How to remove old plaster from a wall. Plastering walls with old plaster: six steps. Removal of decorative coatings

The question of how to remove decorative plaster from walls is more complicated than the question of ridding surfaces of “ordinary” plaster compositions. This is due to the fact that the layer of the first type of material is usually very thin. Conventional leveling coatings can simply be knocked off. Whereas decorative finishes need to be sanded or scraped off.

What tools will be needed

Before you remove decorative plaster from the walls, you need to stock up on tools. The fastest way to get the job done is to use grinder grinder. Thanks to the rotating serrated rollers, which are located on its "sole", you can quickly remove even thin layers of finishing materials.

In the absence of a specialized power tool, you can use spatula / scraper, vibrational and grinder. If the processing surface is large, and there is no electrical equipment in the home arsenal, rent it for the required period.

Preparatory work

Before you remove decorative plaster from the walls, you need to do a little preparation. It is to be generous wet surfaces with hot water. Hot liquid will perfectly soften the material and reduce the amount of dust in the future. Throughout the process of stripping the walls, we recommend that you regularly use heated water.

After moistening, tap the walls with a hammer. Loosely attached materials will fall off on their own. With others, you will have to "fight" in the following ways.

Methods for removing decorative plaster

The removal method depends on the tool used:

  • Roughing spatula(unlike the traditional "competitor", it has a large blade thickness). Apply its blade to the Venetian or any other, holding at an acute angle and performing scraping movements, remove the finish. Move blades from one area to another. The option does not require a lot of money and does not create dust clouds. But if the processing area is significant, it will not work. Since the speed of work is minimal. Another important point: with a spatula and a scraper, only loose coatings can be dealt with;
  • Peeling and grinding machine. For very thin and strong plasters, stock up on the indicated tool. Select the medium speed mode and, putting effort on the machine, press it against the wall and move it slowly, slowly. Important! When using a power tool, a lot of dust will be released. You can't do without a respirator that protects the respiratory tract.
  • Chisel and perforator. Select a medium speed setting and hold the tool at an 80 degree angle. Proceed in the same way as above. But keep in mind that a perforator can harm the base. So take your time and work slowly. In general, the use of a perforator is recommended for the removal of conventional plaster, not decorative materials;
  • vibrating machine(also for decorative coatings from 3 mm thick). It differs from the peeling and grinding tool by the principle of operation: the vibrating working body quickly moves in one plane from side to side. Lean the device against the wall at a minimum angle, and slowly move in a certain direction.

As a rule, it is easier to deal with silicate plasters than with decorative gypsum compositions. Easier to remove Venetian and

When it comes to finishing work during repairs, it would seem that dismantling plaster is a simple matter. However, not every coating can be quickly removed with a spatula and hammer. And this is one of the problems. The second issue will arise with garbage disposal. Heavy, for example, concrete plaster has an impressive weight. Near a private house, it can pave the paths. And where to put her from the apartment? Let's try to find answers to all these questions.

Before making such an important decision, it is necessary to carefully examine all the walls and ceiling. This will help to figure out the amount of removal. Perhaps a partial cleanup can save the situation.

Coverage can be assessed in the following ways:


Proper assessment of the condition of the plaster will help to avoid unnecessary unforeseen work.

Two main ways to remove old plaster

The characteristics of different plasters differ in the composition of the solution, which affects their strength. Some species, such as concrete or bark beetle, are not so easy and quick to remove, even if they are already flaking in places. Surfaces of varying strength can be cleaned manually or mechanically.

Manual coating removal

This method is effective for removing weakly adherent plaster and for fragile walls, such as drywall:


What is for walls and how to do it correctly.

After removing all the plaster, the surface should be well swept with a broom.

Mechanical removal of the coating

The mechanical method is considered more aggressive and is used if manual cleaning did not help. Naturally, this can only be done on a solid wall made of brick or reinforced concrete.

Mechanical removal involves the use of power tools:


The small particles of concrete remaining on the base are cleaned with a metal brush or you can go through the grinder again.

Removing decorative plaster

You can clean decorative plaster using the same methods as regular plaster. Depending on its composition, the old layer can be removed easily or difficult.

However, there are times when a fresh, improperly plastered coating needs to be removed. For example, the bark beetle has protruding granules that will interfere with the application of a new coat. If the composition has not yet had time to grab, it can be easily cleaned off with a spatula. The frozen bark beetle can be rubbed with a grinder until the protruding granules are removed. The smooth surface is primed, and then re-plastered. When working with bark beetle, in case of marriage, you need to know one thing. The purchased ready-made mixture in the liquid state is weaker; in case of marriage, it can be easily removed. Dry bark beetle, bred at home, has greater strength. To remove such a frozen layer, the wall will first have to be well moistened with water.

