Tips for painting on a freshly plastered wall

When decorating rooms that have been newly-renovated it is inevitable that you will have to paint freshly plastered walls.

It’s important with these surfaces that you take the right steps before applying the paint in order to obtain the best results possible. Here’s a quick guide to painting a freshly plastered wall...

Light sand and brush

Freshly-plastered walls should be smooth on the whole but you may find the odd plaster splash or pieces of dust that have been left. Use a fine sandpaper and a brush to remove these blemishes but don’t be too vigorous with your sanding.

Use a mist coat

The key thing to remember when painting onto fresh plaster is that it will be more porous than an older surface and soak up more of the paint that is applied.

To deal with this it is important to initially apply a mist layer of diluted white paint, which will provide a good base to work on. A mist layer is a layer of diluted emulsion paint - we recommend a ratio of 60:40 paint to water for an undercoat of this kind.

Let it breathe

After the mist coat has dried, apply the final paint on top – for the best finish apply two coats.

There will still moisture that will need to escape from the plaster, so it is vital that both the mist layer and top coats are water-based paints. If they aren’t there is danger that cracks will appear in the plaster and in the worst cases you may have to ask the plasterer back to make good.

By taking these few simple steps, you can ensure you get the finish and look you are after for your newly-renovated room.