To sand and fill - or to skim? Advice please

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I have just finished stripping the wallpaper in a room. The previous owners seem to have done a bit of a botch job with the wall underneath. Some patches are uneven, and they look like they have been filled with polyfilla but not sanded smooth.
The paint is also flaking in several places.

I don't have enough experience to judge if a sand and fill job could produce a good finish here, or if I should call in a professional to perhaps skim those parts and work their magic. Your advice would be very much appreciated!

If you reckon I have a good chance with sanding and filling, what would you recommend for sanding down polyfilla (and peeling paint)? How should I even up the parts where the paint peeled off and shows the drywall underneath?

Thank you very much in advance for your input! I am including clickable thumbnails here.


The bare patch to the left is about 12 inches long.


This is the largest problem area. It's about 15" from the bottom to the top of the photo.


This is the patch in the worst shape. It is about 5-6" wide.
 
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This would be a risky skim as the only thing fastening the skim to the wall would be the flaky paint. As soon as you try to roller the new paint on it'll all pull off onto your roller. Try sanding it with a big sanding block but in my opinion (I plaster as well as decorate) go for sanding back then lining paper.
 
Agreed, sand back as much as possible then line with the thickest paper you can find - 1400-1700..
Polyfilla..God I hate that stuff, people slap it on thick then realize it a sod to rub down so they leave it proud.. Use Easyfill or Tetrion all-purpose , it almost rubs-off with a rough palm
:)
 
Thank you for taking the time to reply! It's really reassuring to have some knowledgeable and independent advice.

In the meanwhile, we have talked to the guy who had fixed a roof for us and plastered our ceiling, just to gather more information. We only spoke on the phone so he hasn't seen the walls himself, but he suggested plastering them. I now know what questions I should ask the next time I contact him!
 
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Well I'd use polyfilla.
I wouldn't expect miracles, but it would be smoother, and I'd use lining paper too.
The difficult thing is getting a good finish. It's quite easy to sand down, but only if it only fractionally bigger and thicker than it needs to be, takes a bit of skill.

But you have to make a judgement, if the plaster starts dropping off, you might need to change this plan.
 
THE BEST WAY to deal with your situation is:

Dry scrape ALL loose material

Apply a coat of ThistleBond-It bonding agent

Then TWO coats of multi-finish plaster.
 
Personally I’d go for a permanent repair & a plaster finish but preparation is going to be very important to give a sound base. All traces of flaky paint or loose plaster must be removed if the plaster is to have any chance of staying up there, & parts of the wall may need stripping back to block & local base coat repair before skimming.
 

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