Now let's look at how to remove old plaster if it has become unusable:

  1. Exfoliating decorative plaster is cleaned off with cycles. For ease of use, it is better to take a tool with a length of 130–150 mm. Passing along the wall, it is necessary to choose the optimal angle of the blade, at which the decorative layer will be well pry off. After cleaning, the wall is well wiped with a damp cloth. The rag should be washed more often in water in order to wash off all the particles of the decorative layer to the maximum.
  2. In the absence of cycles, a non-plasterboard wall can be cleaned with a spatula and a hammer. Before this, the decorative surface is abundantly moistened with hot water and given time to soak. Having passed through the decorative layer, hot water will soften the putty, loosening its adhesion to the wall. With light blows of a hammer, they tap the entire wall. Weak areas will fall off on their own, and the remnants are pry off with a spatula.
  3. Plasters based on polymer and silicate additives are very durable. They are best removed mechanically. To do this, use a grinder with diamond wheels. Before erasing the plaster, the surface must be slightly moistened to avoid a large amount of dust. The remaining small areas are treated with a metal brush.
  4. Clay, gypsum and lime decorative layers are very afraid of moisture. After wetting the walls abundantly, after 30 minutes the plaster can be easily removed in cycles. There will be a minimum of dust here, but dirt, for example, from wet clay is enough. To facilitate cleaning work, it is necessary to spread a film under the falling wet dirt. At the end, the cleaned wall is wiped with a wet rag.

With any method of removing decorative plaster, work on the walls is performed from top to bottom.

Where to put the removed plaster?

Before you wonder how to remove the old plaster, you need to think about where to put it away. It has a rather impressive weight, and it can only be taken out of apartment buildings. Municipal services often prohibit dumping such waste into trash cans. This will require additional costs, because the garbage collection service is paid for by its weight.

After removing the old plaster in a multi-room apartment

You can calculate the costs yourself. For example, let's find out the weight of 1 m 2 of concrete plaster. Typically, the layer thickness is 15–20 mm. The weight of 1 m 3 of concrete is 1–1.5 tons, which means that the mass of 1 m 2 of a layer 10 mm thick will be 10–15 kg. After carrying out simple arithmetic operations, we calculate the weight of the waste from 1 m 2 of the wall. It will be equal to 15-25 kg.

It is easier to deal with waste in a private house. Paths are laid out with concrete pieces or used as a filler when concreting structures. Gypsum residues insulate the floors of utility buildings. Clay waste can be soaked and reused for household needs. Lime debris is good for adding soil, but it is impossible to plant trees on it.

These are just the basic, often used methods that tell you how to remove plaster from a wall on your own. Everyone comes up with a more convenient method for themselves, the main thing is that it is safe for the owner and the building itself.

In contact with

To make a decision about partial or complete replacement of the plaster, you need to examine the entire area and find out how well it adheres to the wall. You can check this with a spatula or scraper. If the plaster crumbles only in some places, then it is necessary to putty weak areas or cover it with a mixture of fine-grained sand.

If lime or cement plaster begins to fall off when the wallpaper is removed, then it is impossible to “fix” such a coating. You will have to completely remove it and apply a new one. To determine the strength of the plaster of the ceiling, slopes and walls, you need to tap the entire surface with a handle or hammer. In those places where it is held weakly, a dull sound will be heard.

If in certain places dampness has appeared on the walls and thereby weakened the plaster, then it is important to remove the old coating not only in these areas, but also 50 centimeters above (below) the level of moisture. Existing grease stains cannot be removed by rinsing alone. It is necessary to cut down those areas where there is fat. Then everything is sealed with new plaster.

Any cracks in the ceiling and walls first expand into a V-shape and are wetted with water. Next, they are covered with plaster and rubbed. The plaster mixture is applied in several stages. First, to the very bottom, after drying to 2/3 of the recess, and at the end completely cover the crack. Therefore, when asked how to clean the wall from plaster, it is necessary to apply the above recommendations.

Instruments

Also, the removal of plaster can be carried out in several ways and with different tools. The removal of plaster and the choice of tools depend on how firmly it adheres to the wall. We list the main tools that may be needed when removing old plaster.

  • A hammer.
  • Putty knife.
  • Bulgarian.
  • Scraper.
  • Axe.
  • Shoulder blade.
  • Special machine for removing plaster.
  • Perforator.

How to remove old plaster?

If the question arises - how to remove the plaster from the wall, the following technology is proposed. To begin with, it is necessary to check the complete or partial removal of the plaster (this is described above). Further, the damaged sections or the entire wall are “beaten off”. How to beat off the plaster, we will tell below.

