New plaster coming off on screw heads in loft extention

PaulJM

Hello, bit of advice if anyone has anything helpful to offer please.....

Had a loft extension finished a couple of months ago - it all went ok, a few issues, but nothing you wouldn't expect, and maintained a decent relationship with the joiner.

We agreed a contract, and as part of that there were payment dates - the final one is is now (something like 3 months after all issues had been finished)

So it's all been pretty much ok, and we now have my son in the room, so it's being used.

I've just noticed, whilst examining the place before I paid the final payment, that plaster has come off - specifically on the screw heads for the plasterboard - some places a chunk has fallen off, revealing the screwhead, and others the plaster is broken, and under is a screw
. I'd had my architect come and check the work and give a report on three occasions during the build, and on one he had mentioned that because some were slightly proud, that might happen. The joiner insisted they'd knocked them all in properly.

I'm a bit concerned now - I'm sure he'll come and put the four or five places this has happened, right (he'll have to, or doesn't get my final payment!) but I'm now wondering if it'll happen elsewhere.
Also, does he have a responsibility for putting the d!cor back to how it was before the fix started to happen?

Anyone any ideas?

System

That's a fairly common occurence. A screw head being smooth metal provides no key for the plaster to stick to. A little bit of movement due to people walking on the new extension will easily crack normal plaster that is put over screws.

PaulJM

!!!!!! wrote: »

That's a fairly common occurence. A screw head being smooth metal provides no key for the plaster to stick to. A little bit of movement due to people walking on the new extension will easily crack normal plaster that is put over screws.

Thanks for this, so what do you do about it? People don't just have random holes in their walls do they?

phill99

This will happen in virtually every new build. As !!!!!! says, the plaster has nothing to adhere to. Additionally, the plaster is drying and therefore contracting slightly. Differential expansion will also affect this.

Just put some pollyfilla in the holes, sand back and re emulsion.

It really is nothing to worry about.

anotherbaldrick

Mix some Polyfiller with Unibond and a small amount of water to get a buttery consistency and make good the patches with that.

macman

You could have applied a dab of filler in less time than it took you to post.

jcb208

Roof timbers are shrinking as they dry out ,you may wish to check incase the poped screws need tightening up a touch before filling ,Dont bother mixing filler with unibond as it will do nowt except make it impossible to rub down ,just fill with easi-fill or poly filler ,It will need 2 fills as the first will shrink a touch

spannerzone

i found a bit of undercoat painted on the screwhead then polyfiller worked for me.

Owain_Moneysaver

PaulJM wrote: »

Thanks for this, so what do you do about it? People don't just have random holes in their walls do they?

I do in my kitchen.

MX5huggy

PaulJM wrote: »

Thanks for this, so what do you do about it? People don't just have random holes in their walls do they?

I do about 12 in all on ceilings in my 4 year old house, and 1 crack where 2 sheets of plaster board meet and the scrim tape have failed. Will be sorted when decorated next. If I fill and repaint they will still flash.

Poppa_G

I once read somewhere that a dab of gloss paint on the screwhead and then fill. Has always worked for me in the past.