crack in newly skimmed plaster

WaveyDave_2

Hello

Just had my 1930s semi re-skimmed inside. Every room has been done including ceilings boarded and skimmed. After having some of the rooms done, I've had new rads fitted. Around one of these rads the plaster seems to have blown. Plasterer is coming around to look today, but I think he's going to have to hack off that section. I think its the SDS drilling for the bracket that caused the damage.

He said because we're skimming old plaster, we are likely to experience small cracks and that there are small hairine cracks elsewhere around the house.

I thought that skimming should have covered them, unless the plaster beneath is unsound? In which case he should have told us, hacked it off, and then re-done it.

Can anyone offer any advice?

sooz

small cracks appearing as new plaster dries out is totally normal.

rake out crack, fill with Tetron, sand and paint.

As for the damage around a new rad fitting, let the plasterer decide what he needs to do to it. :rolleyes:

robnye

sooz wrote: »

small cracks appearing as new plaster dries out is totally normal.

rake out crack, fill with Tetron, sand and paint.

As for the damage around a new rad fitting, let the plasterer decide what he needs to do to it. :rolleyes:

i agree.

if you have had new radiators fitted. then they can cause new plaster to crack...... otherwise normal wear and tear, especially in vulnerable places, ie door frames, corners in rooms where 2 partition walls met and have a door fitted - ie the door gets slammed.... especially in my house with 3 hormonal daughters..... :rotfl:

autismmum

yes, we used textured paint over the the plaster, we also have a 1930s home and little cracks do appear, apparently due to water table and normal house shift, but when ever work is done like drilling, it does tend to crack. these new paints that flex are fantastic.

WaveyDave_2

Plasterer has hacked away said blown peice, and is applying new today.

Thanks everyone for advice.

Lorian

Leave the radiator off for a while to help avoid cracking from drying too quickly

WaveyDave_2

Central heating is off at the moment, as the whole house is being renovated.

Perhaps I was being overly picky, as it now seems I had unrealistic expectations. I thought the wall would be perfect after having them skimmed. I thought that was the point of it! Plasterer has now said that you can never tell how long old plaster will last for, and it could all go within 5 years, or last 20! :eek:

I really don't want to have to do all this again within the next 5 years!

fatnbald

The old plaster and brickwork behind it will be extremely dry and whilst water is used during the skimming, the old plaster and brickwork can suck the moisture out of the new skim at varying rates, hence the cracking you will see.

Unless you remove all the old plaster back to the brickwork it is inevitable you will get cracking, it is a compromise between cost (and mess) and quality of finish.

Cracks in the finish can happen even on new builds. Trying to force dry any plasterwork will amplify the issue.

tyllwyd

We've got a 1930s house, with some very dodgy plaster. We asked plasterers to quote on whether we needed to hack off the old plaster, or if we could get away with re-skimming. They wouldn't commit themselves - we came to a compromise because we couldn't afford to hack off the old plaster throughout the house, so they took off the bits that had obviously failed, and then reskimmed. But no-one was willing to tell us that it would solve the problem forever, it was just a case of doing the best they could for the money.

logik_2

fatnbald wrote: »

The old plaster and brickwork behind it will be extremely dry and whilst water is used during the skimming, the old plaster and brickwork can suck the moisture out of the new skim at varying rates, hence the cracking you will see.

Unless you remove all the old plaster back to the brickwork it is inevitable you will get cracking, it is a compromise between cost (and mess) and quality of finish.

Cracks in the finish can happen even on new builds. Trying to force dry any plasterwork will amplify the issue.

I have to disagree with some advice on here as i too have a 1930 house and i had some of it reskimmed. PVA is what needs to go on any wall first and it creates a barrier to stop plaster drying out too quick if you do it there should not be any cracks from drying quickly. sometimes a few coats are needed. secondly plaster tape needs to be placed over all existing cracks before skimming and if you dont do that all olds cracks come back through.
i had a crack in 1 ceiling and the plasterers did not tape over it and as soon as the plaster dried the same crack came straight back. i never used those plasterers again but the new plasterers used tape and pva on walls and no cracks have ever come back. so the rule is tape up all cracks and pva all walls to slow the drying and that will fix 99% of problems.

after 5 years i now have crack free walls and ceilimgs on a 1930 house, there is also always cracks that would appear on very large rooms with shrinkage and ground movement on like a new extension as it settles they are easy enough to fill like previous post mention.

ormus

every house will move by a few mm due to the domestic heating, and ground movement of the house in the different seasons. hairline cracks are quite normal in any house.