Can you plaster over/ remove external pebbledash?

Question

Is it possible to plaster over and then repaint external pebbledash which covers a house (this is currently painted yellow)? Can a professsional look be achieved or will it always look bodged. Would a normal plasterer be able to do this or do I need a particular specialist? Any idea on cost?

As an alternative can the pebbledash be removed? Is this sandblasting or something else? I have heard that sand blasting is very expensive and can result in damaged bricks so perhaps not the best idea.

Thanks.

In answer to your question the pebble dashing is not damaged I want to do this as I do not like the look of pebble dashing and would like a smooth finish exterior.

Answer 1

if its real pebble dash ..then the only way to remove is to chisel it off ..if you don't want the new to fall off then that's the way to go .you can hire a mini kango and get it off but its avery long and tedious job ..you could fix mesh over the top ..but that's expensive

Answer 2

I would recommend chipping it off and starting again. Some of it will be loose anyway. Putting another layer on top of what is already there will cause problems around the windows and doors - you basically would be making the surface thicker by about 1-2 cm and if the underlying pebble-dash is flaky, it will all fall off anyway.

To remove it - it is a hammer and chisel job - or a Kango as a previous reply said. Some pebbledash will come off really easily, other parts will stick like super-glue. The underlying bricks will not look as good as new, so it will need to be re-rendered.

Why do all the work - is what is there at the moment damaged? In which case you can have it patched up and then the whole lot painted. In the end you can't tell the difference and it is quicker, less fuss and cheaper.

Answer 3

Unfortunately there's no shortcuts that can be taken. As per other answers taking off old dashing is the only way you can change the finish. The only other solution is to spray paint a different colour to give your house a new look