Procedure After The Wall Is Plastered And Prepared For Finishing

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

• Preparing plastered walls for putty
• Choosing a putty for walls after plastering
• Plastered wall processing technology
• Preparing walls for painting or wallpapering
• Errors when performing plastering and priming work on walls

The answer to the question of what to do after plastering the walls depends on how you plan to finish the room. Several options are possible: painting, wallpapering, tiling, and creating drywall structures. In the first three cases, you need to make sure that the finishing material is securely attached to the wall, in the latter, it is only important that the metal profiles under the drywall are securely fixed.

Preparing plastered walls for putty

The drying period of the plaster is at least 1 month, during this time it is recommended not to touch the walls. How quickly the wall treatment can be started after plastering depends on many factors, in particular, on the temperature and humidity level in the room, and its ventilation. To speed up the drying process, it is recommended to provide a through flow of air through the room by opening the windows and doors.

It is important that the temperature does not drop significantly below room level, otherwise there will be difficulties with moisture evaporation. Also, it should not exceed the room temperature too much, otherwise it will lead to cracking of the coating.

When choosing how to process the walls after plastering, you should focus on the primer. With its help, you can extend the service life of the plastered surface, improve its performance, including water resistance. A significant improvement in the adhesion of the material is achieved due to the fact that the primers impregnate its surface deep enough and strengthen the surface.

Choosing a putty for walls after plastering

While the primer is drying, you need to choose how to putty the walls after plastering, since they need to be leveled before further finishing. For this purpose, it is better to purchase a starting mixture: it is specially designed for processing walls after plastering, and is suitable for eliminating significant differences in height.

Also, when the primer is dry after plastering on the walls, you can treat their surface with a universal or finishing putty. The latter, in comparison with the starting mixture, have relatively worse consumer characteristics, and are usually used in cases where the plaster layer has no significant flaws.

According to the base material, putties are divided into three categories:

• cement - resistant to moisture, but have a high degree of shrinkage;
• gypsum - cheap, do not shrink, pliable when applied, but sensitive to moisture levels;
• polymer - are expensive, do not shrink, and are resistant to moisture.

Most often, gypsum-based putties are used, however, the scope of use is limited, they are not recommended to be applied in very humid rooms where there is contact with water in the bathroom, pool. Otherwise, why putty the walls after plastering, if, due to high humidity, the gypsum-based coating will quickly become unusable.

It is strictly forbidden to use gypsum plaster on the street, since moisture and frost destroy the Rodband mixture and others.

According to the form of sale, putties are presented in two categories:

• ready-made - already diluted solution, which can be used immediately after opening the container;
• dry - mixtures intended for self-preparation, however, having a much lower cost than ready-made mixtures.

Thus, the cheapest option is dry gypsum powder, but it also has the lowest quality. Gypsum mixes are excellent for filling cracks in walls. The most expensive are ready-made putties based on polymers; these materials are best used for making the finishing layer.

Plastered wall processing technology

Often, before starting putty work, the question arises of whether it is necessary to pull out the beacons after plastering, or they can be left in the walls. It is recommended to do this without fail. The lighthouses are made of metal, and if left behind, over time they will corrode. This, in turn, will reduce the strength of the plaster layer and ultimately lead to crumbling. Cracks and other damage will appear on the surface of the walls.

After the decision has been made whether to choose beacons after plastering, you can proceed to the starting surface putty. The lowest, coarsest layer of material is applied. With the help of mixtures for starting putty, holes and grooves are rubbed, eliminating large differences in height. The thickness of one starting layer can sometimes reach 15-20 mm.

Under the layer of putty, you can put a painting net, stretching it over the entire surface of the wall to be treated. This will make it possible to achieve a more even laying of the material, improve the strength of the starting layer of the putty.

When the starting coating is dry, proceed to the finishing, which is carried out with the use of finishing mixtures. Unlike the starting one, it is applied in a very thin layer so that it completely repeats the resulting wall relief. In some cases, the question arises whether it is necessary to putty the walls after plastering with Rotband so that the surface is perfectly flat. If you follow the technology, the need to apply additional finishing layers disappears, the walls are already aligned.

Preparing walls for painting or wallpapering

After finishing the putty work, you should wait until the walls are completely dry, and only then prepare them for painting or wallpapering. The technology for performing both types of finishes is the same, the only difference is in the nuances when choosing finishing materials. You can spend as much time choosing a suitable finishing method as the walls dry after plastering - about a month.

So, after the primer has dried, the walls for painting are primed using a special primer, sometimes after preliminary grinding. If you plan to glue wallpaper, then, instead of a primer, the walls can be covered with wallpaper glue after drying. In this case, more water is added to it than usual. In addition, the glue must be recommended by the manufacturer for this quality, otherwise it is better to apply a standard primer mixture to the walls.

Errors when performing plastering and priming work on walls

The disadvantage is the leaving of metal beacons in the plaster. They oxidize over time, causing the coating to crack, even if it is thoroughly primed. If, due to the corrosion of the lighthouses, cracks appeared on the wall after plastering, then it is almost impossible to fix it with additional puttying, because the cause of the problem will remain.

Also, the appearance of cracks is a sign of haste in work. Instead of applying the plaster in several layers, the coating is made single-layer and rough. Under the action of gravity, the solution slides to the base of the walls, begins to harden and crack. To avoid this, the plastering of the walls should be carried out in several stages; you cannot immediately apply a huge mass of material.

When starting priming and filling the surface, it is necessary to take into account the drying time of the walls after plastering. A premature start of work is a violation of technology and will lead to the destruction of the finish after drying. It is impossible to fix this error without re-repairing.

If the wall cracked after plastering and even changed its geometry, this indicates the lack of professionalism of the craftsmen who performed plastering without making sure that the material was applied correctly. At the same time, if the wall turned out to be smooth the first time, then it will not even need puttying before painting or wallpapering.