Having done this several years ago in the living room and hall I knew what we’d find as we started to remove several layers of old wallpaper.

I wasn’t surprised to find:

- cracks of various sizes
- fist-size holes of crumbled plaster
- loose plaster due to broken keys

All easy to fix once you know what to do.

Step 1. Evaluate the wall condition

Look for signs of moisture or recent movement to determine if there are any structural issues that need to be addressed before repairing the plaster.

Since we were reasonably sure that the house is stable and there are no current water penetration or settling issues to deal with, I got down to the task at hand.

Step 2. – Stabilize the Old Plaster

LOOSE PLASTER

First thing to do is check to find where the plaster keys may have broken and the plaster has detached from the lath. Just push gently against the plaster especially near larger cracks, and look for sagging plaster on sloped walls and ceilings. If the plaster feels like its loose (as opposed to a slight “flexing”) then feel around some more until you find where the plaster feels secure to determine the extent of the repair area. DON’T REMOVE IT!

The good news is you can re-attach plaster to the lath with plaster washers. These look a bit like an umbrella with holes in it and work with a conventional 1 5/8″ drywall screw. You probably won’t find them in your local hardware store but fortunately you can get plaster washers at Amazon.

Installing the Plaster Washers

– Start near the secure plaster and work your way towards the crack or a corner, driving a screw with a washer on it into the lath every few inches or so. The screw should pull the washer into the plaster just enough so that the screw head is below the surface and the washer is slightly concave.

– If the screw just spins without seating you’re between the lath strips. Take it out and move it up or down about a half-inch and try again.

- Work your way along the crack so that you’re not creating any bulges – like smoothing out a piece of fabric. You’ll quickly get a feel for how to do it and where to place them.

- Run a 6″ drywall knife over the washers to make sure they are below the surface.

- Use enough washers to stabilize the plaster & don’t worry about creating small cracks and depressions around the washers since these will be filled with compound.

HOLES & CRUMBLING PLASTER

You’ll probably have some areas where the plaster has crumbled between cracks or places where furniture may have banged into it. The only option is to remove the crumbled plaster – if it hasn’t already removed itself.

Scrape away the crumbled plaster until you reach an edge that is still solid and attached to the lath. Again, plaster washers can be useful to button down a edge if needed. Fill any holes with 3/8″ drywall or scraps of wood that are thinner than the plaster. This will give the setting compound something to grab onto and fills up the bulk of the void.

CRACKS IN THE PLASTER

Now that you’ve taken care of the loose plaster it’s time to deal with the cracks.

Don’t worry too much about the tiny surface cracks but anything that you can tell paint won’t cover needs to be filled. Just smoothing it over with spackle won’t stand up because you can’t get enough material in to bridge the gap.

Use an old punch-type can opener or similar pointed tool to gouge a v-shaped groove along the length of the crack. Don’t go all the way to the lath but make sure you create enough of a groove for the compound to settle in and add strength to the joint. Reduce the depth of the groove as you near the end of the crack.

Use a setting-type compound like Durabond 90 for the first application to fill in the larger holes and cracks. This fast-drying material comes in powder form and must be mixed as you need it. It’s very strong and hard to sand so aim to keep it at or below the surface of the surrounding plaster. The Durabond will add strength to the repaired plaster and provide a stable foundation for finishing the walls using conventional drywall techniques and materials.

Finishing Tips:

- use drywall tape for large cracks & corners
- use premixed joint compound
- add at least two finish coats (use 6″ & 10″ drywall knives)
- scrape off ridges between coats with drywall knife
- feather edges to the plaster with 220 grit sandpaper

Plaster walls usually have some variation in thickness and are sometimes a bit rough in spots which adds to their character. Your goal should be to end up with a wall that’s solid and reasonably smooth but it might not necessarily be “flat”.

I had thought about parging it just to spruce it up a bit and then my partner suggested we try resurfacing the concrete with the Beauti-Tone (Tech Stone) “Granite”© from Home Hardware.

Having seen the TV ads and after a bit of Googling to check out other people’s experience with “Granite” and other “spreadable stone” decorative finishes we decided that the TechStone product was worth a shot.

