After the house is slabbed, the next stage is skimming.
Skim is the 3mm plaster mix that’s applied with a trowel to the plasterboard, this is the ultimate concealer that smooths out all the cracks and imperfections away. Applying the plaster is done in ‘shots’, but prior to this there is a rigorous process of preparation.
First step is to tape all the joints of the plasterboard with scrim, this is a self-adhesive mesh. The joints are then filled with joint filler. Next, the mini-mesh corner beads are fixed with stainless staples to all the exposed corners, they went to great effort to ensure these were all plumb and at right angles, in some locations they built out the corners with bonding agent to achieve this.
Plastering is a messy part of the build process, water is a key ingredient to mix the 70+ bags of plaster, but the team tidied as the went and left the site clean at the end of the job. The last thing you want to face is a big clean-up when a trade is finished.
We worked with a local crew, all brothers and a nephew. There synchronicity was evident, as once the plaster starts flowing, they have to work quickly to achieve a smooth finish. The youngest of the crew mixes the plaster and delivers it to the ‘hawks’ (a tray with a handle), once the stilts are on there’s no bending down to get plaster. Amusingly, they have different sounds to signal for more plaster, they said it’s just like feeding cattle. The plaster is allowed to go off slightly before they do the final smoothing with a speed skim blade. Water is applied with brushes, to maintain it’s workability.
As plaster dries, you begin to see the lines and forms of the space emerge from the mould. Moving through each stage of the build process makes the space more tangible, and the memories of all the layers under the surface slowly begin to fade. Our home is emerging from the workplace and canteen of our hardworking teams.
Next steps on the journey are spray painting, second fix electrical, commissioning heating and services, then the game changer step of connecting to the electrical grid, stay tuned for more updates!
