Painting a newly plastered ceiling-any tips?

[101damnations]

We've had to have the whole kitchen skimmed ,before the new units are fitted on Monday.The plasterer finished skimming on Thursday and it is nearly all dry.I have never painted on fresh plaster before,so would be grateful for any tips.Do I need to apply a watered down solution of paint first,because it sinks in? Can I do this with kitchen paint?

Thankyou very much.

[shelleylou]

Whitewash the ceiling firts or the paint will just absorb into the plaster. I use white emulsion or if i've got a bit of a colour left over in a tin use that as long as its not really dark/ going under a really pale colour.

[skidoodle]

Wait around 6 weeks before painting.

[MillyMollyMoo]

Yeah wait if you can I went crazy 5 days after my walls were done and painted them, it took DH another week with the sander and the patience of a saint to put it right

[skybluewinking]

I had my bathroom ceiling skimmed, and asked advice at my local Focus, as could not find a primer that seemed to be right. Got advice from a guy in there who was about 60 (only mentioning as he clearly had loads of experience!)
He advised using watered down PVA, from memory half and half. I did that then painted 2 coats of emulsion, and it is still perfect 6 months later, so hoping it will remain so for a bit!
And it's cheap

[101damnations]

6 weeks really! I don't know how I'll be able to do it when the wall units are up.The plasterer said Sunday should be fine.Hmm,I'd rather leave it than bodge it.

Thanks for the help though,we have both pva and white emulsion in the shed.Will have to sit on my hands for a few weeks.

I

[MrsL123]

Noooo please don't PVA new plaster! It seals in the moisture and can cause huge problems later on. It also forms a skin over the plaster which can cause your paint to peel.

You need a decent quality non-vinyl trade emulsion that will allow the plaster to breath and continue it's drying process. Dulux supermatt is the best, but really any matt trade emulsion will do. Your first coat should be a watered down 'mist coat' (mixing ratios will be printed on the tin).

Hope this helps!

[MrsL123]

Sorry meant to add, undiluted paint will always peel if it's applied to new plaster, whether it's given 6 days or 6 weeks to dry out - at least one properly diluted mist coat always has to be done first to provide a 'key' for the topcoat.

[101damnations]

MrsL123,you got there before me.I'd just gone and looked at the plasterers forums and they say exactly what you say,even down to the Dulux mist coat.Thankyou.I have rung dh at work and told him that we will wait a couple of weeks before we attempt anything,as we don't want to ruin our lovely smooth ceiling and walls.

[MrsL123]

My dad is a plasterer (among other things!) so I've had many a thing drilled into my skull over the past few years

The Dulux stuff is great but you might find it a bit expensive because it only comes in big tubs (not sure how much area you need to cover). If it is, Wickes trade emulsion is good too (B&Q and Homebase not so good)

[MillyMollyMoo]

MRS L123 - stay right there I have a list of questions, I think you need a live slot on webcam or something, perhaps weekly

[MrsL123]

Lol - MrsL and her DIY disasters! I've had a few of those in my time, believe me. I live 300 miles away from my dad so had to get a local plasterer to do some work for us last year and he completely botched the job, much to my dad's amusement

He won't be so amused when I make him come up in the summer to put it right

[nappyzonecantrunfortoffee]

We have been painting new plaster for weeks now - this is what our builder told us - he said to wait till its dry then sand it all over roughly so the paint has something to grab onto and to reduce risk of disaster then do a diliuted 40% white wash then after that do your full strength voats - we have done this in our new rooms and ceilings and they have painted right nice - good luck . We have waited about 3 days for them to dry but ours are dot and dabbed as opposed to ye old world days of full plaster our builder keeps yacking on about when you used to have to wait about 6 weeks.

[jalopy]

White wash or watered down PVA.

[DecorHate]

We had a similar situation with our new kitchen a few years ago. I used paint for new plaster (might have been from Wickes) once the walls & ceiling had dried - I didn't wait 6 weeks, like you I wanted to do it before units were fitted. We have had most of our house replastered over the years and this is the only paint I have found that I haven't had any cracks with

[Carlag73]

To tell if plaster is ready to be painted just stick a sticking plaster on it and leave overnight, when you pull it off, if it is a darker colour where the plaster has been then there is still moisture in it

[mrsminiverscharlady]

I'm fairly sure the OP's plaster is OK to be painted now, without the need for sticking plasters, given that this thread is more than 3 years old

[deepfriedsage]

Plaster on plaster, ha ha.