Common Mistake #2 Not Using The Right Reinforcement

Lesson 2

How To Repair Your Plaster Right.  Common Mistake #2  Not Using The Right Reinforcement

  Now I want to talk about insurance.  Not the medical, life or car kind.  I am referring to the insurance (assurance) that comes when you use reinforcement - and the right kind of reinforcement - to strengthen your plaster patches.

How many times have you, or others you know, used the "finger and spackle" trick to repair plaster cracks before a new coat of paint?  And what was the result?  Probably, in many or even most cases, those cracks appeared again in a few months.  Am I right?

The reason is that the crack was only filled, not stablelized.  Many plaster cracks are somewhat dynamic.  They may move ever so slightly once in a while, enough anyway so that they show up again after you have filled and painted over them.

What you need to do to keep this from happening is simple.  You need to apply a adhesive bridge across that crack to stop its movement.  And the best way to do that is most cases is to lay down a strip of drywall tape over the crack, glued to the plaster in a thin bed of drywall compound, and then covered.  In essence, you are treating the plaster crack like a drywall seam.

If you have never used drywall compound and paper tape before, that's okay.  It's not that hard.  You can check out the tutorial page on my website about taping plaster cracks.

http://www.plaster-wall-ceiling-solutions.com/wall-crack-repair.html

Some people recommend the self adhesive fiberglass tape for plaster and drywall repair.  In my professional opinion, a big mistake.  I have made a lot of money over the years repairing "repairs" made with fiberglass tape.  The paper tape is a little trickier to use right, but is superior for most crack repair.

I discuss the virtues of drywall paper tape versus fiberglass tape on the website.

By using the right tape, and skimming it correctly, you can have the assurance that your plaster cracks will (in most cases) stay closed and out of sight.

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