tips for plastering a wall?

[Don-Wi]

I finished putting up the drywall tonight, next step is the joint compound/plaster. Never done it before, and thinking I wanna give the walls a little texture. Any tips? It's only a 4 1/2' x 12 1/2' bathroom. I redid 1 wall plus the ceiling, but the other walls were done pretty 1/2assed to say the least.

No tape over the screws (I was able to remove some of the old drywall by just stabbing where I saw a dent with the drill, and backed the screws out) and looks like they wall papered right over the drywall without even a primer under it.

To top it off, they then pulled it off, but only the bottom 1/2 and the border (found traces under the trim and medicine cabinet) and left the top, and then painted over it. I'm planning to rent a steamer to get the rest of the wall paper off. Can still see the texture from the glue on the bottom 1/2 of the wall. Really irritates me but I'm thinking a simple textured coat over everything may blend it in well and make it look a litle better.

Donovan from Wisconsin

 

[Steven-Id]

I am not a professional but I have done a little of it. They normally don't tape over the screws, just mud. You need to put mud on both sides of the corners to put the tape on. After the tape is embedded I usually only mud 1 side of the corner. I have never had much luck at mudding both sides at once,trying to smooth the mud I usually hit the wrong side with the taping knife. It takes me a little longer that way but it works better for me.


Steven

 

[Anonymous-0]

I hung some drywall once with an inch of styrofoam on it. Also was 2ft wide sheets and looked real good to the untrained eye (mine). Taped, mudded, ready for wallpaper.... Didn't take long to figure out how sloppy of a job I'd done.... Got rid of the wall paper and mixed up a tub of interior stucco (plaster?) and gave the room an adobe look. Painted it and it still looks good 10 years later. Have since done all but 2 rooms in the house. No worrying about exact corners, repairs/touches up easy, and no lost people skills from dealing with wallpaper......

 

[Ultradog MN]

Where in WI are you Don?
If you weren't too far away I could give you a half hour lesson that would dramatically increase your skill. Simple things.
First thing is use the premixed stuff (Lightweight Blue Top) in the pail. The setting type is great but only for experienced hands.
If you read the label on the bucket it says not to add water. Ha! that is completely rediculous.
When taping I wet the mud down a Lot. Use a 6" taping knife and float some mud in the corners. Then fold your paper and squeegee it in flat. Then add a layer of mud over the top.
Do not use mesh tape in the corners. The taping knife will cut through it and it will crack.
If you like you can use the fiber mesh on the straight seams. But put two layers!! It will crack otherwise. Remember to never allow the mud to go on too thick. You can Not do it in one or two coats. Several thin coats is better.
I use a 16" trowell and a 6" taping knife. Knife must be flexible not stiff. My trowell doubles as my hawk (mud holder)
On my finish coats I wet the mud down so thin I can hardly get it onto the wall without dripping on the floor. Use the trowel to float the mud in different directions on sucessive coats - up, sideways, 45 degrees, etc.
I take a lot of pride in my mudwork - make it Perfect - do a lot of skimcoating, texture removal, plaster AND sheetrock repair.
My friends call me the Mudder Effer

 

[NCWayne]

I don't do drywall for a living but I've been forced to learn to do it for myself over the years to get my own projects done without spending an arm and a leg having someone else do it for me. That said Ultradog gives some great advice. The only thing I can add to what he says, is regardless of what type mud you use make sure it is mixed up GOOD before you start. By good I mean get youself one of the power mixers that looks kind of like a screw and whip the material until it's smooth with absolutely no lumps, and keep it whipped as required as you work. Doing this will allow it to spread alot better than if you try to hand mix alone.

As far as texturing I used to know a guy that was an absolute master when it came to texturing. Unfortunately I only know how to put it on smooth and sand it to blend in. But if you want a popcorn ceiling, I can do that..... Good luck...

 

[TomR Ont]

Don-Wi
"Really irritates me but I"m thinking a simple textured coat over everything may blend it in well and make it look a litle better."

I don"t think you would be satisfied when finished, those textured finishes do not hide poor work well. It would be less expensive and time consuming to just tear it all out and put in new sheet rock.

 

[showcrop]

I have a few more tips. Get yourself a corner tool for the compound. The pros don't use them but for the handy dandy they are a big help. I always went over the screw dimples giving them a good rap with a hammer to make the dimple a little larger so that they take and hold the compound better. Rather than sanding after the third coat of compound I use a damp cloth to smooth it. Faster, no dust, invisible after painting.

 

[pat sublett]

You can use web tape but, if you do use setting type compund. I use web tape and setting mud for taping than pre-mixed light weight compound to finish the job.

 

[bejohnson]

use the green mud to set the tape and 2nd cote then you can use the blue it works easeyer to smooth out the green has glue to bound the tape do your taper edges then but then inside and finsh with your outside corners only use set tipe to prefill big holes i do this for a living you can email with any ?

