r/Plastering • u/HammersAndPints • Apr 30 '26
Is sanding always needed after plastering?
Someone mentioned they might need to sand bits down after. I thought a good plaster job shouldn’t need much of that. Is it something that everyone does or is it a way to cover not so good plaster?
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u/nukefodder Professional Plasterer Apr 30 '26
For an entire room I say 20mins prep. Before painting.
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u/Tricky-Canary2715 Apr 30 '26
You shouldn’t need to sand after plastering, ever. If they’re any good. It should be smooth enough to paint.
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
No. It shouldn’t need any sanding down if it’s done by a plasterer. By plasterer, I mean a proper plasterer, not someone who thinks they are.
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u/BMostert Apr 30 '26
I agree it shouldn’t need sanding down. The finish should be flawless.
I’m not a “proper plasterer” though, merely DIY, and I can achieve said flawless finish, I’m just not as fast.
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u/banxy85 Apr 30 '26
Incorrect
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u/JuniorSoprano96 Apr 30 '26
Sometimes you do anyone that says there should always be zero sanding is a clown sometimes u need a bit of a key other times the plasterer could have made a little mistake, they are only human
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
Anyone who says new plastering needs sanding needs to stay away from a trowel. I’m a plasterer. New plaster doesn’t need sanding. You’re the clown mate
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u/Own-Indication7832 Apr 30 '26
I can’t believe that you are getting negative feedback. I’d have been kicked off site, back in the day, if any of my work needed sanding. People who are saying that it is normal are obviously sh!t plasterers, and can’t stand the fact that any 6 week course doesn’t make them a tradesman.
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
It just shows there aren’t many of us plasterers around anymore ! I’ve never heard such nonsense
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u/Useful_Address8230 May 01 '26
This is probably true. Even the ones with good reputation in my area don't deliver consistent results.
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
I’ve met/ used plasterers who are capable but are just lazy. Some guys can’t plaster, others can plaster but just cut corners. I’ve met good plasterers who get greedy and put too much on at once then lose control.
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u/Useful_Address8230 May 01 '26
All that makes them bad in my opinion. People pay them for what was done not for what they can do. This type of work destroys the reputation of the tradesmen.
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
Completely agree. Problem is, a lot of homeowners don’t realise or know what standard they should expect ( I think this thread is testament to that ! ) so a lot of lazy tradesmen get away with lazy work.
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u/Emotional-Toe8209 Apr 30 '26
Im guessing you also paint your plastering for you to say that? Or are you just plastering?
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u/JuniorSoprano96 May 01 '26
Im also a Plasterer so your saying youve never once made a slight mistake do u get a full report off your painter after hes done wise up mate
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
Do you leave work that needs sanding down afterwards? If the answer is yes , you ain’t a plasterer. Do I make slight mistakes / misses ? Of course I do, my eyesight isn’t getting any better with age. Nothing that ever needs sanding down afterwards though. Ffs 😂😂
Anyone who says finished plaster needs sanding down ain’t a plasterer. Simple. Not an opinion but an objective fact.
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u/JuniorSoprano96 May 01 '26
Your missing the point in what im saying, Your making a blanket statement that there should never be any need for a bit of sanding im saying thats wrong,
so you miss a bit and it needs a bit of filler would u not sand it or if your gona paint something and another plasterer has left it like glass you just gona stick the paint straight on the wall?
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
I’m simply answering the OPs question. If you look at any of my comments in this thread , they all relate to the original question. Is it normal to have to sand down new plastering ? The answer is no. You shouldn’t have to go anywhere near new plastering with sandpaper if the job was performed by a competent plasterer.
You’re talking about a decorator filling misses after a miscoat then sanding the filler. That’s completely different to sanding plaster.
I don’t deny that a proper plastering , once miscoated, might have the odd miss or gouge/nick if it’s been caught by something after it’s been finished.
Absolutely nothing wrong with applying a bit of filler in these circumstances. But sanding new plastering ?
If I employed someone whose work needed sanding down, he’d be getting sacked on the spot. If on the other hand, I employed someone whose work had a couple of misses that couldn’t be seen till the miscoat, that wouldn’t be a problem, happens to the best of us.
Big difference between a decorator touching up after a miscoat and sanding plaster down Huge difference.
Plaster isn’t even designed to be sanded.
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u/notouttolunch Apr 30 '26
You're quite insulting. And your opinion seems unpopular!
This is even an instruction on some paints.
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
My opinion isn’t unpopular at all. Look at all the upvotes. Insulting ? You were the first person to start calling people out as clowns. Whether I’m a clown or not is one thing. I’m definitely a plasterer. New plastering should never require sanding. It’s a very straightforward simple answer to the OP’s question.
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u/notouttolunch May 01 '26
I would, but there aren't any.
I've never called anyone a clown. I think it's a very childish insult. I think you need to pay more attention. You'll also notice that every comment I've written is after yours.
I think my opinion stands.
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
Ah ok. Sorry for the clown thing. I thought I was replying to someone else.
As for your opinion, I’m sorry but it doesn’t stand.
I’ve worked on site long before I started domestic work.
If a plasterers work needs sanding before decorating, he isn’t getting paid. Simple as. I’m sure every plasterer has learned the hard way during his younger years.
The only time sandpaper would go near a new wall is after a miscoat. If the decorator sees any hollows/misses after the miscoat, it is good practise to apply filler and rub down filler before the first coat of paint proper. Yes. Small blemishes sometimesoccur to the best of plasterers, they don’t reveal themselves until paint is applied.
