Julian Cassell's DIY Blog

Sealing damp stains is essential before applying any paint or wallpaper to your wall surfaces. Patches of damp can appear for a number of reasons – burst or dripping pipes, weeping radiator valves, leaking waste pipes or a broken roof tile are all possibilities. Investigate the cause and get it fixed before dealing with the decorative aspect of the repair. Damp stained areas can only be redecorated successfully if the cause of the damp has been eradicated. read more »

Paint requires stripping when there are multiple layers of old paint that are both uneven and loosely adhered to to the wood and/or previous paint layers below. Exterior window sills, for example, are areas that are common to strip before repainting. Most chemical strippers are now more user-friendly than they used to be, as they are water-based. However it is still necessary to only work in well-ventilated areas, and use sufficient dust sheets to protect other surfaces. read more »

Small holes in hollow walls (stud walls) are tricky to fill as if you just use filler, it simply falls through into the void inside the wall. It is therefore necessary to provide some support for the filler, which is best achieved by using a small offcut of plasterboard. read more »

When you need to fill a large hole in a hollow wall (stud wall), the problem is that you can’t just use some patch plaster as it will simply disappear inside the wall as soon as you apply it. It therefore becomes necessary to actually patch in a piece of plasterboard which may then be filled over the top to provide a smooth finish. The thickness of plasterboard does vary and it is normally either 9.5mm or 12.5mm thick. read more »

For filling large holes, and damaged areas, in solid walls (masonry), you need to patch plaster. Plastering on any scale is a messy job so make sure that you use dust sheets to protect surrounding surfaces. If you choose to mix up your own plaster, rather than use ready-mixed, make sure that your buckets are spotlessly clean, and never use out of date plaster as it will harden too quickly making it impossible to smooth. read more »