Re-plastering and float-and-setin Fareham - bare brick topaint-ready, one trade.
Full two-coat float and set over stripped or bare-brick walls, overboard-and-skim where the existing wall has gone past saving, and complete room resets after damp, plumbing or structural work.
Full room resets · Bare brick to paint-ready · Free quote within 24 hours
- Full resetBrick to paint-ready
- 30+ yrsSteve on the tools
- 24 hrQuote turnaround
- InsuredPublic liability cover
What this service is, and who it's for.
What it is
Re-plastering is the full reset of a wall: stripping back to bare brick or block, building up with a backing coat (typically hardwall on masonry) and finishing with a skim coat, ready for paint. It's the right answer when a skim alone won't recover the wall - when there's no substrate left to work with, when damp has been treated, or when an old surface is so far gone it can't be brought back.
Who it's for
Renovators stripping back to brick in Victorian and Edwardian Hampshire properties, owners completing damp-proofing work that's exposed brickwork, buyers gutting a tired house and starting fresh, builders subcontracting the wet finishing trade on full refurbs, and landlords resetting properties between long tenancies.
When you need it
When previous plaster has failed and just keeps cracking back, when walls have been hacked off for damp injection or rewiring, when an extension has bare blockwork that needs finishing, when masonry has been exposed during a renovation and you need it back to a paintable plane, or when an old surface has had too many DIY skims layered on top of each other and the only honest fix is to start again.
Why professional matters
Skimming over a fundamentally bad wall is throwing money away. Three months later you're looking at the same cracks, the same bowing, the same dead-flat patches that won't take paint. Re-plastering takes longer and costs more in the moment, but you end up with a wall that holds its finish for the next 20 years - instead of one that fails next winter. Pay once, well.
What happens when these problems are left.
Skimming over walls that should be re-plastered
Cheap quotes for "just a skim" over fundamentally bad walls always come back. The skim fails because the substrate failed. Re-plastering properly costs more now and saves you the repeat job later.
Mismatched substrates after renovation
Stripped plaster, patched brick, dot-and-dab and skim all on the same wall give you a finish that moves at different rates and cracks at the joins. Re-plastering with one continuous backing coat unifies the substrate.
Exposed brick after damp work
Damp-proofing leaves you with hacked-off walls down to brick. Re-plastering with the right renovating system (specified by the damp work) is what completes the job - not a generic skim that the salts will push straight through.
DIY layered skims that bow
Walls re-skimmed three or four times over the years carry a thick layer of weakly-bonded plaster that's effectively delaminating from the inside. Full re-plaster is the only honest fix.
Extension blockwork left for the painter
Builders sometimes leave new blockwork in extensions for the painter to deal with - which usually means mist coat onto rough block. Float-and-set turns that blockwork into a proper wall.
How the job actually runs, step by step.
- 01
Strip-back & substrate assessment
Existing failed plaster hacked off to sound brick or block, walls swept clean, mortar joints raked back where required to give mechanical key. Substrate moisture checked - if damp readings are high, we pause and discuss damp-proofing before continuing.
- 02
Bonding & dubbing-out
Severely uneven brick dubbed out with mortar to create a workable plane, bonding agent applied to smooth blockwork to give the backing coat purchase. Beads fixed at corners, openings and stop points.
- 03
Backing coat (float)
Hardwall or backing plaster applied at correct thickness, ruled off to a true plane with a feather edge or H-rule, scratched to provide key for the finish coat. Allowed to set firm before second coat.
- 04
Finish coat (set / skim)
Multi-finish skim laid on in two thin coats, polished through three timed trowel passes to a flat, polished surface. This is the surface your paint will sit on for the next 20 years.
- 05
Drying schedule & sign-off
Written drying schedule (typically 1 week per 1mm thickness - full re-plasters often need 3–4 weeks before mist coat) and mist-coat advice. We come back and check the wall before you paint if you'd like.
What you actually get.
Long-term solution
Properly executed float-and-set holds its finish for decades - not seasons.
Unified, continuous substrate
No more random patches, no more cracking at boundaries between old and new work.