Three Step Process

As with most of these “stone-like” coatings Granite is applied in 3 steps – Primer. Texture. Sealer. The textured primer and sealer are applied with a roller and brush but the “Granite” texture is applied with a steel trowel.

Step 1 – Prep & Prime

I was pretty confident that I knew what I needed and how to do this – until I read the instructions. While the Prepare & Prime section was very thorough on surface preparation it never actually instructed you to apply the textured primer before the “application of Granite”. Being a literal kind of guy I feel that step-by-step instructions by definition should include ALL the steps.

I emailed Tech Stone with my query and quickly received a pleasant response that the primer actually being applied is “implied”.
(A two-minute edit on the instructions would clarify the process for future users.)

So I proceeded to ignore the “fairly smooth finish” part of prep, washed the wall with TSP and applied the primer over the rough wall with 15mm roller and brush to get the primer into the divots.

Step 2 – Texture (Make Mine a Double)

The instructions suggest a 1/16″ thick coat. Yeah, right – although this is probably the only way to actually achieve the colour shown on the swatch since it seems to rely on the primer being partially visible through the texture. It’s a given that you’re going to use more of the texture than they specify so save yourself a trip and get twice as much as recommended. If you don’t need it you can always take it back or use it to tart up that old birdbath. My wall area (33 sq ft) was right at the upper limit of the suggested coverage on the can – so I got two.

By the way, no “real” stone is harmed in making this product. The “Granite” consists of little coloured spheres of poly-something-or-other, suspended in a gruel-like substance. The effect isn’t bad if you don’t get too close.

Gravity and Vertical Surfaces

Don’t even begin to think that you can get the texture from the can to the wall without dropping some on the ground. Before you start, grab a board or cut a piece of plywood to catch the drops so you can scoop them up and get them on the wall where they belong. I cut a 6″ x 20″ piece of 1/8″ wall panelling and placed it on the ground against the wall where I was working. I scooped some of the texture out of the can with a stir stick onto a “pallet” made from a small piece of 1/4″ plywood so I could load up my trowel easily.Start at the top of the wall and work your way down but apply it using an upward stroke to press it firmly on to the wall surface.

The stuff that falls off your trowel and lands on the board can easily be trowelled right onto the lower part of the wall and blended with the surface above it.Scrape the boards clean each time you reload the pallet to keep the material from drying and getting rough. I would have lost about 20% of the material in the rocks if I hadn’t used the board to catch it.

Extra Texture

Since I was was applying this to a foundation wall, a smooth finish wasn’t necessary and I wanted the surface to be as varied as possible to blend with our natural granite walls which are far from smooth.I started using a 3″ x 9″ steel trowel but quickly switched to my favourite small triangular trowel because the concrete surface was rough and I wanted to adjust the texture as I went.

I applied a generous first coat making sure I covered the whole surface and filling in the divots in the concrete and then
knocked down the high points with the plastic smoother that’s included with the product. The initial coat was still too smooth for my taste and the colour variation was significant due to the differing thickness allowing the primer to show through in the thin spots.

Even More Extra Texture

I still had more than three-quarters of the second can left so I applied a second coat concentrating on the areas where the primer was still showing through. I threw caution to the wind and randomly trowelled it on while trying to gauge how much material I had so I could get a second coat on the whole area before I ran out. The total variation in thickness is still only about 1/8″ – 3/16″. The final effect is much more dramatic than a flat surface especially in direct sunlight when it creates some shadows.

Step 3 – Sealer

The final step of applying the sealer couldn’t be easier. My main concern was that it might be too glossy and take away the natural rock effect. While they do make different types of sealers for this product the standard acrylic sealer leaves no visible sheen.

Since my wall area was fairly small I didn’t bother messing up a roller and tray. I applied it with abandon using a 4″ brush in about 20 minutes. It went on milky like any urethane coating and almost instantly turned clear and virtually invisible before I could tell where I had just applied it.

