ALl-in-one bonding and finishing plaster

[kjacko]

Ok, no doubt the experts would like to nuke this stuff from orbit, but even a novice like me thinks its garbage.........unless..........

.....i've been using it wrong.

About 5 years ago i tried my hand at plastering with the creamy/white coloured stuff from focus. As bonding and board adhesive its great, lol, but for skimming up it just kept ripping off.

5 years later i had another go with it to replaster my brothers fireplace that had been partly boarded with NO TAPE across the already unlevel joins! I decided to use it again because not all the wall was boarded so i thought i could bond what parts weren't boarded up to the correct level then skim the whole lot.
Now, thinking that my experience 5 years previous may just have been down to lack of know-how i gave it another shot.

The result?
Same deal, goes on well enough, but floating up just rips it off again.

Didn't now what else i could do, so i finished it the best i could. My bro was more than happy with it, but i'm quite a perfectionist tbh. And once he'd sanded it and painted it it all looked nice.

So, what are your thoughts? Does it have its palce in certain conditions/projects? Or just a waste of time?

 

[Richard C]

Does it have its palce in certain conditions/projects? Or just a waste of time?

It can have its uses I suppose for small local repairs & if you’re inexperienced but I would struggle to think of many other good things to say about it; IMO, I think your comment just about sums the stuff up. Problem is it just doesn’t behave like proper plaster, takes so long to go off & never gives the same finish. If you’re pulling it off though, your probably not leaving it long enough before finishing (try taking a weeks holiday ) or not wetting the trowel but use too much water & it’s likely to run off the wall as it remains soluble almost up the point it cures; either that or your troweling technique is carp – no offence!

 

[kjacko]

lol, none taken mate, thanks for the reply.

My trowelling aint that bad tbh, it could be better if i didn't prattle around too much.
However this all-in-one stuff actually went on well and did set off fairly quickly, but trowelling it up pulled it off the wall as if it were pastry being ripped, if that makes any sense.
Iwould have thought that would happen if it were too dry, not wet.

oh well, leave it well alone and stick to bonding/multi-finish.