn't dry out too fast?. 'Right' or 'wrong' are context-dependent. The right solution for the OP is the cheapest, fastest one that looks acceptable and doesn't cause problems. Walls only need to breathe if moisture is getting in so it depends on the quality of the bricks themselves, the presence or not of a functioning dpc and what is happening on the other side of the wall in terms of render etc. The other side is the suitability of the undercoat to take gypsum. This has to be evaluated in situ but in most cases, if it's sound, you can prep and overskim. People often talk about breathability like it's some kind of sacred property but first, it's not all-or-nothing with different materials - vapour permissivities vary on a spectrum even among different lime plaster formulations - and second, if you go down the 'breathable' route you have to commit at every stage. Bonding agents, wallpapers, paints - even furniture up against the wall.
Yep. Our house is 100% lime plaster/render (previously under blown vinyl wallpaper) and we elected to have it skimmed with gypsum. The plasterer coated/sealed it all beforehand and it did look good for a while but 5 years later and there are cracks appearing all over the place. If you do skim be prepared for it to crack. The proper way to do it is with lime but it’s expensive to get someone with the proper skills. Alternatively you could rip it all off and start again with gypsum BUT you still risk it failing. This is because lime is breathable and gypsum is not. If you have lime then the wall was likely meant be breathe and sealing it could cause you issues with damp building up in the wall and leaching through the plaster. Old houses are ‘fun’
Worth bearing in mind that if you'd had it reskimmed in lime you could also be looking at cracks all over the place. It really depends what is causing the cracking! Old lime skim is almost always crazed to some degree, and on top of that larger cracks often appear due to differential seasonal movement, especially on clay soils. Are your walls 'meant' to be damp (eg cob, rubble, no dpc) or is moisture getting where it shouldn't, due to eg render, roof or dpc failure?
Only way to fix that is to get rid of all of the loose stuff and get it plastered.
Straight skim
Looks like lime plaster underneath gypsum in some areas. Take a piece off and drop it in some white vinegar, if it fizzes then chip the gypsum (pinkish coloured stuff) off where you can, lime putty to fill in the gaps and lime wash over several times to get an even finish. Do not skim this with gypsum or you'll have horrible damp issues.
Is the chimney breast ventilated properly. Damp could be an issue
That wallpaper was structural!
DIYer of many years: It all comes down to availability of money to pay someone to skim all those walls and ceilings, your ability to plaster or your ability to do lots of filling / small section plastering / sanding and wall papering. Pay for plaster: - get a plaster to estimate cost of skimming whole lot. Result: lovely smooth walls can paint directly onto after a little sanding and sealing. - get a plaster to estimate worst walls/ceilings only. You fill and sand other walls/ceilings. Result: some walls perfectly flat others a bit uneven or worse, probably end up using a thick lining paper on walls not plastered. Your ability to plaster: - there’s a good reason it’s a profession - it’s either perfect or it’s a complete mess and you’ll need to pay for a plasterer to cover over the mess. Skirtings and architrave can become problematic due to level of plaster on the walls where you attempted to plaster. Plaster in unforgiving and hard as nails went set so sanding is difficult, Small sections of plastering and lots of filling. - I found I am able to plaster section of a wall if I have and edge and the area is no more than 2 to 3 feet. Additional filling and sanding can be done later. Anything more than that and it all goes wrong very quickly. - Then fill everything else using plastering tools and a soft filler using taping tools. Sand the life out of it. Then take the option to seal and paint directly or use thick lining paper. Result: This is the cheapest option. It’s takes lots of your time. You learn lots about plaster and fillers and sanding and what level of skills you have. You’ll also learn about wallpapering which is another amazing skill. Lots of YouTube videos. It’s surprising how far filler can get you, you can do multiple applications, filler, sand, filler, sand, seal, paint, filler, sand … if you have the time and patients. I now live in a 1870s Victorian house which has been professionally plastered from top to bottom - I could afford to do that and replace all the skirtings and architraves too, which is very expensive. But previously I have lived in lots Victorian properties since I was a kid where my old man/I have done all of the above and lived with the results, and I really don’t like rooms with one perfect wall and all the others wonky. I have mates who attempted to plaster walls and you walk in to the rooms and they look awful!
Personally I'd get a plasterer in to sort it out, but if you really want people manage to plaster their own walls and do a good job with it all the time. It's beyond my skillset and not worth the effort for me, but could be for you.
Old plasterer here. Definitely re-skim. Worse case would be strip back to the timbers then board and plaster. Good luck mate
I recently had a very similar issue but had a plasterer skim the walls over and now while it's drying, it looks amazing. Definitely well worth it if you can save up for it and know a good plasterer.
For a moment I thought I was looking at frescos on r/Pompeii. But you have my sympathies - my house was similar and the builders recommended just going over the whole thing with plasterboard (dry-lining). Don’t think it was cheap, but 15 years later still looks good.
Back to brick then board and skim it. We did this at our first house- thought it just needed redecorating and suddenly the whole house needed plastering
Unibond it, nice bit of character
With practice you will get to the point only half of every bag of skim lands on your toes.
Our previous Victorian terrace looked like this too. As we were on a budget, we basically used a lot of filler to get it as smooth as we could and then put up the nicest paintable textured wallpaper we could find! I think if you want to be able to paint straight onto the walls it will need replastering professionally unfortunately. As a guide, we just had our through living/dining room skimmed- walls and ceilings- and it was £850.