Looking Good

I’m quite pleased with the results even though the colour is darker than I wanted – but that’s no fault of the product – and it really doesn’t look anything like our real granite.

I don’t know how this will stand the test of time (considering I slathered it on heavier than the manufacturer suggests) but right now the effect is head and shoulders over that old concrete wall.

And if I need to patch it up in a few years I’ll just be enhancing the texture.

I have to say installing this ceiling the second time was much easier than the first – even by myself. Since all the pieces were precut and numbered – it was kind of a “paint by numbers” job -

uh…once I worked out the logistics.

The main issues I had to overcome for this two-person job were getting the boards into position and holding them there until I could get them nailed – three hands minimum required.

Here’s what you need:

2 – step ladders
2 – quick grip (one handed) clamps
Brad nailer
Misc. hand tools

The Setup

Having a pair of 6′ step ladders on hand is a definite plus allowing you to cover several feet of ceiling span without having to “dismount” while positioning long boards. Position the ladders so you can reach at least one end of the board and close enough together that you can safely straddle the space between the two. You could do this with a platform of some sort but repositioning a pair of ladders is quick and easy.

A pair of quick grip clamps that you can tighten and release with one hand is essential. Make sure you have them within easy reach of the board you’re installing. I hung them on the joists near each ladder before I positioned each board.

Put you brad nailer on the flip-down shelf so it’s easy to grab when you need it.

How to do it

1. Before you start (assuming you’re doing this right the FIRST time) measure the width of the ceiling (perpendicular to the panelling direction) and check to see how many rows of material you’ll need. To avoid needing a very narrow strip when you reach the opposite wall you may need to rip a bit off the width (groove side) of the first row of material to balance it.

2. Start the first row with the groove facing the wall. Leave a slight gap between the panelling and the wall (but close enough so your moulding will cover it). It’s critical that the first row is parallel to the wall so snap a chalkline (where you want the edge that’s away from the wall) or use a few pieces of scrap for spacers (1/8″ or 1/4″ ply with double-sided tape works well).

3. Get the board into postion and clamp one end. Step over to the other ladder and line up the other end with the chalkline or against the spacer. Clamp it in place. Check that both ends of the board are where you want them. Nail it close to the wall (where the moulding will cover the nails) and at an angle into the tongue at each joist. Make sure you drive the nails so they don’t prevent the groove of the next row from slipping over the tongue. Practice on a piece of scrap to get your nailer mojo working.

4. Reposition your ladders and clamps for the next board in the row and repeat the procedure. If you need to cut a board you can either measure the space or temporarily clamp it in position overlapping the adjacent board and mark it. Joints on tongue & groove boards don’t necesarily have to fall on a joist but since I was working with fairly thin material I chose to do so.

5. When you’ve completed one row start the next row with cutoff from the previous row – making sure you stagger the joints by at least 16″ or more. The further apart the joints are the less visible they’ll be. Slip the groove over the tongue and clamp it as before. The joints need to move as the wood shrinks and expands (boy, don’t I know it!) so don’t make the joint too tight.

6. Nail just the tongue on all other boards until you reach the opposite wall always making sure to keep the nails from interfering with the groove of the row to follow. If you miss the mark you can pry the board off at that point and re-nail it. If the panelling pulls off the nail just snip the brad off with a pair of nippers flush to the joist and re-nail it.

7. When you reach the other wall you’ll probably have to rip a bit off the tongue edge of the last row of material to fit. Slip the groove over the tongue on the previous row and nail straight up close to the wall where the moulding will cover it.

8. Add moulding around the perimeter to finish it off. If you need to make a joint along a straight run – cut the moulding at a 45 degree angle to make a nearly invisible joint.

9. You’re done! (Since you’re working alone, I guess you’ll have to pat yourself on the back.)

Less than 48 hrs after my helpful nephew and I congratulated ourselves on the great job we did installing the beaded panel ceiling in the new veranda it looked like this.

Cause? Failure to do the research by yours truly.

