Forgive the repetitive post. I’ve read threads on this subject before but found too much by advanced search, and not the best ones I recall. I know there’s a ton of experience here.
We are about to make the deposit to a good plasterer to skim coat some walls and ceilings from orange peel to flat. The existing paint is very hard and glossy. Rocklath underneath.
Bonding agent and hot mud appears to be in order (brands?). What other prep is essential, such as sanding first, or primer under bonding agent? Prep is going to be a pain because it is up stairwell walls.
Thanks in advance.
-H
Replies
It sounded like you were going to hire someone to do this. Were you also going to tell them how to do it? I do a lot of contracting, and the "independent contractor" rule is that you tell them what you want as an accomplishment, not what they should be doing along the way. If you actually are supervising them, then you might have an employer/employee relationship, which by most state's laws requires that you provide salary, fringes, workers comp, etc., and accommodate collective bargaining agreements. So, what's your real relationship?
He's a licenced contractor. We've been pleased with several painting and minor skimming jobs. His quote lacks some specific on prep which he'll be pleased to fill in. I only want to ask for (and pay for) work that makes the difference. I'm asking for his experience too, of course.
I also don't know if pre-sanding is going to do more harm than good, and I can't imagine myself having the patience to do a really thorough job with the TSP including across the ceiling above the hardwood stairs. But I'm a little worried about the shinyness of the current surface.
I've done a lot of jobs like this, with no specific prep, other than knock off any boogers, if the walls were relatively clean. If the paint, or any oils, tobacco residues, etc. are questionable, best to do a sample area first, and see how it bonds. All-purpose is pretty tenacious stuff.Cleaning wouldn't hurt. TSP in warm water, use a window brush on a pole, and lay something down below, like mover's blankets, to drip on. While some here advocate rolling drywall mud on with a paint roller, I always use a drywall finishing blade. But it is pretty labor intensive to float out a whole room, and even a light sanding between coats makes a lot of dust. So if you only want to pay for work that makes a difference, then you might want to clear all the furniture etc. out yourself, and do the cleanup yourself, because that stuff definitely increases the labor tab.
Thanks. Clear out and clean up is a given. Nice thing is these guys work a lot cleaner than we do. What I lack in talent, I make up for in dust.
The walls are going to be floated, but he didn't specify bonding agent or prep, despite being very detailed on subsequent priming and paint. I'm assuming its assumed, but it all time too and needs to be in his packed schedule.
I don't think bonding agent will be required.
Putting out specs for a job isn't managing, its a way to achieve the final product you wish to receive at the standard you expect.
If it is glossy paint on the walls then he needs to absolutely scarify the walls, which means prepping them by running a rough sandpaper (60) over them to give the plaster tooth. Whether he uses a bonding agent or not depends on the type of plaster being used. It doesn't take but a little bit of time and some sandpaper with a palm snader, but can save a load of heartache in the end. If this guy is licensed and experienced, he should do you fine and I would leave him alone to do his work. It's hard for me to sit here in another state and tell you what is best for your job without seeing it.
Found one of the threads I had been advanced searching for.
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=32271.1
...and I'll tell the contractor that you are all looking out for him, lest I pester him to death. ;-)
The texture itself will give 'tooth' to the bond. If you wanted to be sure, you could use Weld-Bond. Not much extra work to do this.