Talking about walls – small areas and doesn't have to be especially level (just filling in holes left by previous owner).

Nothing ceiling-wise.

Polyfilla do a 'repair' box, and you could get a small float or trowel in B+Q but honestly, do you not have a pro 'friend of a friend' who could do it for you? It's really bloody hard to do well. (Although my landlord seemed grateful for my emergency bodge…)

P.S. I found the Polyfilla kit was far too runny with their instructions though, use half the water and let it sit for a bit?

EDIT: Just saw the small holes bit. You'll be fine. Maybe get a small trowel?

Polyfilla, didn't think of that.

No this is a refurb job that I want to learn/do as much as possible myself.

It was an elderly persons house previously. Structurly/exterior etc etc kept in top condition but the interior needs updating.

So far today (day1) I've ripped out all the carpets, removed curtains, fittings on walls, shelving and tomorrow I'm knocking out the false wall alcoves.

I've done loads of this and the best stuff is easyfill. That's my considered advice, take it or leave it.

Are you papering or painting? If you're intending on painting, 99.9% of the time you'll need a full reskim in an old house. Could get away with it if you're papering though.

How big are the holes?

Use interior pollyfilla only, use flexible filling knives and you cant go wrong. fill slightly proud then sand flat

A mix of paint and repapering. In some rooms the paper is in great condition

Hole-wise we are talking the holes left by pulling out wallplugs.

Eitherside of the fireplace are two crescent-shaped false wall alcoves created. Naughty clawhammer is going to take these out and I imagine it might remove some corners of plastering etc.

In the kitchen the elderly couple had a kitchen fitted not too long ago for £10k (I kid you not). The people who fitted it look like they ripped out the old kitchen simply bolted it onto the walls, not plastering or finishing anything around. So there are long bits above the kitchen units etc that need refilling.

BTW its not a 10k kitchen. Their neighbours who I've been speaking to implored them to call in the Police but they didn't want any bother. **** criminal.

I really want to have a go and do as much as possible as I've never done DIY before and its my first renovation project 😀

For bigger areas use a caulking board instead of filling knives.

Polycell trade filler for the small holes, blue box from BnQ.
Removing the alcoves is going to leave a mess most likely. For anything wider and deeper than 25mm ish, you should use bonding or one coat plaster. Neither leave a good finish though and need a finish coat, either skim or fine filler

Removing the alcoves is going to leave a mess most likely.

I know, I am considering using a saw (up and following the line of the chimney breast to minimise plaster-damage then along the top gently coaxing out).

Nah, you'll just ruin your saw on the nails. Smash the most of it out, them gently pry out the battons in the wall

Be careful with the coving

2nd easyfill. Good stuff for small areas

just had a full hallway/stairway/landing replastered £350
you wouldnt pull your own teeth would you mark?………. 😉

This one?

ton, my Uncle (Mums brother) owns a building firm and my Grandfather owned his own Carpentry business. I really do want to see how far I can do non-structural things in the house 🙂

Anything else I'll get my Uncles staff in 😀 but for once in my life I want to do achieve something new like this 🙂

hora – Member

This one?

Yes, if the holes are deeper than a feww mmm then fill them with bonding coat first, only because it'll go off faster.

my whole house had scruffy/old/patchy uneven plaster that had been papered over. I used jointing compound (used to fill the gaps in drylining boards) and a skimming trowel+board to go over the entire wall, , not to apply a full coat just to get the stuff into the imperfections.
when its dry it is VERY easy to sand flat and after i had painted the room, if there was any obvious holes etc i just reapllied sanded flat and painted over again and now i would say 90% of the house looks like its been skimmed by a 'profesional'.
all it cost me was £17 for a big bag of the stuff £4 for a mixing whisk and £20 for the board and trowel (plus time and effort) not the £1600 average qouted by the plateres i had look at it.

I've had some of my rooms skimmed professionally for about £350 a room (inc ceilings). Perfect finish and way better than the ways where I've had a go at plastering which are ok but no where near perfect.

jointing compound=easyfill

I've done quite a bit of the plastering in my house… mostly self taught, with a few tips from a pro who did my living room (walls were massive and way beyond me at the time!).

I played around with various polyfilla and one-coat stuff before I discovered that the pros use the proper stuff for a reason; it is MUCH better!

If you are plastering a section of brickwork which needs to be deep, use proper bonding plaster – it is lovely stuff, nice and thick and really sticky. The skill is in getting it off the hawk and on to the wall, without dropping it. After that, you just need to wait for it it go off a bit, then polish it up and scratch it ready for your skim coat.

Finishing plaster is also great stuff, as long as you are confident and work steadily through a well mixed batch of plaster. Get it quite wet and keep going to get it on the wall… If you are doing a fairly small area, get it on and level, then have a cup of tea. After the brew, come back and polish it with your trowel and a spray bottle of water.

Get stuck in and learn, but leave the one coat plaster and the expensive kits to the bodge artists. A 25kg bag of plaster will cost you about £6. Buy yourself a comfy hawk (the thing you hold your working plaster on) and a reasonable metal trowel – about 20 or 30 quid should get you both of these. Oh, and buy a big rubber bucket to mix your plaster in, and a paddle attachment for a drill. Nothing expensive needed, just lots of patience and someone to help you who doesn't mind you shouting and getting angry at inanimate objects 🙂

I'm now reasonable enough for people to ask me to do bits of plastering for them. I did my brother's hall last month and he was very happy with it – aided by the fact that it only cost him a curry and some beers.

Dave

You can get ready mixed plaster from B&Q job done

Bit overkill for some screw holes maybe? 🙄

Depends how big the screws where? 😮