How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

To the OP:

Re: SOHO.

I didn't move to NYC until the early 1980s. I can tell you I prefer SOHO then to what it has become now. SOHO SUCKS ASS now. Some of my art professors were living there and working as artists in their lofts when I cam to NYC. In time, they all moved on, many out of the city because the neighborhood that THEY made desirable was turned into a fashion tourist shopping mall zoo. Even the art gallerists had to move on due to real estate values.

In the 70s the artists reclaimed the old rag warehouses and gave the place it's significance to NY and world culture.

Posted by: Oxygen at November 25, 2008 2:24 PM in response to Closing Bell: There IS Someplace Like Home

It looks like I have a solution.

I cut a circular profile from the plastic lid of a joint compound bucket. I use it as like squeegee running it lengthwise along the cove leaving a thin coating of compound.

When dry, I will follow-up with a repeat coat, then after that, touch up any gaps.

One question in general about skim coats. I'm using premixed lightweight joint compound because it is easier to sand. After the 1st coat dried, I knocked down any lines and high points with the taping knife. Then, I went back in with a 220 drywall sanding screen to level out any areas that needed it. After 2nd coat and then a third touch up coat to fill pinholes and errors, for my final finish should I fine sand with sandpaper or should I strive to get the last coat applied smooth enough to not need to sand?

Thanks again.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 23, 2008 5:36 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

It looks like I have a solution.

I cut a circular profile from the plastic lid of a joint compound bucket. I use it as like squeegee running it lengthwise along the cove leaving a thin coating of compound.

When dry, I will follow-up with a repeat coat, then after that, touch up any gaps.

One question in general about skim coats. I'm using premixed lightweight joint compound because it is easier to sand. After the 1st coat dried, I knocked down any lines and high points with the taping knife. Then, I went back in with a 220 drywall sanding screen tolevel out any areas that needed it. After 2nd coat and then a third touch up coat to fill pinholes, etc., for my final finish should I fine sand with sandpaper or should I strive to get the last coat applied smooth enough to not need to sand?

Thanks again.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 23, 2008 5:35 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

Thanks for all the ideas.

What sort of powdered compound should I be using instead of the lightweight joint compound?

Posted by: Oxygen at October 23, 2008 4:04 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

What do you mean by modifying the knife edges? You mean filing both sharp corners?

Posted by: Oxygen at October 23, 2008 12:24 AM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

I'm still not getting a clear picture in my mind.

The coves are not devastated; I’m just trying to smooth the curves out.

The curves ARE the last thing. The room is ready to go except for the curves. The walls are sweet planes. There’s some rough 220 sheetrock screen marks which need sanding out, otherwise the walls like nice.

I’m using lightweight joint compound. I’ve been thinning in successive applications. I’m shooting for 3(+) applications.

What exactly is the benefit of mixing my own compound? What working properties does it have? What product is recommended?

I almost feel that either a slightly longer (not wider) blade and/or a more flexible blade would make turning the contour easier.

Because the inside radius of the cove (about 1”-1.5” radius) has already been grooved by poor paint/plaster work in the past, when I swing the semi-stiff spatula upwards it tends to ride along the grooves and repeat them instead of gliding over them and laying down a swath of compound. Perhaps the compound is an issue in the way it applies and allows me to work back into it (or not work back into it). It doesn’t feel very forgiving.

Thanks for all the ideas!

No way I could afford to pay someone to do this.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 22, 2008 11:42 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

Well,I tried a tube of caulk as a squeegee, but it didn't release the joint compound in a smooth manner. It seems the tool would need the sharp edge of a squeegee/sheetrock type of tool in order to release the JC smoothly.

Yes, I suppose you would call it a cove profile.

The project is stumped.
I really need to get this completed and get my room back from plaster dust limbo.

Well, back to the drawing board.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 22, 2008 10:15 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

Have you tried that?

Doesn't seem that it would last too long...I have to do an entire room 12' x 22'.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 22, 2008 9:06 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

How is this crisis going to effect the elderly?
Do you think this demographic will be amongst the hardest hit: loosing value in pension and retirement funds when they do not have the longevity to endure long term rebounds?

Not to become a conspiracy theorist, but it was mentioned to me yesterday that this banking scam/crisis will ultimately target the elderly. Grab their money, crash the market, get a bail out, bleed the value, then bring the system back online when wealth has changed hands.
Kills two birds with one stone: profit off the elderly and hasten the demise of a huge social demographic that is a burden on society's collective resources. What to do with all the elderly, and their upkeep?

Posted by: Oxygen at October 10, 2008 3:23 PM in response to I told you so...

Thank you The What.

I’ve lived in Clinton Hill for decades in a nice rent regulated apartment. No need for me to be saturated in real estate until a gentrifying ‘asshat’ developer bought my building and came at us tenants with guns blazing trying to evict us from our home. The fact that we have lived here for years through thick and thin in this nabe and were being sh|t on by some shmuck from god knows where, made our blood boil. We are fighting back…yes; The Brooklyn Wars are VERY REAL. One thing this has done is fast forwarded me and got me looking at the huge amount of RE development in this neighborhood. We got a quick education on developers and their Brooklyn Warfare techniques. In the midst of this transformation, I happened to be waiting in line this spring at the supermarket and saw the cover of the New York Mag pictured above.