Material: 5/16″ x 3 1/2″ Yukon Pine T&G beaded panelling
Finish: Water-based Varathane (1 coat – both sides)

So what went wrong? (just a few examples)

1. I Left the material in the package til I was ready to pre-finish with polyurethane
2. Installed the (nice dry) material in nice dry weather.
3. Installed the boards tightly together

Then the rain came. 2 inches in one day – 100% humidity…. Fail

Lessons Learned

(after doing the proper research)

1. Any material (especially wood products) should be “acclimatized” by placing it in the room it’s to be installed in for at least 48hrs before installation. This allows it to adapt to the temperature and humidity and shrink or swell acordingly. Although the veranda is in a highly variable outdoor environment I might have fared better if I’d taken it out of the packaging a couple of days before finishing it.

2. While installing in dry weather wasn’t by itself a bad thing, in combination with the other conditions it was catastrophic. Since the tongues were already “tight” in the grooves there was nowhere for it to go but down. Some of the boards cupped as they swelled while others released from the nails ready to fall. I was amazed at how much each board swelled in such a short time.

Assessing the Damage

After looking at it for a few days and coming to the conclusion it wasn’t going to go back to “normal” I knew I had to remove the entire ceiling and determine what material I could salvage. I carefully removed the boards in sequence and marked the row and position in the row on the back of each board (ie. 20-2 = row 20 – 2nd board).
I set aside the badly cupped boards for replacement. Some boards with minor cupping at one end were slated to be recut to shorter pieces. In the end I was able to save or recut about 70% of the material.

Second Chance to Get it Right

I picked up a few more packages of the panelling and immediately unwrapped it and left it all in the garage for a couple of days (resisting the temptation to get on with cutting and finishing the new material). Fortunately, the humidity stayed fairly high (80-90%) during this period so I knew the material was at near maximum size. I measured and cut new boards to replace each of the badly damaged ones marking the replacement boards with the row and position followed by an “N” for “new” since these would need an additional finish coat. I used the same method to recut the partly damaged boards.

I put a coat of Varathane on the new boards including grooves and end cuts. I then put a second coat on everything to try to seal it as well as possible.

I was ready to re-install. Unfortunately my nephew had gone back home to Ontario….

Coming soon….. Part 2 – Installing a T&G ceiling by yourself.

I used the outside tap late into the fall and never gave it another thought as the weather got colder and then downright frigid through the winter months.

Spring arrived and it was time to hook up the hose to wash the car, water the garden and give the dog that long-needed bath. So how come water was coming out of the hole around the pipe where it came through the siding?

Turns out that they’re as vulnerable to freeze-ups as a regular tap unless you winterize it before the temperature plummets at the end of the season.

In my case the pipe may have had a slight incline back toward the house allowing water to sit in the pipe on the cold side of the shutoff (and basement insulation).
Bottom line? It froze — causing the pipe to bulge and split near the threads.

Here’s how to prevent it:

1. Look for an inside shutoff valve on the pipe several feet inside the basement. Turn it off.
2. Open the outside tap to remove any water in the pipe and leave it open.
3. If there’s a petcock on the side of the inside shutoff valve open it to drain any water left in the pipe.

This simple procedure will drain all the water out of the pipe no matter which way it may slope and prevent winter freeze-ups.

Lesson learned… if I remember to do it next fall.

Options:

1. Buy a tile cutter or wet saw ($50 – $300.00) – I have no intention of doing this again in the forseeable future so I really didn’t want to buy another tool (having already forked out $$ for a 1/2″ drill capable of mixing thinset without smoking) especially one that would just collect dust in my already crowded shop.

2. Rent one of the above mentioned items – Not convenient for me since I work on home projects like this when I have time available. The tool rental shop is a 25 minute drive each way and it meant at least one early morning trip to return it as well as committing me to a specific timeframe.

I really didn’t want to go with either of these options.

Simple solution

On one of my trips to my favourite home improvement centre I noticed a small tool about the size of a pencil hanging amongst the kneepads, tile spacers, and nippers – a simple tile scorer. The $3.99 price was low enough for me to “give it a shot” — if it didn’t work then I’d have to consider one of the more expensive/inconvenient options.