 

[Don-Wi]

Well yesterday I gathered up a bunch of stuff that needed to be returned and in turn bought 4 more sheets of mold & mildew resistant drywall. I tried to steam the wall paper, but the steamer wasn't working right. The little bit I did get, the paper on the drywall was coming off too because they papered directly onto that with no primer or anything betweeen the drywall and wallpaper.

I'll get there eventually, just taking a little longer now... I just know that it has to look better when it's done than it did before.

Donovan from Wisconsin

 

[Kyle in KY]

Ultra dog is right on. Don't use the mesh in the corners, preferably not at all. Several skim coats are best and you must add some water and use a paddle mixer and drill to completely blend. Take your time and be patient.

 

[Don-Wi]

I was looking at all the tape at Menards when an older gent next to me asked what I was working on. Turned out he owns a plastering company and has been doing it for 50 years or so and pointed me to what they use and have the best results with. Most of it was right in line with what most of you guys said also so I bought some more supplies and got the first coat on tonight.

Tomorrow I'll do the second coat, then while that's drying I'll start staining my trim in the basement. The bathroom is starting to come along pretty well now. Once the bathroom is plastered I'll paint it, then turn my attention to the floor. I already cut out and replaced the water damaged wood, so now I need to put down the sheething and then the flooring. Hoping to have it done or almost done by next Sunday. Just need to make time for my neices birthday party in there.(I think she's turning 3)

With anyluck, I'll still have enough cold weather to prune my apple trees before the ground thaws. That's what I would have been doing 3-4 weeks ago had the dryer not burned its wireing to a crisp, getting this project started.

Donovan from Wisconsin

 

[Anonymous-0]

We have gone back into houses where they used fiberglass tape (mesh) to repaint because it had hairline cracks on all the joints. Alright for repairs, BUT NOT WHOLE JOB USE PAPER TAPE!

 

[Bob Huntress]

Don, I'm guessing that you have a 1/4 inch gap around the one sheet? Pack mud into the gap doing two opposing sides at a time. Take your 6" tape knife and then spread mud along the edge of those corner. spread paper tape flat across the corner with the edge against the wall and starting in the center wwipe down the tape squeezing out the mud under it. Do this to the remaining corners. Wait an hour. Then take your knife and spread mud along both sides of a corner. I have a roller and do all of them at once, but you should do one at a time. When you have covered both sides of the corner spread a peice of PAPER drywall tape below the mud to the same length as the corner and holding your tape knife against the tape where you want it ripped and tear it along the pinch point that is made with the knife. Paper tape has a natural pleat so that it bends in half real easy. Fold the tape into a V and place it into the corner. Start about a third of the way down and start wiping the tape toward the end on one side and the again on the other. When you have the tape smooth and solidly adhered to the board do the next one. Remember that if you don't have enough mud under the tape bubbles will form. That's why I say solidly adhered. Do each of the ceiling corners and any corners going up. I have assumed that you have no flats. If you do, try to do them first. When you are done place some mud on each screw with your knife and wipe it smooth with your knife. Unless you have need of corner bead, that concludes the tape coat. Wait a day or longer if needed to start the second coat. Pick which side of the corners you want to coat, but you will to coat the same side of each corner. If you choose the righ side, every corner will have the right side coated. If you have any flat joints home depot or lowes carries a curved blade trowel and a hawk. An interesting story is that when my dad did this, no one sold curved blade trowels. You bought a 10" cement trowel and poped the first couple rivits on each side and stuck a peice of corner bead in each side to go it a curve. Make sure that you wipe down the sides of the flates as you go. If the wall flat is parelell to the floor load the trowel with most of the mud on the upper half, this will help you not make a mess. Spead the mud along the tape, you want to pay attention to the angle as it is the depth of the bed of mud. Use the tape knife to wipe off the edges, but you want a clean run along the whole piece of tape. It will take awhile, as you have never done this before. Let this set up for a couple hours before you attempt the corners. More to follow.

 

[Don-Wi]

I finished the plastering tonight, did the tape one day and then the second coat the next, and then when I had time yesterday and today I worked on my texture coat. Took a little to find a rythme but tonight I got into one right away and knocked out 2/3 of the bathroom in the same time I spent on it last night.

It's an old farm house, so there really aren't many pefectly flat and smooth walls to start with. I put a light texture on it with a 12" taping knife in my right hand and 6" in my left (what I found to work best for me).

Tomorrow I'll let it sit and then Wednesday I'll hit it with primer and then paint, move on to the flooring on Thursday/Friday along with some breaks to varnish the trim. Birthday party on Saturday for my neice (gotta leave the floor sit for a day or 2 anyway) and then Sunday I'll start installing the trim and fixtures, washer/dryer, etc... I think I can have the finishing touches done by Monday or Tuesday evening, in time to have a home assesor come through on Wednesday for a refinance.

Donovan from Wisconsin