PLASTERING

OBJECTIVES OF PLASTERING:

o To protect the surfaces against the penetration of rain and other atmospheric agencies.
o To give smooth surfaces in which dirt and dust can’t lodge.
o To give decorative effect.
o To protect surfaces against termite.
o To conceal defective workmanship or inferior materials

PREREQUISITES OF THE SURFACES TO BE PLASTERED:

a) Preparation of surface to be plastered:

o Keep all the mortar joints of wall rough, so as to give a good bonding to hold plaster.
o Clean all the joints and surfaces of the wall with a wire brush, there should be no oil or grease etc.
left on wall surface.
o If the surface is smooth or the wall to be plastered is old one, then rake out the mortar joint to a
depth of at least 12 mm to give a better bonding to the plaster.
o If the projection on the wall surface is more than 12 mm, then knock it off, so as to obtain a
uniform surface of wall. This will reduce the consumption of plaster.
o If there exist any cavities or holes on the surface, then fill it in advance with appropriate material.
o Roughen the entire wall to be plastered.
o Wash the mortar joints and entire wall to be plastered, and keep it wet for at least 6 hours before
applying cement plaster.

b) Ground work for the surface (also includes use of a plumb bob):
o In order to get uniform thickness of plastering throughout the wall surface, first fix dots on the wall.
A dot means patch of plaster of size 15 mm * 15 mm and having thickness of about 10 mm.
o Dots are fixed on the wall first horizontally and then vertically at a distance of about 2 meters
covering the entire wall surface.
o Check the verticality of dots, one over the other, by means of plumb-bob.
o After fixing dots, the vertical strips of plaster, known as screeds, are formed in between the dots.
These screeds serve as the gauges for maintaining even thickness of plastering being applied.
REQUIREMENTS OF A GOOD PLASTER:
o It should adhere to the background, and should remain adhered during all variations in seasons and
other atmospheric conditions.
o It should effectively check penetration of moisture.
o It should provide a smooth non-observant and washable surface.
o It should not contract in volume while drying and setting otherwise it will crack.
o It should adhere firmly to the surfaces and resist effect of weather agencies
o It should provide good insulation against sound and high resistance against fire.
o It should be durable and long lasting.

Tools & Equipment used for plaster:

 Long float: It is used to level the
plastered surface between the
successive screeds (spaced at as per grid
of 120cm*120cm). The Size of the long
float is generally around 150cm along its
length.

TYPES OF PLASTER-
A. MUD PLASTER : Cheapest form of plastering commonly used in Kuchha construction. Mud to be used should
for Plastering should be made from earth free from grass roots, gravel, stone grit etc. For this :

a. Mud clods are removed or broken to a fine powder.

b. It is then mixed with plenty of water in a pit, adding chopped straw, hay or hemp(@33kg/cu. m of
earth)
c. Mixture flooded with water is kept for 6 days and then worked up at alternate intervals with foots and
phawras (tapping poles)
d. Background surface preparation is same as that for lime or cement plaster. But it should be noted that
the surface should be dry before applying the plaster.
e. The plaster is dashed against the wall and worked with a straight edge and float.
f. The second coat(6mm th.) is applied only when the first coat has set dry (18 mm)
g. No curing is done and the cracks developed or potions which sound hollow on tapping are repaired by
opening such patches out and then treating the surface with a mixture of clay and cow-dung.

Note: Exterior surfaces should be always protected with deep overhangs in case rendered with mud plaster.
Also the thickness of plaster reduces while going from bottom of the wall to top level of wall (moving
vertically). This is because the mortar tends to crawl down while green.

LIME RENDERING: Used in restoration and preservation of buildings.

Constituents of lime plaster:

It is usually prepared by mixing sand and lime in equal proportions. Cement in small quantity is sometimes added
to the mixture to improve its strength. GUGAL a kind of fragrant gum and chopped hemp are sometimes added
at the rate of 4.5kg and 2.7kg respectively to every 2.83cum of mortar. This prevents the formation of cracks in
the plaster on drying. To restrain shrinkage and to reinforce the plaster, long animal hair is included in the wet
undercoat mix, 5kg of hair being used for every square meter of lime undercoat (coarse stuff). The resulting
haired, coarse stuff is plastic and dries out and hardens without appreciable shrinkage and cracking.

Methodology:

 Lime is being slaked for minimum 24 house before being used. Slaking implies soaking of lime in
water so that it gives out its heat of hydration.
 After being slaked the lime is being screened through a sieve. It is then mixed with additives such as
gugal, urad dal, jiggery, bel fruit, natural gum, cumin seeds etc , all boiled in water to be added to
lime.
 Then the neat screened lime is applied in 2-3 coats.
 The first is the rendering coat, second being the floating coat and third and final being the finishing
coat.
 Rendering coat (15-20mm) is usually a combination of lime sand and surkhi in a desired ratio based
on use. Floating (8-6mm) coat is combination of lime surkhi and fine sand or just lime and surkhi
based on the requirement. While Finishing coat (4mm) composed of just the neat screened lime with
or without a coloring pigment if required. In case of 2 coats method use of floating coat is skipped.

CEMENT MORTAR
 Cement is mixed with sand & water for use as an under coat for application to brick and block walls
and partitions.
 Preparation of surface would be done by cleaning the masonry joint. They should be deeply recessed.
 The surface has to wet thoroughly. This is done in order to avoid the absorption of water from the
mortar mix by the bricks of the masonry (brick is a highly porous material). There should be difference
of minimum 3 months between construction of the masonry wall and its plastering.
 The entire surface should be made rough by hacking.
 A wet mix of cement & clean sand is not plastic and requires a deal of labour to spread. It is usual,
therefore, to add a plasticizer to the wet mix to produce a material that is at once plastic and sets
and hardens to form a hard surface. Usual mixes are1 : 4 OR 1 : 6 of cement and sand, with a
mortar plasticizer by volume.
 The extent of cracking that may appear depends on the strength of the surface to which plaster is
applied and the extent to which plaster binds the surface
SCAFFOLDING:
Scaffolding, also called scaffold or staging, is a temporary structure used to support a work crew and
materials to aid in the construction, maintenance and repair of buildings, bridges and all other man-
made structures.

Exterior scaffolding Scaffolding resting on the masonry voids Independant & mobile Scaffolding

For the exterior side, up to seven story height it is composed of 40 mm dia M.S. tubes arranged at 1.5 m c/c,
horizontal & vertical tubes joining with cuplock system. M.S challis & staircase are made out of the same
arrangement wherever required. The scaffolding system shall be stiffened with bracings, runners, connection
with the building etc wherever required time to time. Also the base should be widerbroader compared to
the arrangement at top.

For interiors it should be noted that during the finishing works are performed the scaffolding should be an
independent structure not being supported or touching any surface being plastered.

MISCELLANEOUS CASES WHILE PLASTERING:

POINTING TO STONE SURFACE:

 Pointing consist in raking out joints in brick work or in stone masonry to depth in mm. and filling the same
with mortar of slightly richer mix.
 This treatment not only protects the joints from the adverse effect of the atmosphere but also magnifies the
appearance of the surface by exhibiting the patterns of the joints, their thickness, colors and texture
prominently.