A prospective client seeking a home eventually withdraws his hands at the very glance to the ugly damaged plaster walls. It is also a matter of utter discomfort even to the person residing in a home with cracked plaster walls. Plastered walls require maintenance and repairing on a frequent basis. Cracks appearing on the plastered walls are often due to ageing. Apart from that, the plastered walls are subject to tampered accidentally while fixing the lights and objects placed on the wall. Thus possessing some idea and the basic knowledge to fix shattered plasters can really save some money and time at times of sudden necessity.
Things to be kept in mind before commencing the hard work
As soon as a crack gets detected, panic stricken people often tend to a quick and careless patch job in despair to cut loose the high end expense expected. This is nothing but a curse in disguise. It might appear to be a great repair apparently from a distant view but it is likely to generate immense trouble in no time.
Resources to repair the plastered walls
To fix the designs on the wall caused by cracks and holes the first and foremost thing required is a good spackling compound either in paste or in powdered formation. A small amount of the composition is to be made so as to avoid settlement and hardening of the compound in the plastic buckets. The next item required is a 3 inched sturdy knife in order to spread the compound over the damaged portions on the plastered wall. The other necessary objects involved in repairing are sandpaper, chisel, brush, bucket with clean water and a plasterer’s trowel.
Expected time required for completing the repair work
In order to repair a damaged plaster wall quite some time is required. To ensure a proper chiselling and felling of the damaged section, a day can be allotted followed by applying the initial coat of plaster. The coat should be left for drying for about 24 hours. Once the initial coat dries up, the final coating can be placed the next day. The entire project requires about 3 days to complete.
Step one: Chiselling the damaged plaster
The hole and the cracks should be well examined carefully at the very beginning. If the hole appears to be relatively small, it is a good idea to chisel the space to make enough room for the patch work. In case of repairing large cracked surfaces on plaster walls, the whole section should be prepped out properly. There should not be any broken or soft surfaces of the old plaster left on the damaged wall. A new plaster patch can now be effectively placed on the wall.
Step two: Applying a first coat
Small holes can be filled up using the wet brush followed by applying the plaster mix to the damaged area. There should not be any loopholes between the old layer of plaster and the new one. Instead of applying large chunks, small amount of plaster should be applied at a time. Wire mesh can be used to roughen the area before it actually dries up. It is necessary for a compact bonding and plaster indeed works well on roughened porous surfaces. Once the first coat is readily applied with the holes and the cracks all filled up, it is left to be dried.
Step three: Applying the Final Plaster Coating
The first coat is left for drying and once it is all hardened and ready, the second coat is all set to be applied. The wall should be brushed wet first before applying the final coat. The trowel is now used to implement evenly distribution of pressure all throughout the newly plastered wall. The freshly plastered coat is left for drying after the surface is made smooth and evened. Paintbrushes are ideal for this job to finish up plastering the patch.
Precautions to avoid possible risks
Repairing plaster walls require undertaking certain precautions which include chiselling and levelling off the damaged portions before commencing the repair. Small amounts of plaster should be prepared at a time as it gets hardened over time.
Repairing damaged plaster walls for the first time can be a bit tricky for the first time. With proper precaution and utmost care the repairing of the plaster walls can be well executed without any hassle. Small damages can be readily repaired by even a novice. On the other hand, severe damages should be repaired by skilled technicians. A regular monitoring of the walls is thus necessary and if cracks and holes are detected, they should be treated with utmost care and importance.