After one broken test tile (when I was holding the tool wrong) I was off to the races. It took a little bit longer than if I’d used a $50.00+ machine but it did what I needed, when I needed it.

Want to give it a try?
Here’s all you need:

Tile scorer
Straightedge
Drill bit (3/16″ or so)
Linesmans pliers (they work like the $28.00 nippers)

1. Mark a reference line on your work surface. This makes it easy to line up the scored line with the drill bit when snapping the tiles.
2. Set a tile on a flat surface and to measure and mark it. Line up your straightedge and score the tile using two or three firm strokes.
3. Place the tile with drill bit under the centre of the tile at the score line.The drill bit and the score line should line up with your reference line.
4. Firmly hold down one edge of the tile and give the raised edge a quick, solid hit with the heel of your other hand. It should break cleanly along the scored line.
5. If you end up with less than perfect break you can CAREFULLY break away the extra tile with linesmans pliers. If the edge is going to be visible it may need some work with a rubbing stone to smooth the edge.

Here are a few other tile cutting tips:

1. Open ALL your boxes of tiles BEFORE you begin and examine them for defects or breakage . Set the damaged tile aside. You can cut damaged tiles first and save full tiles for where you need them.
2. Plan your cuts – Since there was a slight variation in width I made a map showing all the cut tiles and labled them on the grid. As I cut each tile I put the grid number on the back with a felt marker so I could stack them in reverse order.
3. Cut your larger tiles first – If a tiles breaks unevenly you still may be able to re-cut the tile for another spot.
4. Put some masking tape on the back of your straightedge to keep it from slipping.

Having just added some insulation to our old stone basement walls I needed to install temporary insulating film on the windows but didn’t want to deal with the use-it-once and throw it out issue associated with the double sided tape used to fasten it — not to mention cleaning off the tape residue when you remove it in the spring. I want to be able to remove the film in the spring and easily re-install it each fall. My brother-in-law suggested an idea that sounded like the solution for my situation — using the rubber spline that’s designed for window screens.

After measuring the window boxes, I ripped narrow strips of 3/4″ thick stock and then lowered the blade to cut a shallow groove (3/16 to 1/4″ deep) down the centre of the strip which is the width of the saw kerf (1/8″). I cut frames with mitred corners to fit the existing window boxes. The mitred corners make a continuous channel around the whole window.

After attaching the 3/4″ frames to the boxes with small finish nails, I eased the inside corners with narrow chisel to make sure the spline would make the 90 degree turns (which it did even without the eased corner). A small bead of caulk on the back of the strip helped make it airtight.

All that was left was to cut the film and install it. I had picked up a kit with a large-size piece of film so I could cut it for the most efficient use and some ribbed spline just slightly larger than the 1/8″ wide groove (.140″ or 9/64″).

Instructions

How to install the window kit:

1. Cut the film about 4″ -6″ larger than the opening to give you something to hold on to.

2. Position the film with equal overlap on all edges (you may need another pair of hands on larger windows).

3. Plan on where you want the joint in the spline to be and roughly measure the distance from there to the top centre by holding the spline against the groove and finding the point on the spline that would be top centre. The spline will stretch a bit as it’s pushed into the groove so accuracy isn’t important.

4. Start at the top centre and push the spline into the groove with the film behind it. Keep a bit of tension on the film as you run your thumb along the spline which should easily slip into the groove, securing the film. If the film goes crooked or gets too wrinkled just pull out a few inches of the spline re-adjust the film and continue on.

5. Leave a little tab of spline at the joint to grab when you want to remove it.

6. I didn’t bother heating it up to get the wrinkles out since appearance doesn’t matter and I intend to re-use the film several times. I’m pretty sure stretching it with heat would elminate any possibility of re-using the film.

Tip: These windows are in an unfinished basement so I wasn’t concerned about appearance, but this method could be easily adapted to finished windows within your living space by painting the grooved strips (or cutting a groove in a suitable moulding from the local building supply store). If your existing window trim has mitred corners you can carefully remove it, cut the 1/8″ groove in it, and reinstall it. The black spline will give the appearance of a custom trim detail.