Reskimming plaster...options.

chabsey

This isn't a job I'll attempt myself so isn't really DIY but it's a question I'd appreciate an answer to. Our house is in a terrace about 80/90 years old with poured concrete
wall upon which plaster was put directly (not onto board). From having drilled into our walls in various places I know that the concrete is quite crumbly in places
and that if you were to hack back the plaster you'd probably end up with a very uneven wall surface underneath.

I know you can re-skim old plaster and this is what we'll probably have to get done but my question is in relation to the architraves around the doors and the skirting. In places, particularly
the hall it looks like the it has already been badly reskimmed and this has raised the plaster to level with the door arcihtraves. It tapers off the further you move down the
hall and even within the width of the first door the plaster is level with the architrave on the right side and then drops back to normal level on the left. Very poor job.

If we reskim this it'll look even worse, the door frame will look like it's sunk into the plaster. So the question is whether it's common enough in these types of situation
to remove the architraves, reskim and then refit them but raised so they look 'normal' and sit proud over the skim?

dodzy

chabsey wrote: »

This isn't a job I'll attempt myself so isn't really DIY but it's a question I'd appreciate an answer to. Our house is in a terrace about 80/90 years old with poured concrete
wall upon which plaster was put directly (not onto board). From having drilled into our walls in various places I know that the concrete is quite crumbly in places
and that if you were to hack back the plaster you'd probably end up with a very uneven wall surface underneath.

I know you can re-skim old plaster and this is what we'll probably have to get done but my question is in relation to the architraves around the doors and the skirting. In places, particularly
the hall it looks like the it has already been badly reskimmed and this has raised the plaster to level with the door arcihtraves. It tapers off the further you move down the
hall and even within the width of the first door the plaster is level with the architrave on the right side and then drops back to normal level on the left. Very poor job.

If we reskim this it'll look even worse, the door frame will look like it's sunk into the plaster. So the question is whether it's common enough in these types of situation
to remove the architraves, reskim and then refit them but raised so they look 'normal' and sit proud over the skim?

Rip them off. Get a good plasterer. Fit new AT Once job is done.

Charlie19

Strip it back to old wall and board it with plasterboard with insulation if possible. There is a video on youtube of an English guy that plastered a bedroom for the first time and it turned out very well.

chabsey

Charlie19 wrote: »

Strip it back to old wall and board it with plasterboard with insulation if possible. There is a video on youtube of an English guy that plastered a bedroom for the first time and it turned out very well.

That's the problem, I don't think this type of plaster can easily be stripped back without the wall underneath crumbling. I might be wrong and maybe the walls are in better condition than I think but I have a feeling they're pretty bad.

whupdedo

dodzy wrote: »

Rip them off. Get a good plasterer. Fit new AT Once job is done.

This is really all you need to do

Calahonda52

Before you dive in here, you need to understand exactly what you are dealing with in terms of the existing plaster.
The original plaster may well be lime based plaster which is a very different animal from the modern day gypsum based plaster.

A starting point might be here
http://www.josephlittlearchitects.com/articles/breaking-mould-1
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