Preparation before getting walls skimmed for best results

[Muller2]

Hi guys,

I'm going to get a number of rooms in my house skimmed in the coming weeks. Before getting people out I was wondering what prep I could do. I'm not trying to cut corners or be cheap - I want the best possible job and I'm happy to put some effort in to help ensure this happens.

I have already removed dado rails and scrapped as much flakey & loose paint away as possible. I have also removed all the door architraves and in places removed skirting boards which I will replace once the walls are skimmed.

What else can I do?

Thanks

 

[stevethespreader]

i would look to see whats behind those cracks to see whats going on

 

[Tigercubrider]

Have you gently tapped the walls all over to hear any hollow sounding blown bits?

 

[Muller2]

i would look to see whats behind those cracks to see whats going on

Hi Steve,

Do you mean the cracks in the bottom of the last picture? If so I know there are 2 thick cables that are in the wall - the top part of the wall was the same and I asked the builder to have a look when I was getting the loft converted. They quickly plastered over the top section but now I've stripped everything off I'm going to get this all re-skimmed properly.

These were the cables in the wall:

 

[Muller2]

Have you gently tapped the walls all over to hear any hollow sounding blown bits?

Hi Tigercubrider,

No I haven't tapped the walls. I will look into this - thanks!

 

[stevethespreader]

Hi Steve,

Do you mean the cracks in the bottom of the last picture? If so I know there are 2 thick cables that are in the wall - the top part of the wall was the same and I asked the builder to have a look when I was getting the loft converted. They quickly plastered over the top section but now I've stripped everything off I'm going to get this all re-skimmed properly.

These were the cables in the wall:

View attachment 133837

i mean the cracks in the second to last picture in the corner "and" the last picture they look pretty bad, the bricks and mortar in the last picture looks in a right state you may do well to sure things up a bit before plastering and if the bricks are like that in the second to last picture that could also explain the cracks

 

[cdbe]

That bit with the "cables" (which look like lead water or heating pipes) is a mess - the chasing appears to have weakened the wall, causing it to crack and the crack subsequently repaired with some stitching bars and grout. Needs some attention!