Gypsum, often called plaster of Paris, is made of common household items. These materials, often used in the construction of plaster on lath walls in older homes still have use when remodeling or repairing old walls. You can mix your own plaster of Paris substitute as a DIY project and use it to skim coat old plaster walls. Skim coating is the process of applying a thin layer of plaster over existing plaster to help resurface older walls that show signs of wearing and imperfection.
Instructions
Mixing the Ingredients
1. Pour 3 cups of all-purpose flour into a large mixing bowl.
2. Pour 2 cups of warm tap water into the bowl. You can adjust the amount of flour and water, if needed; however, keep a 3-to-2 ratio of flour to water.
3. Mix the flour and water together with a mixing spoon. If you want to ensure a thick, consistent texture without clumps of dried flour in the mix, use an electric mixer to mix the ingredients together. Keep mixing until the mixture has the consistency of wet plaster.
Applying the Plaster
4. Set the temperature in the room to 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. If you cannot obtain that temperature, expect the pliability time of the plaster to lessen. This means you will have less time to apply the plaster to the wall.
5. Wet a hawk trowel with water to prevent the plaster from sticking to the trowel as it dries. Place a large amount of the plaster onto the trowel. Using a hawk trowel eliminates the need for you to go back and forth to your container of plaster. This helps to save time.
6. Pick up enough plaster from the hawk trowel with a plaster trowel to cover the bottom half of the trowel's surface plate.
7. Hold the plaster trowel at a 45-degree angle to the wall at a height approximately halfway up the wall. Slide the trowel upward to remove the plaster from the trowel and to lay a thin coat of plaster onto the wall.
8. Rub the trowel in a downward motion to level out the plaster you coated onto the wall.
9. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until you cover the entire wall with an even, thin coat of plaster. Work to eliminate grooves and seams between layers by overlapping the coats as you apply them. The object is to apply a seamless, thin skim coat that requires no sanding when you are completed. Allow 24 to 48 hours of drying time.
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