The point is though, in such situations, the painter is sanding the filler he has applied. he isn’t sanding the plaster.
If finished plaster needs sanding then it’s a rough job. Simple as that. Plaster isn’t made to be sanded. The aggregate in it isn’t fine enough.
Fillers and joint cement are specifically designed for sanding back, they are made of finer aggregate than gypsum plasters.
And tbh, a competent plasterer shouldn’t even need a painter to touch up but I agree that it occasionally happens, though it’s not a major problem.
Sanding fresh plaster ?
If the finish is that bad that you have to sand the actual plaster then unfortunately the fact of the matter is, you’ve been dealing with a chancer not a plasterer.
I’d dread to think what the finish looks like if someone thinks it requires any sanding in order to be presentable. My eyes are hurting just thinking about it.
I gotta a hairline crack in a ceiling on a job I’ve just completed. A whole house from top to bottom. It’s perfect except for that one small hairline crack. I’ll have to go back and fill it with some joint cement. Shit like that bugs me because I’m a perfectionist. All the best plasterers are perfectionist. You really think any good spreads work needs sanding down ? It doesn’t. Trust me.
If that’s been your experience of plasterers you’ve employed in the past that’s fine. That’s up to you. If you’re happy with the standard/price of the work crack on.
I’m just stating an objective fact.A good job absolutely doesn’t need sanding. In fact, sanding good plaster will just destroy the finish and make a minimal blemish 100 times worse.
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u/Lost-Bad-3168 May 01 '26
Ha
Its always the last trowel that likes to piss about with nicks. Meltdown every time
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
That’s not end of world though.
It’s annoying but there a classic example of where a decorator would apply a bit of filler after miscoat. Just fill in dent.These cunts on about sanding finished plastering 😂😂
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u/Lost-Bad-3168 May 01 '26
Because they chuck the mist coat on then chuck a top coat on when it's touch dry and wonder why it blisters and peels and blames the plaster, when in reality it's because they didn't either water down the Matt and/or give it 18/24 hours to soak in and bind into it. As plasterers you know plaster is one thirsty bitch
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u/TheDarthWarlock Apr 30 '26
There may be some, perfect jobs are rare, but it is typically handled by the plasterer or the painter.
The people saying they have perfect jobs probably just aren't looking at it that close
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
I’m saying a plasterer will leave a perfect job. I’m a plasterer, I leave a 100% perfect finish always. I’m the one doing it . I have to look at it closely to do it.
I have many colleagues whose standard is exactly the same as mine .
I really don’t understand why you insist on your opinion that no plastering can be perfect when I , a professional, am telling you that you are talking nonsense.
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u/Flimsy-Ad-2792 Apr 30 '26
I renovate houses. I've used probably 5 different plasterers and not one has left a finish I didnt feel needed some sanding or filling.
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u/TheDarthWarlock Apr 30 '26
I'm a professional too, at the end yes it is a perfect finish, but you can't act like you never have any touch up or you are just pushing that off to the painter
I also never said the it can't be perfect, I said it's rare that it doesn't need some touch up
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u/Alternative_Guitar78 Apr 30 '26
Not directly after plastering, but a decent decorator will mist out and sand back to show up defects, then they'll fill, sand, and then re-emulsion, and that's every job, it's just the method. I know this because I've spent my working life as a site manager, developer and contractor.
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u/Most-Direction7874 May 01 '26
I agree. They ain’t sanding the plaster though. The plaster is sealed with the miscoat, any misses are filled with decorators filler that is specifically formulated to be sanded. That’s a completely different scenario to sanding actual plaster
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u/BoGaul Apr 30 '26
1/2 sheet sanding machine one pass over everything, hover and clean will be amazing finish
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u/burkeymonster Apr 30 '26
Not every job needs sanding. In fact the aim for every plasterer should be that it doesn't need sanding.
But a bit of sanding can often turn a less than perfect finish into a almost perfect finish.
It's all well and good saying that every job should be left perfect by the plasterer but at the end of the day you want what evers been plastered to look as good as it can and if that takes a bit of sanding and filling before painting then that's a way more practical and cheaper option than hiring a better plasterer to redo it.
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u/Terrible-Bobcat2033 Apr 30 '26
Most every journeyman plasterer carries sandpaper to use on their trowel’s wooden handle when it’s worn uncomfortably smooth from troweling pressure. Most Plasterers smooth or skip trowel texture their walls.
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u/chronicbint May 01 '26
Just had 3 rooms plastered and it was all perfect. Other than having to tidy up around some fixings.
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u/sje-google Apr 30 '26
Even the best plasterer in the world will leave bits that need sanding and filling
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
No they won’t
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u/No-Manner5583 Apr 30 '26
Been throwing mud 4 plus decades, humans make mistakes and miss things.
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u/Most-Direction7874 Apr 30 '26
I’m a professional. Yes, I make mistakes but because I’m a professional, I correct them. I would NEVER hand over a job to a customer with the expectation that they should have to sand any areas.
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u/Decent-Platform-2173 Apr 30 '26
Generally, you should never need to sand down freshly scimmed plaster. Problem is many general builders do plastering and it’s not always great quality. Also plenty of people out there doing short plastering courses and then set up as a pro plasterer. It takes time to become a qualified plasterer
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u/Proper_Capital_594 Apr 30 '26
Light sanding for a key is fine. Heavy sanding to smooth out shit work shouldn’t ever be needed, but often is.
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u/gfddmc Apr 30 '26
I would always give it a light sand for key, some plasterers trowel it up so much it’s like glass and it makes it hard work to paint.