Plasterer in Nieuwegein

You usually look for a plasterer only when the wall is already in a bad way: cracks, a ceiling with holes from old lights, a wall where a door has been taken out. I plaster walls and ceilings in Nieuwegein, Utrecht and the towns around them. I do the painting and the wallpapering afterwards myself if you want that. It belongs with a renovation, and it is often the last step of one.

You can see how I prepare a room on the project page for a hallway with a new front door. The walls and the ceiling there were stripped back and made ready for the finish, and the column in the corner was reboarded with plasterboard and a corner bead. Those photos are from halfway through the work, not from the handover.

What plastering is, and when filling is enough

Plastering means a new, smooth layer on a wall or ceiling. You do it when the surface is too rough or too damaged to paint or wallpaper, or when you want a wall that is flat all over. Filling is lighter work: closing a hole, a crack or a dent. If you only have a few spots, filling is often enough. I first look at what the wall needs and only then at what I do with it.

Paint-ready or textured

In Dutch quotes you will see the word sausklaar. It means smooth and ready to paint or wallpaper. A texture leaves a pattern in the wall and hides small irregularities better. A smooth surface shows them, but it is the logical base if you want to wallpaper. Beyond that it is a matter of taste.

What is underneath

The plastering itself is rarely the problem. The surface underneath is. Old wallpaper paste, loose paint, cracks that keep coming back, a wall that draws damp: you deal with it before a layer goes over it. If you skip that, it shows again within a season.

After knocking through a wall, removing a wall or replacing a window frame, plaster is part of the repair. With new window frames in a living room, a bedroom and a bathroom, the wall around each frame was closed up again and plastered flat up to the profile. In those photos the plaster is still wet, hence the dark edges. Anyone who has window frames replaced nearly always has this work as well.

If the wall is damp or has mould on it, plastering does not help. The cause has to go first. How that works with me is on the page about water damage repair.

Ceilings and edges

A ceiling is harder than a wall. The light falls across it at an angle, and you see every wave in the evening with the lamp on. That is why a ceiling takes more time than a wall.

The same goes for corners and edges. A wall that is smooth in the middle and rough at the skirting board or the window frame stands out right there. That is where most of the work is.

Painting: walls, ceilings, doors and window frames

I paint indoors: walls and ceilings, but also doors and window frames.

A few things to know if you are looking for an interior painter:

Prime new plaster first. Plaster is very absorbent. Without a primer the paint disappears into the wall and you get patches.

Wait until the wall is dry. Paint on a wet wall blisters and peels. If the wall is the same colour all over, it is probably dry.

Dark colours need more coats. A deep green wall covers more slowly than a white one. Try the colour on the wall itself, because the light in your room changes it.

Doors and frames are seen up close. That is where every drip and every mark shows.

If painting is part of the same job as the plastering, I go through the order with you: plaster first, then let it dry, then prime, then paint.

Wallpapering

Wallpaper shows every irregularity. So wallpapering starts with the wall and not with the wallpaper. If the wall is not smooth enough, I make it flat first, so you do not see seams and bumps.

If there is old wallpaper on it, that has to come off, together with the paste. Bare plaster soaks up the paste if you do not prime it first, and then the wallpaper comes off. That is preparation too and not part of the hanging itself.

If you want a wallpaper hanger in Nieuwegein or Utrecht for one room or for your whole home, send me a photo of the wall. Then I can see what has to happen first.

How it works

You send a message through the contact page with a few photos of the walls and the ceilings. I come and look, feel the surface and go through with you what you want: plastering only, or painting and wallpapering as well. After that you get a quote that says per item what I do.

I work in Nieuwegein, Utrecht, IJsselstein, Houten and Vianen. If you are somewhere else, just ask.

If it is a single crack, a sealant edge or a cupboard door that hangs crooked, look at handyman and maintenance.