Frequently Asked Questions
Answers for All Your Inquiries
How can I be sure you are the right person for the job?
With over 25 years plastering experience and apprentice trained in traditional ornamental works, cornicing and plastering skills, David ensures also for his ongoing development and awareness of new construction practices and techniques.
His experience and attention to detail, guarantees an accurate assessment of work, along with an efficient service and high quality finish.
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Around 90% of our work comes through recommendation. Should you wish to view examples, or be put in contact with any of our previous customers, don't hesitate to ask.
When can you come out?
We usually have works planned in for a couple of months in advance.  However, depending on the type of work and potential cancellations / postponements, we may be able to fit your project in earlier.  Please contact us with details of your job and we will be able to advise you further.
What do I need to prepare?
If you can clear your room as much as possible. We work with benches and large equipment to enable us to work quickly and access all areas, high and low. An empty room gives us better access to leave a great finish, while helping ensure we meet the timescale estimated and safely reach all areas, without accidents.
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Frequent trips will be required in and out of the area with equipment, tools, materials and water supplies also, so consider access routes. Please be aware of any pets or kids that may be at home, for their safety too.
All wallpaper and wall coverings must be fully stripped prior to works beginning. Where this is left on, it can affect the adhesive structure of plaster mixes and cause areas affected to fail.
What are your prices?
Depending on the work involved, we may provide a contracted hourly fee, with material costs priced separately. Alternatively it will be priced up on a full project basis, with price breakdown.
Where there is some damage showing through or issues that lie behind existing walls, it can be difficult to identify and price without first carrying out an assessment, potentially opening wall/ceiling areas to further investigate. We therefore look to carry out a visual assessment, prior to providing a price and timescales.
We are always honest and upfront about job requirements and any underlying structural concerns we may encounter. It is important for us to ensure you are fully informed at every stage and are in agreement before undertaking any repairs.
Can you help me fix bad workmanship?
Repairing DIY jobs or poor workmanship can be tricky to assess and complete. Some products used can adhere differently to walls, or react badly with subsequent products used. A poor structure base can also take significantly longer to straighten out with plaster, costing you more and often making it impossible to leave a good finish.
Where this is the case, prior work completed may need to be removed to help ensure for a strong reliable fixant. Without which, the repairer can appear liable for any subsequent damage or poor finish, due to the initial failed works. To help minimise any additional costs and delays, we advise hiring professionals for any work you are unsure of and to check their previous work and reviews.
Will it be messy?
More than likely, yes. Plaster is a very fine powder to work with unfortunately and where there are removal of any existing walls or ceilings, there will be additional dust. We do however, always try to minimise this wherever we can.
If you can have the room emptied as far as possible and have a clear access. We will always provide floor coverings and work considerately, vacuuming on completion.
Do you complete outdoor work?
No, at this time we don't carry out any outdoor works such as roughcasting, rendering or cement works.
How long will the plaster take to dry out?
Usually around 4-7 days, although some areas areas may have received thicker coats eg to level out or fill cracks, so it could be up to 2 weeks before areas are thoroughly dry and ready for painting / decorating.
The drying time will be affected by the room temperature, ventilation and humidity. Turning the heating up to speed up the drying process, is not recommended. Excess heat will cause it to dry too quickly and may result in cracks appearing.
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Equally decorating over wet plaster is not advised. Fresh plaster is porous and will absorb any moisture from paint/wallpaper, meaning it will likely peel.
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The optimum condition is to provide some ventilation by opening a couple of windows slightly. You can keep the heating on if you prefer, ensuring however this is kept low for a number of days to avoid issues.
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When it is completely dry, the walls/ceiling will have changed from a patchy brown colour, to a light pink shade that is consistent across the room.
Can you plaster over artex?
Generally yes, it is possible to plaster over artex. Additional preparation work is required and more applications of plaster are usually needed to help level out the design. This will be dependent on the thickness of the design and any coving in place will need to be considered too. Alternative options may include plaster boarding over the top of the area.
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We will need to assess the artexed area prior to recommendation and advise where necessary of any asbestos survey/removal required.