Hammer breaks through the entire surface. Weakened areas will immediately disappear. Then they are scraped off with a spatula or scraper. Durable areas are moistened with water using a brush or cloth. Then they tap again with a hammer. Crumbling coarse-grained plaster is easily scraped off with a spatula. However, this is a long process that requires some effort. It is easier to use a special mesh.

"Advice! To reduce the amount of dust, periodically spray the surface with water. To do this, you can use a spray bottle with water. Also, as a precaution, it is worth wearing a gauze bandage, gloves and goggles.

In cases where the plaster is difficult to beat off manually, you can use a perforator with the “blow” option. How to remove plaster with this device is written in the instructions, but the technique is quite simple. To do this, a special nozzle is attached to the socket, and the switch is moved to the "blow" position.

Bulgarian is also often used. A cutting wheel with a diamond edge is attached to it. On the surface, transverse and longitudinal cuts are made. At the final stage, ordinary tools are used, such as a scraper, spatula.

There are also power tools for removing the plaster layer. For example, a machine for removing plaster AGP, Flex or a grinder angle grinder, LSHM, PSHM. The use of a particular tool directly depends on the thickness of the layer, the type of plaster, density and the required surface cleanliness.

Sometimes during the repair process it turns out that it is not possible to carry out a fine finish on the old plaster. Well, or the new one is made very poorly and should be removed. In such cases, we face the question “how to clean the walls from plaster?”.

This article will help you understand how to remove coating from surfaces. Here, work will be considered with a spatula, a simple and peeling one, a perforator, as well as a grinding and peeling and grinding and vibration machine.

How to remove plaster from ceilings and walls

The choice of method for removing the coating depends on the quality of the latter: gypsum can be removed from a brick or concrete wall by hand, and cement will most likely have to be worked with a power tool.

How to remove old plaster from walls: gypsum and cement

The easiest way to knock down gypsum coatings. With a small thickness, you can get by with a peeling spatula. It differs from a simple one in a thicker blade. You can remove the coating as follows: we lean the spatula at an angle of 90 degrees. to Wall; we begin to apply light blows with a hammer to the end of the handle; as the blade is immersed in the finishing layer, we tilt the tool, gradually reducing the angle between it and the wall. Move the spatula at the same time to remove one and move on to the next section. Similarly, old cement plaster that has lost its strength can be removed. Only the peeling spatula is replaced with a chisel.

How to remove the coating: using a peeling trowel

To the question "how to remove plaster from the walls, if it is made of cement, new and of high quality?" There is only one answer: a puncher + a chisel attachment. We turn on the tool at medium speed, put it to the surface at 80 degrees; as the chisel deepens into the thickness of the finish, we reduce the angle of inclination of the perforator and bring it up to about 30 degrees. We remove the coating in the chiselling mode.

Note:It is very easy to damage the base with a perforator. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the plaster carefully, slowly. It is better to go back and clean up the surface than to damage it and then repair it.

How to remove old plaster from the walls: work with a perforator

Removal of decorative coatings

How to remove decorative plaster from the walls, because it is thin and a perforator cannot work here? In this case, you can use a spatula / scraper, grinder and vibration machine. With a spatula, everything is simple: we lean the blade against the surface of a Venetian or other mineral finish at an acute angle and remove the composition with scraping movements.

Move the tool to another place and repeat the removal. This method is the most budgetary and does not produce a large amount of dust. However, it is suitable for processing small areas, since due to the low speed, it will not be possible to remove much in one working day. In addition, a spatula and scraper are only good for loose coatings that are easy to remove.

How to remove decorative plaster from walls and ceilings: you can use a regular spatula

Very thin, but strong plasters can be removed with a peeling and grinding machine. Its working disk removes the decorative layer with serrated rollers located on its underside. The work is not difficult: we press the machine, turned on at medium speed, to the surface with effort and slowly move it. We work in small areas, moving from one to another as the surface is cleaned. And do not forget about personal protection - a lot of dust is released in the process, so you need to protect yourself with a respirator.

How to remove old plaster from the walls: a video about the operation of a peeling and grinding machine.

Decorative plasters with a layer of 3 mm or more are easier to remove with a vibration grinder. It differs from roughing and grinding in the principle of operation: in a vibratory, the working element quickly moves from side to side, in one plane. It is easy to work with her: we lean the tool against the base at a slight angle and slowly move it in the right direction. It is not difficult to remove gypsum compounds in this way, but you will have to tinker with silicate ones.

Note:removing plaster with the indicated power tools is much easier than with a spatula or scrapers. However, you will have to spend money on buying a car or take care of finding a place where you can rent it.

