Written price after a look at the job
New Build & Extensions
New Build and Extension Plastering in London
New work finished flat, and made to read as one surface with the house it joins.
Dust sheeted, swept and cleared down daily
One person on site, start to finish
Work planned around parking and access
An extension is the most common new work in London housing, and the plastering comes at the end of a long build when everyone involved wants to be finished. That is exactly when the junction between new and old gets rushed.
New blockwork and hundred year old brick do not move at the same rate. The line where they meet is where a crack appears in the first winter, and whether it does is decided by what goes across that junction before the finish.
The junction between new and old
Where a new opening has been formed into an existing wall, or a new wall butts an old one, the two surfaces are at different levels and made of different things.
That line gets scrimmed or meshed and the coats built across it, so the finished surface is continuous. Skimming up to it and stopping is what produces a hairline crack along the join a few months later.
Boarding out a shell
A new shell is boarded throughout: walls on dabs or on a frame, ceilings screwed to the joists, and the board set out so the joints stagger and land where they should.
Getting the boarding right is most of the job. A joint in the wrong place or a ceiling boarded off the joists will show through no amount of skimming afterwards.
Sequence, and drying
New blockwork holds water and a new slab holds a great deal more. Plastering into a building that has not dried out traps that moisture behind the finish.
The programme gets built around that rather than against it, which sometimes means waiting a week that nobody wants to wait. It is cheaper than doing the walls twice.
When to get it looked at
- Rear and side return extensions
- Loft conversions needing the whole room finished
- New openings formed into an existing wall
- Garage and outbuilding conversions
- Whole new build interiors
New Build & Extensions on site
Photographs of finished work go here. Until they do, each frame is labelled with what belongs in it rather than filled with a picture of somebody else's job.
New Build & Extensions across London
Central and South West London
ChelseaKensingtonFulhamBatterseaClaphamWandsworthHammersmithPutneyPimlicoWestminsterBalhamTootingEarlsfieldSouthfieldsBarnesRichmondTwickenhamChiswickActonEalingShepherd's BushNotting HillHolland ParkBayswaterPaddingtonMaryleboneBelgraviaKnightsbridgeBrixtonStreathamDulwichCamberwellKenningtonVauxhallNine ElmsStockwell
New Build & Extensions: frequently asked questions
When should the plasterer come to an extension?
Once the shell is watertight, first fix is done and signed off, and the structure has had a chance to dry. Coming in before first fix is finished means cutting the board open again afterwards.
Will the join with the old house crack?
Not if it is meshed or scrimmed and the coats are built across it. New blockwork and old brick move at different rates, so the reinforcement across that line is what stops a hairline appearing in the first winter.
How long does an extension take to plaster?
A single storey rear extension is usually several days: boarding, then taping or scrimming, then the finish, with drying time between stages. It is not a one day job however small the room looks.
Do you board as well as skim?
Yes, and on new work it is better done by the same person. Boarding decides where the joints fall and how flat the ceiling is, and those are the things that show through a finish.
Can you plaster before the floor goes down?
Usually better to, because the walls get finished to the right level and there is no new floor to protect. The frame and the board get set out to the finished floor level rather than the slab.
What about the new slab drying?
A new slab holds a lot of water and it comes out into the room. Plastering into that traps it behind the finish, so the sequence allows for it rather than ignoring it.
Do you do loft conversions?
Yes, including the sloping ceilings, dormer cheeks and velux reveals that come with them. Board work on a slope shows every dip, so those are set out true before any finish goes on.
Who makes good after the electrician?
Chases and back boxes get made good as part of the plastering, provided first fix is finished before the boarding starts. Coming back for it afterwards is a separate visit.
Other work
Plastering
Backing coat and finish on walls taken back to brick, or fresh board skimmed flat and ready for paint.
Read moreSkimming
A finish coat over walls and ceilings that are sound, flattening out years of patching and filler.
Read moreRendering
Rear elevations, side returns and extensions rendered in a reinforced system, with the top coat chosen to suit the wall.
Read moreNew Build & Extensions in London
Call Frank or send the job details and he will come and look.
Get in touch
Tell Frank what the walls are doing and he will come and look at them. The visit is free and the price comes after it, in writing.
- Phone07788 866598
- WhatsAppMessage 07788 866598
- CoveringCentral and South West London