Plastering Walls On Beacons With Our Own Hands, Tips And Methods Of Plastering

2023 Author: Philip Bishop | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 07:54

The use of plaster is necessary to level surfaces, to give them the required flatness.

But getting the required surface without skills is difficult for a beginner.

The use of certain technological methods facilitates plastering work, allows even an inexperienced plasterer to perform them.

What should a beginner plasterer know?

To facilitate do-it-yourself plastering, special devices are used, called beacons.

You also need to learn to choose the right plaster mix.

A few tips for choosing plaster mixes

When choosing finishing materials, try to stop at one manufacturer. This will avoid material incompatibility and subsequent appearance of various defects

On the Russian building materials market there are plaster mixes based on gypsum and cement.

Gypsum plaster mixes are preferable because they allow the application of a plaster layer up to 5 cm, which does not cause cracking.

The gypsum mixture is not subject to shrinkage, having high plasticity.

Due to its high adhesion and low weight, the gypsum plaster mixture is an ideal material for leveling the ceiling.

Unlike cement mixture, gypsum has increased sound and thermal insulation, and is able to "breathe".

Gypsum mixture is considered the best plastering material for leveling smooth concrete substrates without reinforcing mesh.

The best plaster plaster mix is considered to be the material produced by the German company Knauf. But the cost of these mixtures makes us look for plastering materials produced by Russian manufacturers.

Here are several Russian manufacturers that produce high quality finishing materials, including dry mixes.

By the way, dry mixes are preferable to ready-made ones, since they allow the master to choose the desired consistency himself.

These include: dry mixes of the Prospector company, material from TD Stroymontazh MS, ready mixes from Rusean, and of course, Mansurov mixes of the Joint Stock Company MKU.

Recently, inexpensive European-quality mixtures of the young construction company Kreps have appeared on the Russian market.

Any work begins with the preparatory stage

Before plastering the surface, it should be properly prepared.

The wall is cleaned of dirt, dust, greasy stains, paint and other debris.

Several layers of primer are applied to the cleaned and dried surface. The primer should be selected from the same manufacturer as the purchased plaster mix. Prefer acrylic primers that are easy to apply with a wide brush or roller.

The primed and dried surface is ready for plastering.

Plastering on beacons

Aligning the walls with beacons greatly simplifies the process and improves the quality of work, although it requires more preparatory time.

There are several options for aligning walls with beacons.

Special galvanized metal profiles are used as beacons.

Beacons for leveling walls are made from a plaster layer applied to the surface and planned by the rule.

As beacons, twisted self-tapping screws can be used, the caps of which are aligned with the rule according to the level and laid with a solution, followed by alignment.

For beginners, it is recommended to use a galvanized metal profile as beacons.

To install the beacon profile, vertical lines are drawn on the surface, several piles of solution are applied on the line and a profile is applied, carefully leveled. When the mortar hardens, the profile is additionally strengthened with mortar.

Beacons are installed in increments that are less than the length of your existing rule. If the rule is 1.5 m long, then the installation step of the beacons should be chosen no more than 1 m. The disadvantage of a metal beacon may be its rusting if it is installed in a room with high humidity.

Better to stay on the lighthouses of well-known manufacturers such as Knauf made of good galvanized metal and decent thickness and rigidity. Beware of puffs.

Plaster mortar is often used as beacons.

A plaster mortar is thrown onto the drawn vertical lines, thicker in the place where the wall has depressions, and less in convex places. A level rule is applied to the grout line and aligned. The rule is to remove excess parts of the solution. The installation step of such beacons is selected based on the rule length.

Experts prefer beacons that do not require special installation. Such beacons can be installed using a metal U-shaped profile for attaching plasterboard sheets. It is better to take a profile whose width is no more than 20 mm, so that the rule can easily enter into it.

Make a blank from the profile along a length equal to the height of the wall. Strictly vertical lines are drawn on the wall. A plaster mortar is thrown onto the line, a profile is applied, into which a rule with a level is inserted. The desired level is carefully tapped out and the excess solution is removed. After the preliminary hardening of the solution, the profile with the rule is removed, the profile is cleaned of the remains of the solution and is prepared for installing a new beacon.

Such a technological process significantly reduces the time for preparing the surface for plastering. It is irreplaceable in rooms with high humidity.

Do-it-yourself alignment of walls on beacons consists in throwing the prepared mixture onto the surface and leveling it using a rule.

The rule should be pulled from bottom to top, moving constantly from left to right.

Before applying the rule to the solution, be sure to moisten it with water using a damp washcloth.

Remember:

The plaster solution should have the consistency of liquid sour cream for surfaces with small deviations from the vertical, and thick sour cream for walls with large gaps.

Dilute as much of the solution as you can develop within 20 minutes. This is the lifespan of the gypsum solution.

Aligning walls without beacons requires not only experience, but also the ability to handle the rule.

The method consists in leveling the surface using a rule.

The advantage of this method is high productivity and material savings.

The disadvantage is that it is impossible to obtain a surface with high flatness.