Plastering & Drylining in Bolton & Greater Manchester

Why a Good Plastering Job Decides How a Room Looks

Decorators have a saying: a great paint finish hides nothing — it amplifies what's beneath it. If the plaster's wavy, the paint will show every ripple in the right light. If it's sharp and true, even budget paint looks high-end.

We plaster to a finish standard, not a 'good enough' standard. Sharp arrises, flat planes, no trowel ripples, no shrinkage cracks where the bead meets the wall.

Skim Coat vs Full Re-Plaster vs Dryboard & Skim

A skim coat (3–4mm of finish plaster over an existing sound substrate) works well on walls that have been previously plastered and are still flat and stable.

A full re-plaster (backing coat plus skim, around 12–15mm) is needed where the existing plaster is hollow, cracked or has come away from the brickwork.

Dryboard and skim — fixing fresh plasterboard over the existing surface, then skimming — is often the cleanest solution for old artex ceilings or badly damaged walls. We'll talk through which is right for your room.

Drying Times & Painting New Plaster

Fresh plaster needs 5–10 days to dry fully (longer in cold or damp weather) before it's ready for painting. The first coat onto new plaster should be a watered-down 'mist coat' so the paint can soak in and bond properly.

We'll always tell you when a wall is genuinely ready — not just dry to the touch.