Brooklyn Wars? I started to skim the article and that was my introduction to Brownstoner and…The What. I lurked and started learning a bit more, day-by-day. I slowly acclimatized to the personalities and temperaments, but I was instantly drawn to reading the engaging strident posts by The What. His posts were making sense to me and educating me in economics so I started following the news more. In our building many tenants were living in denial, lulled into complacency by false promises and BS, getting setup to be bent over and reamed…just like many investors in this bank pyramid scam. Some of us anticipated the harsh treatment we could expect. Similarly, when I read The What I started to see that his - often highly intelligent - opponents were collectively delusional, living very comfortably in denial of the facts. Such is human nature…

I became a fan! Each day as I read The What’s explanations and referenced articles I could see the unthinkable WAS occurring. And let’s face it, who else on this blog was predicting the catastrophic collapse of the US banking system and the economy? The optimists were thoroughly delusional, eyes and brains neutralized by their own dreams and desires. Here’s a toast to the grand tradition of skepticism…and perhaps a well-informed logical pessimism as well.

Bravo!

Posted by: Oxygen at October 10, 2008 2:42 PM in response to I told you so...

who was buying GE??? benson?? wasder???? Congratulations. Nice move on the close!!!

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at October 10, 2008 5:20 PM in response to I told you so...

DIBS;

It was me. I'm happy with my GE move!

I joined this dialogue late, but you are right on regarding the definition of a depression. I work in the industrial sector, and we have yet to see a slowdown. Matter of fact, our sales are above budget, at least, so far. One of our biggest customers is IBM, who reported nice profits yesterday, and was able to float a $4B bond.

My broker advised me today to take a look at muni bonds. The spread over treasuries is really nice.

Posted by: benson at October 10, 2008 7:23 PM in response to I told you so...

I was talking about it and I missed the trade because I'm a pussy. I was ready to pull the trigger at 18 today and got caught up in my real job slinging mortgages LOL. That would have been a good trade, I plan on going long on it so maybe I'll have another opportunity this next week. Still relatively cheap considering.

Posted by: Adam Dahill at October 10, 2008 8:34 PM in response to I told you so...

wasder has never bought any sort of stock in his life.

Posted by: wasder at October 10, 2008 8:40 PM in response to I told you so...

Crimson nailed it.

Posted by: troll at October 10, 2008 9:09 PM in response to I told you so...

daveinbedstuy

1st off, that was not what I was saying. I was saying: You may be the only one left on the planet that pretends to understand what in fact is unfolding in front of us. Not whether or not we are headed for a depression or recession.

2nd. There is no absolute definition of a "depression" anyway. So i guess we CAN in fact not agree there. But that's really besides the point.

My only point was that you seem to argue with The What for the very sake of the argument. You also seek him out on the forums to do just that. I believe you have no clue what is going to happen on a broad scale, because I think that nobody does.

Unless of course this an amazing moment in history where there is some condescending "internet tough guy" named dave that lives in a brownstone in bedstuy brooklyn who has all of the worlds economic answers.

I smell a movie deal when this is all over...

Posted by: Pastabatman at October 13, 2008 8:29 AM in response to I told you so...

Are you talking about a cove ceiling? I'm pretty sure that traditional plasterers made their own molds or jigs for each cove. Maybe you can cut one from a plastic squeegee or PVC pipe? Also think that there have been previous Forum threads on this topic, as well as articles in the NY Times and video How-To's on either This Old House and/or Bob Vila.

Posted by: vinca at October 22, 2008 9:57 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

Well,I tried a tube of caulk as a squeegee, but it didn't release the joint compound in a smooth manner. It seems the tool would need the sharp edge of a squeegee/sheetrock type of tool in order to release the JC smoothly.

Yes, I suppose you would call it a cove profile.

The project is stumped.
I really need to get this completed and get my room back from plaster dust limbo.

Well, back to the drawing board.

Posted by: Oxygen at October 22, 2008 10:15 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

Oxygen --

For one thing you're using the wrong size blade. Move up to a 12", and you can buy excellent plastic 12" blades at Home Depot for like eighty nine cents.

For the curve, you need to use care that you would for a wall only more so. Throw out your buckets of premixed compound and by the bags of powder. Plan on doing three coats carefully -- you're not trying to do this in one pass.

For the second and third layer, add a slight bit more water to your mud, the third layer should be the thinnest.

The curve should be the last thing you tackle. By the time you build up the skills in the rest of the room, you'll be a ace.

Good luck!

Posted by: Smokychimp at October 22, 2008 10:56 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?

We have the same type of curved radius in many rooms of the house. Sorry to say, but I don't think keeping/restoring the radius, once disturbed, is a job for an amateur. Why don't you call in a skilled plasterer for just this aspect of your project? It may cost more than you intended to spend but could be worth it to you in the long run -- especially since you intend to stay there for the long run.

Posted by: Brooklynista at October 22, 2008 11:10 PM in response to How To: Plastering Where Wall-meets-Ceiling Curved Radius?