is plastering hard to do? or can you pick it up with practice?

Answer 1

can pick it up with practice. you need to get the mix right so only mix small amounts at first. you'll see when ya start

Answer 2

It's like all DIY tasks, as long as you are methodical and take a logical approach it is easy. The best way for a beginner to do it is to use battens of equal thickness screwed into a wall. Fix plasterboard to the wall using plasterboard adhesive and then "skim" topcoat plaster between the two battens so you have a nice level and flat top coat. Use another batten to check the flatness by wriggling this down the two battens in the wall. Go all the way along in this manner, then remove the battens and just plaster the gaps created by using scratch coat plaster to the same depth as the plasterboard and then skimming using top coat. Corners can be tricky but you can cheat and buy preformed ones made from steel and mesh for a perfect one!!
Always remember that you must leave a gap between the floor and the start of the plaster as it will suck up moisture at ground level and cause damp if you don't.

Answer 3

Forgive me While i laugh my *** off for a while...... IF you haven't plastered before it will takes years for you to learn that skilled trade.

OK the Basie's : you have a hawk and a trowel . Now a hawk comes in different sizes i prefer a 12"X12" one this is what you load your plaster up with. It ways about 10 lbs now don't let it tip or the Mud will side off.
Here's your trowel you spread with this and you also use it to load your hawk with . Stand near the Mud Board ( term used in trade - a table the holds the plaster about the large wheel barrel full). Then just practice trying to scoop the mud(plaster) off the hawk with out spilling it everywhere when you get good at that try spreading it on the wall with out dropping any

Then you see why you cant learn how to do this like hammering a nail into a piece of wood

Answer 4

It's not hard to do but hard to get professional-looking results for a beginner. Last December I plastered over drywall on some ceiling and I thought it turned out pretty good for not having done it before and on the ceiling it wasn't as critical how good the texturing looked. After I finished that project I did some walls that were paneling. The walls didn't look great but I can live with them. I am very good with my hands and handy, I am a woman; I'd say it is a skill that gets better with practice but like someone else said if you have some natural abilities like eye-hand coordination, an eye for the texture, arm strength, and patience, it can be learned and perfected.

Answer 5

If you are good with your hands then you can learn to plaster - it is a physical skill and the more you do it the better you get try it and see if you can get the hang of it - get some instructions from the web or a plasterer (hire one to do a wall and watch him and learn - monkey see monkey do) or night school.

Answer 6

A good plasterer can earn £200 per day...for a reason...it is a highly skilled trade that takes a long time to master and perfect. Consider an apprenticeship

Answer 7

You can pick it up withloads of practice.
Try starting off with a course at your local college or do some diy at home..
Try www.screwfix.com and click on the talk forum you'll get loads of advice there about the types of plaster and mixes you use

Good luck

Answer 8

There is a knack to plastering. Get someone experienced to show you first. There are stages in plastering and you need to be shown them, but it then comes down to technique which comes with experience.

Answer 9

Just takes some practice, its easy and rather forgiving. You going over drywall or doing lath & plaster?

Answer 10

It is easy to do badly but hard to do well.

Just like any trade. It's fairly simple to bodge small repairs, small areas etc.

Its all in the mix, it's unlikely a DIY person would ever get enough practice to do it particularly well although most "handymen" can do small areas.

Like all TRADES it really requires a TRADESMAN.