Help My newly plastered walls are still not dry after 6 weeks ??

Ees

Moved into an old terraced house. Have taken out a door way and moved the doorway closer to the front door . Had a tradesman in to install doorway and plaster board over plus skim the job . Also removed wallpaper from the ceiling which had plasterboard underneath no skim so we had him skim over this to. 
This was all done 6 weeks ago but the plaster still looks dark in most places. There are some signs of it drying around the edges but over all still looks dark. These are internal walls and there are no salts or anything like that. 
Any help or advice please ?

Rosa_Damascena

Much as it has been a wet and miserable June and July it doesn't explain your problem. Can you establish any pattern of drying aside from the edges drying first? Could there be water ingress from somewhere?

Eta: for context,  not so long ago I had thick external walls, foundations and floors cemented and exposed to sun, pelting rain and hail and they were visibly dry within 2 days. Plaster on an internal wall should take a matter of days to dry out, if that.

ka7e

Plaster doesn't necessarily dry to a uniform colour all over, but is the area a bit of a "cold spot"? If there is little ventilation and no heat, the plaster may take a lot longer to dry completely. Try a dehumidifier or heater on low in the area to see if that makes a difference.

Doozergirl

Do you have a photo? 

rob7475

It sound's like you've had a doorway blocked up, boarded and skimmed - is that correct? If so, that would rule out damp in the wall preventing the plaster from drying. Also, if the ceiling is the same, it's unlikely to be down to a damp area. 

I'd ask the tradesman what plaster he used. Maybe he's used a different brand that doesn't dry to a light pink finish like BG multifinish would. 

A photo would help though

Jeepers_Creepers

6 weeks? In this balmy weather? Blimey.

Ees, do you ventilate the rooms properly? As much as you can, leave all the doors and windows fully open.

If these areas weren't damp before this work, then it must almost certainly just be a case of 'they simply need more time'.

Strange tho'.

Ant555

Ees said:

This was all done 6 weeks ago but the plaster still looks dark in most places. There are some signs of it drying around the edges but over all still looks dark.
Any help or advice please ?

I wonder if you use a gentle but direct heat source such as a hair dryer around the edges of the dark patches to see if they change to light/dry - just as a spot test

Im not suggesting this is the fix but at least you may be able to tell if the plaster is still damp or if its just the colour.

Hope this helps work out the next step.

Ees

These are photos of the plaster drying.(In dark)

Ees

Thank you for all your posts. I have left the doors and windows open for the last few days and as it's been so warm it does seem to be getting a bit lighter in places. The first picture has gone very light so I assume the plaster when fully dry should all go that light ?? Still seems a long time to wait. 
There are no water pipes or bathroom above but it is a dark cold hallway. 

Ees

Should I wait for all the dark patches to go before i decorate ?

NSG666

You might want to give the tradesman who did it a call and just say you're not sure whether it's dried properly and see what he says but after 6 days, let alone 6 weeks skim on plasterboard is usually dry as long as there is air movement to take the moist air away and it's not freezing cold. That's possibly just how the plaster looks even though it's dried.