First project in new home... plastering interior wall q's

[adam08]

Firstly, hi to all here!

I have just moved into my first home with my girlfriend and we are making a start on our first diy project. We are going to give the lounge an overhaul and have started by removing all skirting.

Now the skirting has been removed we want to plaster the sections missing plaster - we are doing without skirting all together.

My question is, what would be the best way to fill the gap at the bottom of all the walls where the skirting has been removed? There is a 1.5cm deep gap around the perimeter of the room and would like to know if i should use plaster board or plaster straight onto the wall?

All the plaster that was behind the skirting had to be removed as it just crumbled away. Above the height of the skirting the plaster seems sound.

All the walls that need the work are brick, so I know they will need sealing with a pva solution but other than that would like to know the best way to go about it..

thanks
Adam

 

[jj plastering]

Probably better to use Hardwall then skim.No need to pva the bricks ,just brush off dust , dampen then fill with Hardwall , then skim in aeras filled when set enough.

 

[joe-90]

The gap is there for a reason (part of the damp-proof system). Do yourself a favour and put the skirting back on.

 

[iaith]

Hi Adam. Are you saying you want to get rid of the skirtings and have walls that run down to the floor? If so there'll be a lot of finishing to be done. It's not a smart idea to get rid of skirting boards.

 

[jj plastering]

The gap is there incase of spillages ,leaks etc so the plaster does not become damaged .If you are relying on just your internal plaster to stop damp you are in the shist anyway.

 

[joe-90]

You can bridge the damp course by plastering to the floor.

 

[adam08]

Sorry guys, the explanation of what we are going to do was rubbish!

I know its not the best idea to go to the very bottom of the floor... we are going to put bamboo flooring down and in a way replace the skirting with a quarter round bamboo skirting. This is 18mm high.

So with the quarter round skirting we will be able to leave a small gap about 2-5mm(?) between the floor and the plaster. The quarter round would also stop spillages.

So with this in mind, would it be okay to do and, if so, should i use, plasterboard with a skim or plaster straight to the wall to the full thickness?

Cheers guys your help is very much appreciated

 

[adam08]

Here's a diagram of what i am trying to achieve:

 

[iaith]

Ahh! Thats better. As JJ said use hardwall first , then personally I'd use ready mix jointing compound/cement. This can be applied then sanded, re-applied and sanded etc. so that it feathers into the original wall finish.

 

[adam08]

Cheers for all your help guys, managed to get this done in a day!

Messed up a bit on the first wall but quickly got the hang of it. Its all looking rather good.

Now all I need to do is practice the skimming! Had a go at it, it's quite difficult to get it smooth! Started to get the hang of it after about 1 hour. Just hope I can get a decent smoothness to the finish..

Once again, thanks too all!