your house regardless!
in this article
What is plastering?
“Smaller home improvements, like plastering are important in maintaining your home and can be done at any time of the year,” says Kevin Westhead,
from Oxford Decorators Ltd. External plastering (also known as rendering) is important to maintain your home as it is tougher and helps waterproof the walls, protecting them from the elements. Another less popular type of rendering is pebble dashing, where small stones are added to the mixture, giving a bumpy, textured look. This is not a very common practice anymore and was often used in the past to cover up shoddy brickwork.
Plaster is one of the oldest building materials; the most primitive form was mud plaster, used to hold together structures made of branches or wood for example. Today internal plastering is used more as a way of smoothing out surfaces and preparing them for decoration, it also adds strength to the wall or ceiling and helps seal together building materials.
Types of plaster
Cement based plaster is made up of three parts sand plaster and one part cement. It is used on the building’s exterior to waterproof the walls, but can also be used in areas inside the home that may be susceptible to damp.
Gypsum based plaster is used for interior work and is malleable enough to sand down and manipulate, even when dry. It will crumble if exposed to moisture, so damp can be a problem.
Browning plaster is used as a backing layer for porous materials like brick, clay or masonry to prepare and seal the material before the main coat of plaster is applied.
Bonding plaster is used as a backing coat on concrete, stone and other non-porous materials, for example a wall already coated in PVA.
One coat plaster supposedly does the job of base and finishing layer.
Top coat finishing plaster is skimmed across as a final layer to form a smooth, even surface ready for decorating onto.
Lime plaster was commonly used before gypsum based mixture became available. It is an environmentally-friendly plastering substance which absorbs water and is used in old buildings. Lime plaster can be more expensive and time-consuming to apply.
Plastering Advice
It does not matter if you have only moved into a totally new house, or just want to redecorate your surroundings for some kind of fancy freshness, because when it comes to interior decoration or refurbishment, plastering always comes handy! Besides, if your house has good plastering done, all those latest wallpapers and paints will not look dull at all, in fact, every little detail will be visibly attractive.
It is vital that when you make or prepare a budget, the things you expect from the plasterer are in your mind. First of all, always go for someone who has tons of experience in the plastering area, and is aware of every little thing or tiny detail to be dealt with. Laying dustsheets in order to not make the area messy, relocating valuable commodities to another room before starting the job etc. are signs that you are dealing with a truly competent contractor.
Many plasterers even make arrangements for waste disposal for the removed parts of plaster in case that is required. Moreover, good plastering contractors are always sincere about having all the tools and equipments necessary to perform the job as best as possible according to your expectations.
Estimated cost of plastering, re-plastering and ceiling plastering
At this point, you may be wondering what the final costs look like when it comes to plastering! Actually, costs differ a lot based on the size and type of 
work. For small plastering jobs, £530 is sufficient during majority of the circumstances; and while ceiling plastering may cost around £228, re-plastering cost should be close to £255. If the job is medium, expect to pay around £630 for plastering, £290 for re-plastering, and £285 for ceiling plastering. For large jobs, £450 is ideal for ceiling plastering. Further, £400 is a good estimate for re-plastering, and £985 for plastering.
Note that the above prices are to be used as guidelines only since the figures are only estimates derived from a variety of jobs. You see, there is no guarantee about certainly of accuracy. To get the most up to date prices, you should go ahead and contact some local as well as national plasterers, so that you not only know what is actually going on, but also get quotes that you can truly trust which are unbiased. Sometimes, professionals require you to pay your due according to the hours worked, and at other times, you may need to pay based on the number of square metres in question, and yet there are some other professionals who demand a direct price for the entire job.
Shall I DIY or not?
If you are someone who wants to do the job yourself, there is nothing stopping you. However, you should be confident enough regarding your ability to perform the job nicely; and sincerity associated with bringing the right materials and allocating the right time is significant too. So if you do not really know what you are doing, you may actually end up with low-quality plaster, only to get it re-plastered by people who know what they are doing! And of course, since all the little things such as buying materials, budget planning etc. will be on your part, you may have to spend many sleepless nights trying to figure out everything, and may even end up spending more than that required to get the same done by professionals!
You must remember that plastering costs depend on a lot of factors, and there is no certainly of price in such a job. The region where you live, the type of plastering you need to get done etc. are just some of the factors that play important role in the final cost. For instance, if you have squared room, or require just walls to be plastered, the cost will be pretty cheap. On the other hand, if the shape of the room is not very simple, and ceilings and floors need plastering as well, you are definitely looking at a higher amount to be spent. The only thing you should really be concerned about is finding a real good deal, and that requires you to certainly compare different quotes before choosing the final deal.
Plastering tips and advice for newbies
References
Plastering cost guide – https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/plastering-cost-guide/
Plastering costs – How much does cost to plaster a room – https://www.toptradespeople.co.uk/i/cost-guides/much-cost-plaster-room/
Plastering tips: Tips to improve your DIY plastering – http://www.masteringplastering.com/plastering-tips/plastering-tips.php
Plasterers: How much should you pay? – https://local.which.co.uk/advice/cost-price-information-plasterer-plastering
Getting professional plastering finish – http://www.whatprice.co.uk/decorating/plastering-finishing.html
Plaster – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaster
How to lime plaster – http://www.limestuff.co.uk/pages/user-guides/lime-plastering.html