How to Remove Old Plaster from Walls: Using a Vibratory Sander

How to remove cement and gypsum plasters: process features

Sometimes cement-sand plaster is difficult to remove even with a powerful puncher. That is, you can remove it, but very slowly, with great physical effort. In such cases, the coating must be weakened by cutting into sectors. This is done using a grinder with a diamond disc. The size of the sectors can be arbitrary, but the smaller they are, the easier it is to remove them with a perforator.

Note:under the influence of acids, gypsum becomes loose. This property of the material can be used if you need to remove plaster based on it. Half an hour before the start of work, it is necessary to soak the coating well with water acidified with vinegar. After that, it will be easier to remove the trim.

How to remove plaster from walls: cutting the coating into sectors

Removing the old layer of plaster is an unpleasant moment of any repair due to the large amount of debris and dust that occurs. The article describes the details of carrying out this type of work on surfaces made of brick, concrete and wood.

Ways to clean walls from old plaster

Do I need to completely remove the old plaster or only peeling areas? This question is often asked when finishing work in old houses. If you completely clean the wall for a new finish, then the cost of finishing materials will increase significantly. At the same time, the repair time is also lengthened.

Experienced builders recommend completely removing the old layer of wall covering. The reason is the process of "aging" of the finishing material. Over time, the composition loses its chemical strength, and the adhesion to the wall material weakens. New wallpaper pasted on an unprepared surface can fly off after a short period of time, and the finishing putty applied to the previous layer will peel off.

When you need to clean the walls of old plaster

A few signs that it's time to change the wall covering:

  1. Mold has formed on the plaster or there are wet marks from leaks.
  2. The surface of the wall flexes and crunches when pressed hard.
  3. The old coating crumbles and peels off easily.
  4. Numerous cracks appeared.
  5. The wallpaper in the kitchen is starting to peel off due to greasy stains.

How to remove decorative plaster from the wall with your own hands

Decorative plaster, depending on the relief and performance characteristics, has a certain service life. And therefore, after some time, it will be necessary to eliminate its remnants. There are several ways to eliminate the finish.

Dust free methods

The surface must be well moistened with warm water from a spray bottle or a wet sponge. The swollen layer of plaster (putty) is easily removed with a metal spatula or scraper. During operation, the wall must be periodically wetted.

If the decorative composition is applied in a thin layer, after soaking it is easily washed off with a rag or sponge with a hard abrasive side.


A less common way to remove the outer layer of decorative plaster is mechanized cleaning of surfaces with high-pressure water jet machines. Cons of this option:

  • a large amount of moisture is formed on the floor, which can cause water to leak to the neighbors from below;
  • Buying expensive equipment is beneficial only to professional builders.

How to clean a brick wall

First, the plaster is removed from areas where it no longer holds. This is easy to check by tapping all the sections with a hammer. A deaf sound means one thing - the facing material has already exfoliated. Voiced blows mean a strong grip of the old composition.

At the beginning of work, a chisel, chisel, chisels, a large steel scraper and a hammer are used.

The plaster is scraped down to the brickwork. After removing easily peeling sections of the old coating, further processing is carried out along the brickwork. Place a chisel or chisel between the plaster layer and the brick wall. Then, with weak hammer blows, gently knock the breaking pieces to the floor.

If durable material cannot be removed with hand tools, it is advisable to use a hammer drill with a spade-shaped nozzle in the “chiselling” mode. Another way to remove a durable coating is to divide the wall surface into fragments with furrows. To do this, use a grinder with a disk for stone processing. Then the separated parts of the finishing material are knocked out with a chisel or perforator. Brickwork freed from plaster must be primed and allowed to dry for at least a day.

How to quickly remove from concrete

The layer of the old coating on the concrete wall is removed with a narrow or medium spatula. We also recommend using a special scraper, the metal edge of which must be well sharpened.

To speed up the work of cleaning the walls, we recommend using a grinder. As a nozzle, a grinding wheel with coarse sandpaper or a diamond bowl is used. The disadvantage of this method is that too much dust is generated during surface treatment. You can reduce its amount with a construction vacuum cleaner.

How to remove old plaster from a wooden wall

Wooden walls in old houses used to be plastered using reinforcing structures - shingles, metal mesh, as well as other improvised materials. When removing the old layer, peeling pieces of plaster are beaten off with a chisel and a hammer, without touching the retaining structure.

If during the repair it is planned to replace the reinforcing structure, a wide vertical groove is prepared in the middle of the wall, cleaned to a wooden surface. Then the retaining mesh is dismantled along with the plaster.

If the plaster is applied directly to the wood, it is scraped off with a spatula or scraper.

High-quality preparation of walls for finishing becomes the key to many years of operation of any room.

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