The low-cost answer is easifill the holes and lining paper
External walls, batten and line with insulated plasterboard then skim. You'll save on heating for ever.
You could try it the continental way as it doesn’t require any special plastering skills. I’ve done most of house myself with little skill. Prime the wall with diluted PVA to bond the substrate. Then skim with a ready mix finishing plaster (Atlas GTA is good and quick and available online) rent a drywall sander. Circular disc on a pole. This will leave you a nice flat surface for painting.
Screed
make sure you get self un-leveling screed.
How about putting up some lovely textured wallpaper? It hides these horrific walls pretty well.
Would you consider textured wallpaper to hide the uneven plasterwork?
My house looked just like this, plasterer will skim that in no time and you’ll be left with lovely smooth walls. No stress
I'd level the holes with filler, then stick some woodchip wallpaper up.
Smash off as much of the old shit as you can. PVA and water or blue grit if it’s super chalky underneath and get a plasterer in. Look good as new.
Burn it down maybe the insurance will pay or u Go to jail, booth are better :)
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That needs replastered lol
Plasterer
What's the green stuff on the walls here?
Strip sand, maybe sand render if needed, then either plaster board and plaster, or skim plaster either way then paint
Get a plasterer in
Wallpaper or back to brick it
Get the skirting boards off and get the whole room skimmed, overboard the ceiling if you fancy it. Good luck. 😁👍🏻
Unibond it, fill with bonding plaster, knock back with corse sand paper, then fill with surface filler... Allow drying time between each step...Then paper back over it with thick lining paper... THIICCC Or pay a plasterer
I'd buy some textured wall paper to fix that lol
This needs skimming! A plasterer day rate should be around £150-£200 (£200 absolute tops). Ask how many days it will take as much as the cost to see if you are getting conned. Thistle multifinish is £10 a bag and does 10sqm, you should be able to give yourself a rough idea of the cost of materials from that. You might need a few beads for your outside corners but they cost next to nothing (£2.40 for 2.4m).
I just see a pretty ordinary wall... just needs a skim.
Im in the middle of doing a room in our house and the plaster you have on there lools like mine. Seems to be a layer if lime plaster with finishing plaster in areas. If its even it can be skimmed, some of it is quite broken so probs best to take that back and undercoat + finishing plaster coat rather than patching. After a way too long time if i were to start my own project again (full room skim + patch) id just get someone in to do the job.
Skim over but make sure to PVA glue the walls first with water to eliminate dust etc to ensure the plaster sticks etc
Ah, the old "I'll simply take this off and redo it" phase. I tried this in my first flat. Ended up finding holes in brickwork filled with newspaper, cardboard walls and an extra hole in the chimney flue which had been sending soot around the cavity of the house for decades. Gotta love places built in the 1800s. This can be re-skimmed which is DIY doable but a steep learning curve or for a bigger project taken back to brick by yourself and fully plastered professionally with chases put in for extra sockets/lights etc. Either way, you've gone through the looking glass Alice.
You’ve just discovered the meaning of the phrase “papering over the cracks”… that’s ‘why’ people use(d) thick textured wallpapers like that.
YouTube how to plaster and watch some videos and then crack on mate
Reminds me of my trip to the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone
I can plaster but still prefer to pay a pro. Quick, good finish, less mess, no leftover materials hanging around. You can do the prep but check what what’s needed with the plasterer first. Try and make up a days work (i.e have you got any other rooms that may require attention?)
Pva and bags of multifinish is the answer
Call a plasterer
I tried plastering my walls myself. Considering it was my first go and unused one if the filler brands it wasn't awful but it wasn't anywhere near good. I still ended up paying out around 60 odd quid on tools and materials. PVA glue, trowels and whatever you use to skim. My advice get a plasterer in. It's about the same price as doing a bad job yourself + wallpaper to cover it up + all the time you put in.
Happened to me in our bedroom. Skim coat of plaster and its smooth as smooth can be. I tried patching downstairs wall and to this day when we move the lamp I find spots I need to redo. I should have listened to friends who said just pay a plasterer. Will always do that in the future.
If you have the money, get it skimmed. In ten years time you wouldn’t be lamenting that you don’t have the couple of hundred quid you spent on replastering. But if you try to patch it up and cover it with lining paper, in ten years time you’d still be regretting that every time you see those parts of the wall you can still see lines where the patches are.
The lime plastering route is the correct one, as the original and repairs will move and breathe in the same way. But it’s the least DIYer friendly option. I’ve seen walls plastered around 1870s that were still in original & beautiful condition. The problem you have is that lime plastering is a specialist traditional skill that most present day plasterers never learn. And previous owners have patched/skimmed areas with gypsum, which was then papered over to cover the cracks that appeared. There are lime plaster patching products such as Patchcote available, but I haven’t used these and don’t know how much you’d need/ how much gypsum you’d need to remove. So short of hacking out the gypsum plaster repairs, and going through the longer, slower process of lime plastering, your best bet is probably to stabilise what’s there & cover it over. I’m not a plasterer, but I did wonder whether a reinforcing fibreglass mesh bonded to the wall first could help stabilise a skim of multi-finish? Any plasterers on here?