Smoothening out a plaster wall?

Question

I'm repairing a wall with plaster, and I'm putting the plaster on, but I was wondering, how do I go about making the final finish really smooth. As it is, it's sort of rough and sharp. What should I be doing?

Should I be focusing on making it smooth while it's wet or just sandpapering afterwards? thanks.

Answer 1

Sanding?

Answer 2

I am assuming you are using joint compound and not old fashioned plaster. If thats the case, you should be sanding between thin coats. After the last coat or so you can allow it to dry most of the way and then go over it with a mostly dry sponge. This will make it baby's butt smooth.

Answer 3

Get it as smooth as possible while you are plastering and then sand with progressively finer sand paper to finish. Careful not to gouge. If you were using drywall compound I would have suggested using a wet sponge to smooth it after the mud had dried. Neat trick - no sanding dust and leaves a really smooth finish.

Answer 4

Use thin coats, let dry, sand.....then do the next and the next..whatever it takes till its smooth..and spread it out far away from the problem area.. when you put down the plaster.. sounds to me like you might have put it on too thick..