# Forum Home Renovation Plastering  Fixing plaster and render on brick internal walls following removal of skirting?

## Sir Stinkalot

Hi all, 
I posted a two part question in relation to patching behind skirting boards and how to reattach here: http://www.renovateforum.com/f84/reattaching-old-skirting-stone-brick-walls-also-plaster-patching-100874/ 
It looks like I have the fixing method sorted but was hoping for some input into the plaster / render side of things which has resulted in a repost over here. 
Since moving in I haven't been happy with the architraves and skirting boards in the house as they appear to just be years of built up paint. Instead of just applying another coat of paint to the colour we want I have been systematically removing the skirting boards to remove the paint in the garage, and this also allows me to repaint before attaching again. 
The internal walls of the house are double brick and the external walls stone. The walls appear to be rendered and then plastered (not plasterboard). The previous owner had run a bead of silicon or no more gaps along the top of the skirting to seal it against the wall. When I was removing the no more gaps there are some small sections where it has pulled off some render/plaster above the line of the skirting. Sorry for all the photos but it is best to provide more information than not enough.         
In other areas the render has broken away behind the level of the skirting as a result of getting the skirting boards off.
So the questions:Should I worry about fixing up the broken render sections (which will be hidden behind the skirting)?What should I use?Can I just use the premixed plaster to smooth the damaged area above the skirting line?Thanks 
Stinky

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## Ken-67

You may be better to repair the plaster before re-fitting your skirting boards. You need to be sure you have somewhere solid at the fixing points, and you don't want the boards distorting where there is a void.

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## Sir Stinkalot

Hi Ken, 
The intention is to repair before refitting the skirting. My idea at this stage is to repair, paint the wall (lower than skirting level), reattach prepainted skirting boards, and then if needed a bead of no moe gaps at the top of the skirting. 
What would I use to repair/fill the void? It seems to be a cement render base and then a finer plaster cover over, and up the wall. 
I was thinking perhaps a sand/cement premixed bag to fill the void area, and the premixed plaster for the transition from just below the top of the skirting to just above the skirting to merge into the wall.

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## Ken-67

The pre-mixed sand/cement would probably be suitable. For the bigger gaps showing in the third picture, baybe you could get some pieces of brick mortared in before you plaster

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## johnc

The premix sand cement will be a stronger mix than the original product but is ok for small patches. Sprinkle some water on the exposed brick before applying to reduce the drying rate. If brick has come away apply sand mix to level of old brick work then once dry apply render. Make sure you scrape back any excess mix so that you have room for the plaster coat and you should be fine.

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## CPE W&C

I would pull off any loose masonry and then patch/polish with cornice cement... Might take 2 applications depending on how deep you have to fill... Make sure you wet down the masonry before applying cornice cement 
Cheers

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## Sir Stinkalot

Thanks all .... Good tips especially the quick spray of water. I will do a bit more research into cornice cement, and assess the extent of patching required before deciding what path to take. 
Cheers 
Stinky

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## Sir Stinkalot

Hi all, 
Just a quick update for the future if anybody comes across a similar situation. 
In the end I used a sand/cement mix to fill the larger areas after spraying with water as suggested. Most of this was going to be hidden by the skirting anyway. Where the plaster had come away from above the skirting line I left the sand/cement mix a few mm short of the finished surface and then finished off with either cornice cement or patching plaster depending on what I had on hand at the time. 
By the time that the skirting was reattached, and a bead of no more gaps along the top of the skirting it was all a very clean finish. I did try cornice cement in lieu of the sand/cement mix however I found the sand/cement easier to apply and given the quantities required it was more economical buying a few 10kg bags of sand/cement over the cornice cement. 
Thanks for the help. 
Stinky

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## dtklamf

just a note to say thanks for this info now I know exactly what to do since I'm faced with the same thing since removing an enclosure from an old bay window

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