old plaster walls


  #1  
Old 10-18-00, 12:25 PM
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I'm a first time home owner. My house is very old, and the walls are horse-hair plaster in relatively decent shape. Right now the walls are mostly covered with wallpaper from the previous owner. I'd like to take the paper down and paint, but I'm concerned how it would look on the inconsistent surface of the plaster walls.

I see my options as these: a.)paint the plaster walls as they are, b.)cover the existing walls with drywall, or c.)tear down the plaster and put up new drywall. Can anyone give any feedback on the difficulity of these jobs? I'd appreciate it, thanks.
 
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Old 10-21-00, 02:57 PM
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havab-

Sorry I don't have an answer for you, but I am in a similar situation. The house I grew up in had drywall, so dealing with
plaster is new to me. I would like to hang some pictures, but the only time I tried to hammer a nail into the wall in our house, the plaster crumbled!

If anyone out their has advice on dealing with plaster walls, I'd like to know how to best hang objects in them.

The info on fasteners on this site was not very helpful.

(I am also considering having drywall installed.)

Good luck!

--Beth
beth_k98@hotmail.com
 
  #3  
Old 10-22-00, 01:02 PM
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Hello,

I would remove the paper, texture with a heavy custom texture (A mud-dobber probably) and then paint. The texture will hide most any small imperfections in the wall.

Good Luck-
 
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Old 10-22-00, 01:20 PM
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Hi folks,

I'm not a plasterer, but I'm a tile setter and the trades are related inasmuch as we both apply mortar to walls using a hawk and flat trowel. I also once owned a house with plaster walls.

Please, please do not trade in your plaster walls for sheetrock. Plaster is far superior. When you want to hang something, drill a small hole and insert a plastic screw anchor. You can then screw in a picture hanger or an eye hook.

The surface of the walls can be "tight skimmed" with drywall compound and sanded slightly. Paint can then be applied.

As an after thought, I took out a wall in my old plaster house. Took me about a week, and the mess was terrible -- dust everywhere. I've never seen anything put together that strongly.

Sound transmission is much less than with sheetrock walls. Plaster walls are more structural than sheetrock walls, and they are more fire resistant.

John
 
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Old 10-23-00, 05:26 AM
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Thank you John! I'm assuming "tight skimming" a wall is selectively applying small amounts of drywall compound to the walls to even out any inconsistencies in the wall. Is that correct?

I've heard from others that plaster is a mess to take down as well. Thanks again for your help!
 
  #6  
Old 10-23-00, 05:40 PM
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"Tight skimming" is going over the entire wall with fairly "loose" (not too stiff) drywall compound, allowing the material to fill the depressions. Don't try poking around with small amounts. Go over the whole thing. You might have to do it twice to get it smooth. Drywall mud shrinks as it dries. Use a "broad knife," a drywall tool that measures 12 inches across.

A little light sanding in between coats perhaps. You can also wet sand using a block of wood with a course cloth (burlap or a towel) wrapped around it. Dip the thing in a bucket of water, shake it, and move it in circular motions on the wall. Keep the thing rinsed thoroughly, and don't overdo it. You don't want to remove all the mud you've applied, just smooth it. This method is dust-free. Did I tell you not to sand in any fashion until the compound is completely dry?

Check with a painter or paint store. It might be necessary to seal the wall before applying the paint. I'm far from being a painter.


John
http://www.johnbridge.com
 
 

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