Right system for damp-treated walls
Where damp-proofing has been done, we use the correct renovating plaster system rather than skimming over and trapping the problem.
True flat under any light
Backing coat ruled off properly gives a level surface that paint, wallpaper, or polished plaster all sit on cleanly.
One accountable trade
Strip, prep, backing, finish - all one team, one phone call if anything moves.
Written drying schedule
We tell you the exact day you can paint. No painting too early and pulling the colour off in patches.
The materials, methods and situations.
For homeowners, specifiers and surveyors who want to know exactly what they're commissioning.
Materials we use
British Gypsum Hardwall for backing on masonry, Thistle Multi-Finish for skim, Thistle Bonding Coat for low-suction substrates, SBR slurry as bonding primer where required, and Permaguard or Thistle Dri-Coat renovating plaster systems where damp-proofing requires it.
Methods
Two-coat float and set on bare brick, single-coat skim where existing backing is sound, overboard-and-skim where the wall is beyond float-and-set economy (typically extreme unevenness), and renovating plaster systems on damp-proofed walls with salt-blocking properties.
Variations of the service
Single-wall re-plaster, full-room re-plaster, full-house re-plaster on gutted renovations, post-damp re-plaster, extension finishing (bare block to paint-ready), and patch re-plaster after major plumbing or electrical first-fix work.
Situations it applies to
Victorian Portsmouth terraces where original plaster has finally given up, 1930s Fareham semis being gutted for full refurbishment, Gosport flats where damp-proofing has exposed the brick, Southampton Edwardian villas with multiple layers of failing DIY skim, and extension blockwork right across Hampshire that needs bringing to a finished plane.
Residential vs. commercial
Residential re-plaster is room-by-room, dust-controlled work in occupied or empty houses. Commercial re-plaster (offices, retail, refurb) tends to be larger contiguous areas with tighter programme deadlines and more coordination with other fit-out trades. We price both with the same approach and the same warranty.
Honest answers to the questions we get most.
How much does re-plastering cost in Fareham?
+
A full re-plaster of a standard room (float-and-set on stripped walls) typically runs £950–£1,950 depending on room size, ceiling work and condition of the brickwork. Full ground-floor re-plasters on terrace properties often £4,500–£8,500. Always written, always itemised.
How long does a re-plaster take to dry?
+
Roughly 1 week of drying per 1mm of plaster thickness - most full re-plasters need 3–4 weeks before they're ready for mist coat. We give you the exact date you can paint as part of the handover.
Re-plaster or just re-skim?
+
Depends what's left of the existing substrate. If 70%+ is sound, well-keyed and stable - a re-skim is usually fine. If the existing surface is failing, blown, or has multiple layers of DIY skim on top - re-plaster is the honest answer. We'll tell you straight after a site visit.
Can I paint sooner if I keep the heating on?
+
Heat speeds drying but never to the point you can short-cut the schedule safely. Premature painting traps moisture, blooms the surface and ruins the finish. We'd rather you paint a week later than re-do the room twice.
What's the warranty?
+
Where renovating plaster systems are used as part of damp work, the manufacturer-backed Permaguard system warranty (typically 20+ years) applies.
Do you handle the strip-out, or do I need a labourer first?
+
We handle the strip-out as part of the re-plaster quote - it's part of the job. You're not arranging a separate trade to hack the walls off before we arrive. Waste is removed at the end.
Can you re-plaster around new electrical and plumbing?
+
Yes - we coordinate with your electrician and plumber so first-fix is signed off before backing coat goes on. Sockets and pipework left to your second-fix trades to terminate after the skim.
Do I need to move out of the house?
+
Almost never. We work room-by-room, contain dust with sheeting and proper waste handling, and keep the rest of the house functional. Kitchens and bathrooms are usually phased so you keep water/cooking for most of the job.
Often booked alongside this work.
Local to you across Hampshire.
Can't see your village? Call 07907 511080 - we cover the surrounding ring as well.
Re-plastered walls that hold their finish for the next 20 years.
Bare brick to paint-ready under one trade. Free written quote within 24 hours.
Checkatrade · Permaguard · Fully insured · 30+ years on the tools