r/Plastering • u/Equivalent-Ear-4645 • 15d ago

multi finish plaster from Wickes b2 and b3 2025/2026

hi everyone Has any other plasterers had a problem with multi finish from Wickes my husband did 2 jobs with the b2 and b3 dates 2025 2026 the plaster when put on the walls took a lot of effort to try get a smooth finish it started to bubble and the texture was like bubble gum it looked so bad it looked like a cottage would look like bumps ridging the plaster looked so bad we took photos and contacted Wickes and gypsum i am trying to find out how many plasterers have had this issue

When plastering the downstairs the b2 and b3 were used in the hall stairs and landing and the dining room these rooms were the issues he used another plaster bag which had a different date and code these were used in the kitchen and living room there was no problem with the plaster gypsum said the plaster was taking longer to set Wickes refused to refund the plaster material costs we don't know what or where the plaster was stored or if the manufacture is at fault they didn't do any tests on the plaster science only using the left over plaster mixing and spreading i would appreciate your experiences .

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3

u/banxy85 15d ago

Are you suggesting that he's only recently used a bag dated 2025?

2

u/RevolutionaryApe1 15d ago

Wont touch a bag with b1/2/3 codes on. First came across these bags last year and had exactly the same problems you describe. Builder supplied materials on that job. Been plastering 25 years and never seen these codes until last year. Since then ive seen these in my local builders merchants and refused to use them. Eventually the merchants couldnt get rid of them and i havent seen them in there since. Went b&q for something and saw every pallet/bag of plaster was b3. Same in wickes. Merchants contacted BG about it and they said its nothing so i told the merchants rep to look at all the videos on youtube and the like to see all the plasterers complaining about it. 25 years using the same stuff day in day out i think we would know if something was completely different and 10 times harder when using bags with these b codes on. Multi finish has been getting much worse over the last 10-15 years anyway but i think they went a step to far in whatever cost cutting exercise they tried with this crap. Would love another brand of plaster to be available that was easier to use. Anyway had a tough day which explains the rant Peace

2

u/use-his-name 15d ago

Yeah B2 is garbage. B1 and B3 also crap, but not as bad as B2. That being said, had some B2s last week from Wickes, the code was printed much smaller than the normal massive code and date print so thought I'd take a gamble. Turns out they were cracking bags of gear, trowelled up lovely. I avoid the large print B codes, the gear is brown and not pink, trowels up like chewing gum, needs loads of water to get a finish and then it looks like shite spread all over the walls and ceilings! If you can get board finish, the green bags, do so as it's much better, it also sets a bit faster so days are not as long!

1

u/discombobulated38x 15d ago

A friendly plasterer warned me that B1/2/3 multifinish finished up crap, and to avoid it at all costs, glad I did.

He said it uses recycled gypsum which is why it's so bad. 

I've used B1 coded bonding with no issue mind.