36
votes
Accepted
Why should you add dry mix to water and not the other way round
Yes, there is a very good reason. If you add water to dry mix in the bottom of the container, you get a nearly impossible to incorporate glob of the dry mix at the bottom.
On the other hand, if you ...
- 22.7k
16
votes
Accepted
Re-do paint over plaster in bathroom: How to feather/match?
Here's how you get paint to stick to things.
Scuff-sand.
Paint cannot bond to a shiny surface; don't take my word on it, try to paint a mirror and see what happens.
Paint wants to see a surface ...
14
votes
Why should you add dry mix to water and not the other way round
From Chemistry: "Do like you oughtta: add acid to water" . Besides the "glop" problem mentioned in the answer, there is almost always released heat when dissolving something in ...
- 3,897
9
votes
Is this plaster over gypsum wallboard?
What you see there is a hybrid gypsum/plaster from the 1950s. It represents a transitional stage between traditional wood lath and plaster to modern drywall techniques. You'll probably find metal lath ...
- 115k
8
votes
Re-do paint over plaster in bathroom: How to feather/match?
I have fixed paint similar to this in my current house. There were large areas where I could peel it off back to the plaster by hand or with a scraper.
Your builder's first coat has failed to adhere ...
- 593
7
votes
Are these asbestos fibers in my plaster?
Often, people talk about “old-fashioned horse-hair plaster,” but the binding agent in old plaster walls was more commonly cattle hair. -searshomes.org
I am reasonably sure it's not asbestos.
- 13.1k
6
votes
Accepted
Why did my plaster walls stop half inch above floor and expose room to wall cavity?
Old houses that had interior plaster as a finish had what they called a plaster stop to control depth of the plaster. This was usually a strip of 3/4 wood at bottom of wall and around doors and ...
6
votes
Accepted
Repairing broken plaster
It looks like there is more damage likely hidden under the plaster and the wood members there would be structural. You should remove the plaster to get to and repair this damage or verify that there ...
- 5,631
6
votes
Accepted
How should I prepare papered plaster walls for tile?
It's going to depend on the tiles used. But in any case, wallpaper stripping is in order. That should bring you back to solid plasterboard, which is fine for most wall tiles. If you are putting really ...
- 4,645
6
votes
How do I fill the gap between paneling and coving?
Carpentry lesson in hindsight: Level isn't always the right move, and flush (or nearly flush) joints are problematic. Ideally the cove would've been brought out a bit for a more consistent bottom ...
- 115k
5
votes
Accepted
Is it safe to use old wood lath from demolition as firewood?
There might also be asbestos in the plaster and contaminating the lath.
Did you have the wall tested prior to demolition? (I'm guessing no) You may have to be very careful with this material and ...
- 514
5
votes
Accepted
How to patch a wood lath plaster rounded corner?
Since this got ZERO love, and I have finished the job, figured I would post what I did.
Simply bought some wire mesh from the local home goods store, and screwed it directly into the wood lathe ...
- 421
5
votes
Is this plaster over gypsum wallboard?
The term for that drywall like product to my knowledge has been called "rock lath".
All the demo I have done in remodeling, the sheets are/were 3/8" thick and 16" tall by 4 ft. wide. Before rock lath ...
- 32.5k
5
votes
What is the best way to fix broken OLD plaster in a very old house?
tear it all down, replace with regular sheetrock / drwywall.
- 765
5
votes
How do I fix these gaps where the socket plates don't cover?
The best approach is to fix the plaster and paint. Some other ideas:
Install oversize device plates. Since you have nice stainless-steel plates now, this will be more expensive, but it would be quick ...
- 115k
5
votes
What kind of wall material produces orange dust, and how should I work with it?
Looks like brick dust.
As for the other two holes, they probably went into the mortar joint between two bricks.
- 24.2k
5
votes
Accepted
Remove plaster from brick
I used a wire brush, scraper and a hammer & chisel.
Choose wisely depending on how the plaster comes off.
- 24.2k
5
votes
Accepted
Mount TV to drywall with very little clearance
I don't think you can mount an articulating arm on this wall. An articulating arm must be mounted firmly in studs. Aside from finding the studs, you'll have two other problems:
Your screws need to ...
- 25.7k
4
votes
Accepted
Plaster Wall Ice Damming Water Damage
Before you attempt to repair it, make sure that the cause of the ice dam has been fixed. You may need to insulate the ceiling, and/or add a styrofoam vent baffle to the inside of the roof to prevent ...
- 3,452
4
votes
Should we skim-coat or drywall over a textured plaster wall to smooth it out?
I would not add drywall over plaster, as the guy said before. You have to not only look at the depth of electrical outlets, but now your door jambs are the wrong size, and window sills and trim will ...
- 41
4
votes
During what construction era was plaster installed over metal lath?
The area I live and work in saw quite a bit of expansion and development in the period between 1920 and 1960. I see plaster over expanded metal quite a bit in older buildings, and it does present ...
- 24.5k
4
votes
How to sand plaster corner using oscillating tool?
I would forget about power tools and get a 1" chisel. Trace out the area with pencil and shave out the area with the chisel. You're talking about a very small area so it shouldn't take long. ...
- 69.2k
4
votes
Why would these wires be stored this way?
It's certainly not appropriate nor legal to bury a junction box inside a wall. That should never have been done.
I agree with JACK that this looks like pretty normal chain wiring: one of the larger ...
4
votes
Asbestos? In plaster?
sent them some pictures over text... they said this is 99% asbestos...
Immediately throw away the phone number and email address of this company because what they told you is poppycock. Without a lab ...
- 33.9k
4
votes
Accepted
Did my painter do a bad job making the ceiling flat after removing popcorn ceiling?
I'm not an expert on this but that ceiling looks pretty bad. Your big mistake was getting a painter to repair the ceiling and not a plasterer. Painters can patch but doing an entire ceiling takes a ...
- 69.2k
4
votes
Accepted
Leak from contractor work on toilet damaging plaster ceiling below (US)
Not superficial.
Tear out and replace.
Hope you don't have to take them to court to make that happen on their dime, but you might. There may be other avenues if they don't offer to do the right thing ...
- 167k
4
votes
How do I fill the gap between paneling and coving?
You'll need to fill the gaps with wood filler, drywall mud, plaster, or other filler material that's compatible with the materials you've already used. Carefully apply the material to make it as ...
- 37.3k
4
votes
How to fix ripped drywall before repaint
Before painting the wall you need to wash it to remove any trace of oils, grease or dirt that would prevent the new paint from sticking. Let it dry.
Use a spatula to remove all the paint that isn't ...
- 8,294
4
votes
How to fix ripped drywall before repaint
Did you save the bits that were ripped out?
That wall looks like a textured finish, so you'd do far better to patch it back with PVA like a jigsaw, then deal with the joins, than try to match the ...
- 7,270
3
votes
Accepted
What should I use to repair plaster in a bathroom?
There are a few options that can be used to repair this damage. You can use standard joint compound (non-lightweight), and apply it in thin coats to avoid cracking due to shrinking, joint compound ...
- 3,452
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible