DIY rough repair

In detail: do-it-yourself rough repair from a real master for the site my.housecope.com.

Buying an apartment in a new building is unlikely to be able to immediately move in to live in it. And it’s difficult to call it an apartment. More like a stone or concrete bag. No plumbing, no amenities, nothing that is customary to see in modern comfortable housing.

All there is is a concrete floor, brick walls, windows and doors that will most likely need to be replaced. The new settler immediately plunges into a long, painstaking renovation in order to create his own comfortable, cozy home.

The main rule in the repair: do not rush... Moreover, if this is an apartment in a new building. Do not forget that the new house will shrink for about two more years. If you make a quick repair, then cracks can go with the shrinkage of the house. Therefore, everything is done slowly, as a last resort before a major one, a light cosmetic, inexpensive repair is done.

Before starting the repair, a plan is drawn up, including:

Moving walls (except load-bearing).
Apartment layout.
Design and style are determined.
Arrangement of furniture.
Places of installation of electrical appliances (the placement of the wiring depends on this).
Location of plumbing and washbasin (for planning water supply and sewerage).
The types and sizes of interior doors, doorways, threshold heights are agreed upon.
Clarifies what materials the walls, ceiling and floor will be made of.

After carefully planning everything and thinking it over, you can make an estimate, calculate the amount of materials needed and the approximate cost.

Repair should start with dirty work:

Transfer and dismantling of partitions is in progress... If some kind of rough finish has been performed, all this is removed.
According to the drawn up plan, wiring and pipes for water supply and sewerage are laid... It is not recommended to save on materials here. Wires and pipes will be embedded, and if they turn out to be of poor quality, it will be very difficult to replace them. To do this, you will have to break the walls and, accordingly, do the repairs again. Therefore, it is better to buy good materials right away, let it cost a little more.
Windows and doors are changing (those that are installed in new buildings are of very dubious quality).
Level the floor if necessary or bring it to one level throughout the apartment, a cement-sand screed is made.

Video (click to play).

There are many communications in the bathroom: an extractor hood, water supply, and electricity. Repair in the bathroom begins with their installation.

Key Recommendations:

For electrical wiring, only whole pieces of wire are used and with a margin of power. They must be either plastered or located under drywall sheets.
Junction boxes are installed outside the bathroom.
If the water pipes are to be installed in a wall, it is recommended to use plastic or polypropylene pipes. They are more durable and reliable than metal-plastic pipes on corner joints (fittings).

Tiles are traditionally laid on the bathroom floor. You need to pay attention:

After leveling the floor and completing the concrete screed, it is imperative to make waterproofing using a special impregnation or mixture.
When laying tiles, pay attention not to form air pockets.
Do not skimp on grouting. A high-quality grout will get rid of mold and mildew.

Bathroom walls are plastered or sheathed with sheets of moisture-resistant drywall... Covered with tiles, plastic panels or wallpaper. Many people think that wallpaper cannot be used in the bathroom due to moisture and hot steam, but this is not the case.Vinyl, liquid, moisture-resistant washable wallpaper, fiberglass, are quite suitable for these purposes.

For the ceiling, plastic panels, aluminum profile ceilings, synthetic stretch ceilings are used... It is not recommended to level the ceiling with plasterboard. Even moisture-resistant sheets will last no more than 10 years in a humid room. The most budgetary way to level the ceiling in the bathroom is a moisture-resistant putty followed by painting.

After the completion of the repair, plumbing fixtures, sockets, switches are installed, furniture is brought in.

Rough finishing of walls and ceilings, first of all, includes leveling the surface.

There are two primary alignment methods:

Wet. Solutions based on dry building mixtures, plaster, putty are used. This method is very laborious and dusty, the thickness of the plastered surface should not be more than 80mm.

When finishing with mixtures, 3 types of mortar are used:

Plaster. It is used in cases where the surface has strong drops. Ceiling plaster is made on the basis of gypsum.
Putty... Designed for patching up small irregularities, chips, cracks. There is a starting putty (for rough surface treatment) and finishing (for final leveling and creating perfectly flat and smooth walls and ceilings).
Primer. Deeply impregnates the surface, improves adhesion.

Dry. Walls and ceilings are leveled with sheet materials, most often drywall is used. The disadvantage of this method is that the useful area of the room is "eaten up".

Wall and ceiling decoration always starts from top to bottom. When leveling the ceiling, it is necessary to immediately measure the maximum difference in height. If the difference turns out to be more than 50 mm, then it is advisable to use the dry method, especially since here, you can use not only drywall sheets, but also stretch ceilings.

After finishing work with the ceiling, the walls are leveled. Which method to choose is not important. Everyone decides for himself what is more convenient and faster, or based on the price of materials.

Floor work is done last. There are many options for flooring in an apartment:

Ceramic tile. Most often used in kitchens and bathrooms, but can be used in other rooms as well. Differs in strength, reliability, durability. A wide range of prices makes it affordable for all categories of the population.
Parquet. An environmentally friendly type of coating, made from natural wood, but difficult to install, requires additional processing and maintenance.
Laminate. In appearance it resembles parquet, only it is cheaper and much easier to install.
Linoleum and carpet... Used for quick repairs and cost savings. It has an attractive appearance, soft, warm, but easily deforms and tears, especially if laid on an uneven surface.

This is not a complete list, but only the most commonly used floor coverings. They are all suitable for a residential apartment. When preparing the floor for laying the floor covering, a screed is made. The thickness of the coating and the thermal insulation layer (expanded clay or other material) must be taken into account - this will make the floor on the same level throughout the apartment.

After finishing work with the floor, you can start installing the doors... It is not necessary to purchase the complete set straight away. If there is little money left for repairs, and there are still many costs ahead, you can buy and install only boxes and platbands to start with. It is not difficult to buy and hang on the door hinges to match the size of the door frame.

Installation of skirting boards - one of the final stages of repair. Even 10 years ago, wooden ones were very popular, and now plastic ones are more often installed. They are more convenient to mount, a large selection of colors, there are skirting boards with a groove for wires.

General Tips:

If you need to save money, you can make repairs yourself, occasionally taking friends for help.
Hire workers only in official firms with a good reputation. There is no demand for free workers working without a contract.
If in doubt, do not hesitate, seek help from friends or specialists. Even if it is a paid consultation.
Be wary of saving. Always remember that cheap material may turn out to be of poor quality and will harm the entire repair.
Adhere to the correct sequence of work.
Try not to stretch the repair for a long period of time. Better to be patient, save some money, and, without delay, carry out all the work. Otherwise, there will be no novelty effect.

After a tender for the repair work, a contractor company is selected. In rare cases, new settlers can choose their own contractor.

As a result of such repairs, an apartment is obtained that is quite suitable for living. Installed sockets and switches, a bulb in a socket, inexpensive plumbing, there is even a stove in the kitchen.

The quality of materials and work performed is far from ideal, and you don't have to choose a design, what is - that is. On the other hand, there is ready-made housing for free, and if you wish, you can save up money and redo the repairs with more expensive materials and to your liking.

The price for apartment renovation consists of many components:

Are the design and project drawn up independently, or will a specialist be hired?
Are the repairs done on your own, or are people hired?
What types of materials will be used?
What are the types of coatings?
Plumbing, wiring, domestic pipes, or more expensive imported ones?

These and many other components affect the final price.... Therefore, it is possible to calculate the cost of repairs only in each specific case, after drawing up a project and an estimate.

Almost always, new housing is acquired by a happy newcomer from the developer's company without interior decoration and repair, but with communications brought into the apartment. Firstly, such housing in a new building will be cheaper, and secondly, almost always the repair and arrangement of an apartment by the developer is carried out extremely carelessly, using cheap materials. Thirdly, there is a desire to complete some stages of apartment renovation with your own hands or with the hands of good craftsmen.

First, you need to make an audit and inspection of the apartment, to establish problem areas of walls, ceilings and floors. Then we proceed in the following order. We determine what requires repair and finishing in the first place. If the time and money for a complete renovation of the apartment is not enough, it is necessary to put in order first of all:

Front door and windows, apartment ventilation;
Perform full and highest quality electrical wiring and wiring of sockets around the apartment. This stage must be thought out in as much detail as possible, draw up a connection diagram and a circuit for laying wires into walls;
Connect the water and collect the sewerage system in the bathroom and toilet, install a toilet bowl, washbasin and shower cabin;
If the start time of the renovation of an apartment in a new building coincided with the heating season, be sure to check the degree of heating of the aluminum registers with a remote thermometer.

In the process of carrying out the listed preparatory work, you can calculate the sequence of repairs in a new building.

Much in the repair of housing in a new building depends on the availability of time and money resources. Having bought a "bare" apartment and having completed the necessary documents for the right of ownership, you automatically start paying rent and housekeeping, for using the adjacent territory, for the removal of household waste and construction waste. After connecting electricity and water, a new apartment in a new building began to bring you a loss in the form of costs for its maintenance and decoration. The longer the repair time for an apartment in a new building, the more it will cost you.

There are two main options for approaching the issue of finishing a new apartment in a new building:

Planned renovation and decoration of the apartment. In this case, the owners draw up a detailed map and a schedule for finishing work, in which all the main types of finishing and installation of devices are prescribed in stages. Such repairs, as a rule, are carried out from scratch to completion by one team of craftsmen. The completion date of a repaired object may take several weeks or months. The disadvantages of this approach include the constantly growing price and cost of work, sometimes exceeding the cost of the estimate by more than two times. As a result, if due to unforeseen circumstances there are not enough funds, the repair can be delayed for an indefinite period.
Fast renovation from scratch. In this case, all the above stages of repair in a new building are carried out by the hands of hired craftsmen with direct control of the quality of work on your part. An apartment in a new building within a week will be prepared for further decoration of the rooms. In addition to communications, the smallest room of the apartment is finished and equipped with temporary linoleum and wallpaper. In such a room there are still no amenities, but it can be used as housing - a temporary hut and a warehouse for building materials. All other work is performed as free funds and time become available.

The first option is well suited if the family has small children or elderly people who need to provide some comfort and convenience. The second option is considered more economical and quicker, especially if, after finishing the kitchen, bathroom, toilet and one room, housing is rented, with the consecutive bringing the remaining rooms of the new building to condition.

Among the most popular horror stories for new buildings, it is customary to consider stories about the shrinkage of the walls of the house and its foundation. In reality, a similar process for a multi-storey building should finally be completed by the time the building is put into operation. This period is on average no more than 18 months. If, after 1.5 years, cracks form in the corners, the ceiling or at the joints and in the masonry of the walls, the tiles in the bathroom fall off, and the doors are deformed with skewed doors, this means that the new building has certain problems with the stability of the foundation. With the repair, you should wait until the main thing is clarified - what is happening with the new building.

Before starting work, first inspect the lock on the front door. The model and standard equipment of the door can be subject to separate agreement. Indicate in the addendum to the contract which model of door and lock you want to install. If it becomes necessary to take additional security measures, first of all, change the lock supplied when the new building was handed over.

At the next stage, it is necessary to resolve the issue of installing an electrical switchboard, connecting an electric meter. This will make it possible to start using a power tool when renovating an apartment. To get rid of the need to use a large number of carriers and extension cords, plan the layout of the electrical wiring in the apartment. When doing this, consider the following:

For kitchens and bathrooms, wiring must be laid in sealed hoses and sleeves;
Lay a separate wire cable to the bathroom for connecting a boiler or washing machine. The cable cross-section must be rated for a current of at least 25 A;
An additional wire must be laid to the place where the air conditioner is installed;
It is necessary to lead a wire to the bathroom, to the kitchen, to the hall, which will be connected and used in the future when organizing additional grounding.

In addition to electricity, in order to create more or less normal conditions, it is necessary to connect hot and cold water meters and collect sewage in the bathroom and toilet. It is necessary to start work with the installation of a toilet and a washbasin.

Considering that good plumbing is expensive, for the first time you can install an inexpensive toilet bowl, assemble and connect plastic sewer pipes, a bellows and a washbasin sink. During the renovation of an apartment, plumbing can be replaced at any time. The installation of expensive plumbing equipment increases the risk of damage to it during the repair; it must be installed at the final stage of the renovation of a new building.

To lay a plastic water supply using a perforator, we pierce channels in the walls of the bathroom, toilet, kitchen with a depth of 2.5-3 cm. Next, you need to solder the water pipes and connect the leads to the cistern and washbasin. Finally, we will install and connect cold and hot water meters to the domestic water supply system.

Before starting work, you will need to perform a large amount of cleaning the remnants of concrete and mortar. The main part will be for rough cleaning of walls, floors, ceilings, their chasing, alignment and trimming of seams. Such work gives a large amount of dirt and dust, so it will be necessary to organize good ventilation and wet cleaning inside the new building.

A separate point is to highlight the preparation of floors in each of the rooms for finishing. During the repairs in the apartment, it will be necessary to close up all the cracks, holes in the seams between the slabs, in the floor, in the interior walls of the new building. The most difficult thing will be leveling the floor with a cement mortar screed and reinforcing mesh. This procedure will need to be performed upon completion of the preparation of the walls and ceiling for finishing.

We will perform similar work in the kitchen, bathroom and toilet.

After rough cleaning, it will be necessary to prepare the walls in the kitchen and toilet for laying tiles on the walls and floors. Facing tiles can be laid with your own hands, but it is troublesome and takes a lot of time. Therefore, it is better to entrust the laying of tiles to masters specializing in this kind of finish. While the tiles are being laid, you can do your own repairs in one of the rooms of the apartment. The best option would be to lay decorative plaster or liquid wallpaper on the walls. If at the time of the start of repairs in the apartment of the new building the double-glazed windows in the windows were in a satisfactory condition, then you can start applying plaster on the walls of the room immediately.

Upon completion of the laying of tiles on the floor and walls in the kitchen, bathroom and toilet, you need to lay inexpensive linoleum in the corridor connecting these three rooms and the room in which the renovation was carried out using decorative plaster. This will reduce the amount of dust being raised and make it easier to clean the apartment.

Before finishing the walls in the apartment, it is necessary to align, and if a defect is found, to repair the interior doors. If your future plans include wallpapering, normally closing doors are essential for high-quality wallpapering. After the wall decoration is completed, we proceed to laying linoleum, laminate or carpet on the floor of the apartment. The most practical is considered to be a laminate for living rooms; for a corridor, an office version of linoleum with increased abrasion resistance. This type of work does not require special qualifications and is easily done with your own hands during the renovation of a new building apartment.

The final stage of the renovation is the connection of lamps and the installation of furniture in the apartment. Approximately 70% of the volume of work during repairs in a new building is quite available for doing it yourself. And only when performing special types of finishing - laying parquet, installing stretch ceilings, installing double-glazed windows or entrance doors in a new building, you will need the services of specialists.

Do-it-yourself rough finishing is an extremely hard work that not everyone can do, the faint of heart and office workers are asked to move away from the monitor.Continuing the DIY horror "Let's make a rough repair in the apartment ourselves and save a lot of money."

Wall alignment

To align the walls, we need:

Wise master
Plaster at the rate of 1 bag (25 kg) per 1 sq.m. walls
Finishing putty
Metal guides
Mixing water pipe
Someone also uses a drill for the convenience of mixing, but you can also handle it with a spatula.

Ideally, at least two people should work, one of whom is a man - bags of plaster are heavy. Together, you can putty one room in a few days, drying will take some more time. Note that it is better to do a rough repair in the warm season, because freshly finished walls exude moisture like a boxer during a match. Everything in the house is saturated with moisture: paper, clothes, drops flow down the windows. The walls will have to dry with the windows open and the heater on for at least a week.

My apartment had a brick wall that looked impressive even without decoration and seemed very trendy at the time of the universal charm of lofts. But they did not decide what to do with it. Craftsmen skin the bricks and cover them with a special stain so that the seams do not crumble. This option raises questions, since touching such walls is cold and generally dangerous, you can get scratched. Someone makes it easier and covers the walls with tiles that look like brick. This option is somehow fake: tiles that pretend to be brick look to me just as strange and illogical as modern new buildings in the city center, which are trying to give the architectural style of the XIX century.

But this is a lyrical digression. As a result, everything was covered with plaster.

To level the walls, they used the Rotband building mixture, the name of which is already used as a household name. All this was covered with Weber finishing putty - this is a ready-made paste, which, despite the high cost (300-600 rubles for a 5 kilo bucket), is very pleasant and convenient.

Concrete screed

The floor is poured last so as not to spoil the screed with plaster from the walls. It will dry for at least three days, and then if you use quick-drying mixtures. At this time, refrain from walking around the apartment, and if you really need to, you can put a board and let the lightest person in the house on it.

Under the concrete screed, the main communications of the apartment will pass: pipes to the bathroom and to the batteries, electrical wires for all sockets, a TV cable. Make sure everything is in its place. There won't be a second chance.

For the filling, we used Knauf Ubo cement mixture with the addition of expanded polystyrene granules, which, according to advertising materials, make the floor warmer. It is difficult to verify this. After laying the laminate, it is really pleasant and warm to walk on the floor, but you cannot put the laminate in the bathroom and the presence of granules under the porcelain stoneware layer was not felt.

Important... If you want to use porcelain stoneware in the bathroom (a very cold material), put warm floors under the screed (they will cost no more than 8 thousand rubles for a small bathroom), because as you know, the morning does not start with coffee.

Laying laminate

Don't be fooled if you think that laying your laminate flooring yourself using the video tutorials on Youtube is as easy and simple as a Lego construction set. Not a fig, this is not a Lego constructor, but for women's hands, in general, a Chinese letter, especially when the concrete screed turned out to be not perfectly flat.

You can spend a week fixing all the locks and fitting the board to the joints of the walls, or you can call a master who will do everything for 5,000 rubles in 1 day, and also install the plinth after.

The cost of rough finishing cost me 120 thousand rubles, including materials, delivery and work. It’s hard work, many small mistakes, but a wildly rewarding experience, the realization that you don’t have to communicate with a team of unskilled workers, understanding the structure of your apartment.Ultimately, even if your renovation isn't perfect, Ikea furniture will flatten the jambs.

It is too early for buyers of apartments in new buildings to relax after receiving the keys, because if the housing is bought without repair from the developer, then the newly-made owner gets literally bare walls. The site "RIA Real Estate" decided to remind the new settlers about the main technologies and stages of rough finishing, the quality of which also determines the quality of the future decor.

Technological memo

Currently, there are two main structural schemes for apartment buildings. Firstly, these are houses, the frame and external walls of which were built from reinforced concrete panels. And secondly, these are houses, the frame of which is made of monolithic reinforced concrete, and the openings are filled, as a rule, with aerated concrete blocks. There may be other design schemes, but they make up a small percentage of newly erected apartment buildings, explains Alexander Bortnikov, head of the Knauf Gips LLC training center.

“It should be noted that newly constructed buildings using reinforced concrete as the main material are subject to shrinkage. Shrinkage is a feature of all cement-based materials, since the cement stone decreases in volume during hardening. Therefore, it is recommended to start finishing work when all shrinkage phenomena have passed, and this is about a year after construction, or take this phenomenon into account when choosing certain materials and systems for finishing, ”the expert recommends.

We think over the design

Oddly enough, but even before the start of the rough work, it is necessary to decide on the interior design, since, based on this, it will depend on where and what communications to lay and what finishing solutions to use. Before starting the rough finish, if necessary, windows, heating radiators, plumbing communications and electrical wiring are replaced. Replacing all of the above can be carried out either completely or selectively, it is important that all these works are completed before performing a rough finish, Bortnikov points out.

Leveling the floors

The first step is to level the floor. If your apartment is completely “bare”, then you have a monolithic slab on the floor, which must not only be leveled, but also insulated, because it transmits all vibrations and sounds. To do this, it is advisable to first fill in a layer of expanded clay, which has excellent sound and heat insulation properties (layer thickness of about 5 cm). Before starting work, you need to make sure that there are no gaps in your concrete floor, otherwise the water from the screed may flow down to the neighbors. Usually, holes can remain in the area of risers and ventilation shafts. They need to be sealed with polyurethane foam or adhesive mixture. Next, we fill in expanded clay, starting from the place that has the greatest depth. We pour expanded clay with a solution of liquid concrete, similar in consistency to milk. Such a solution dries for about a day or two. You can also immediately make a claydite-cement-sand mixture and lay it on the base.

For bathrooms, it is advisable to make a flooring waterproofing before laying expanded clay, with an approach to the walls up to 10 cm.If it has already been done before putting the house into operation, then its quality must be checked, since defects are often found.

The only drawback of a self-leveling floor is the price - from 240 rubles per 25 kilograms (on average 400 rubles), therefore self-leveling floors are usually used with height differences of no more than 4 cm.A self-leveling floor can also be laid on a cement-sand screed (after it will dry), this will allow you to get a smoother surface at a lower cost. You can walk on self-leveling floors after 5 hours, lay linoleum or tiles in two days, and wood flooring after 7 days.

For some topcoats, it is desirable in any case to use a self-leveling floor, for example, under a laminate - it is not attached to the floor, but simply lies on the substrate, which is why during operation it can move and rub against the surface. If you have just a sand-cement screed on your floor, dust will form, while self-leveling floors completely exclude this.

Another way of leveling the floor and preparing the base for laying the topcoat is the use of dry prefabricated floors, says the expert "Knauf Gips". “When using this solution, floor elements or, for example, Knauf-superpol, are laid either directly on the base, or on an insulating layer (expanded polystyrene or mineral wool boards), or on a layer of dry backfill made of expanded clay sand. The latter dry prefabricated floor is the most popular because it allows you to quickly level the floor surface. The use of this method of preparation of the base allows one day after its laying to produce a topcoat and at the same time the issues of reducing the load on the floors are solved, the sound insulation of the floor is improved, ”says Bortnikov. Gypsum fiber boards (gypsum board) can be up to 20 millimeters thick. Their cost ranges from 315 to 566 rubles.

Plastering walls

As for the walls, in the room you can encounter various surfaces made of reinforced concrete, aerated concrete, very often gas silicate and ceramic bricks, with which internal partitions can be made, Bortnikov notes. It should be noted that at present some manufacturers produce reinforced concrete panels with high surface quality, which are enough to putty, but in most cases, leveling of the walls with plaster is required. “Indoors it is more expedient to use gypsum-based plasters, with the exception of rooms with high humidity (bathrooms, showers). Before applying the plaster, the surface of the walls must be primed. For poorly absorbent surfaces, such as concrete, a primer like Knauf Betokontakt is used to improve the adhesion (adhesion) of the plaster to the surface, ”the expert explains. For priming highly moisture-absorbing surfaces, for example, ceramic bricks, aerated concrete, primers are used that reduce the absorbency of the substrate and prevent uneven setting of the plaster mortar.

The maximum thickness of the plaster in one layer should not exceed 50 millimeters. The junction points of various surfaces, for example, aerated concrete and reinforced concrete, must be reinforced with a glass mesh with a mesh of 3x3 or 5x5 mm. If it is necessary to perform alignment with a thickness of more than 50 millimeters, it is recommended to use claddings on a metal frame with plasterboard or gypsum fiber sheathing. In rooms with high humidity, cement-based plasters should be used or wall cladding on a metal frame using slabs (aquaplates). The range of the cost of plaster is from 250 to 550 rubles per 25 kilograms.

We make partitions

In houses built of monolithic reinforced concrete, apartments are sold with a free layout: that is, they have no interior partitions and the owner forms the interior space at his own discretion. The best option for installing partitions in this case is the use of dry construction systems, that is, structures consisting of a metal frame and sheathed with gypsum plasterboards or sheets of increased strength. The advantage of this solution lies in the fact that such structures have a lower weight compared to other options, allow the creation of curved configurations of partitions, and have good sound insulation properties.In addition, their installation is carried out in a short period of time.

But it is important to remember some of the peculiarities when installing such structures, emphasizes Bortnikov. "Installation of plasterboard and gypsum-fiber partitions should be performed when all wet processes are completed in the room, or rather, the plastering of existing walls should be completed and the plaster layer should dry," he says.

For the device of the frame, the expert recommends using a profile with a metal thickness of 0.6 millimeters. As a frame cladding, it is better to take drywall 12.5 millimeters thick. Its cost ranges on average from 200 rubles per sheet to 360 rubles. When installing sockets on both sides of the partition, they should not be placed opposite each other, since this worsens the soundproofing characteristics of the structure, the agency's interlocutor notes.

Attention to the ceiling

Another surface in apartments that may also need leveling is the ceiling. It can be plastered (layer no more than 20 millimeters). The surface of the ceiling must be primed before plastering in order to avoid delamination of the plaster layer.

“For leveling ceilings, suspended structures can be created on a metal frame and sheathing with gypsum-based sheet materials. Suspended ceilings have two main frame structures, one-level and two-level. If the decoration is carried out in buildings in which shrinkage has not passed, it is recommended to make a choice in favor of a two-level ceiling. In this case, the frame is fixed with suspensions to the ceiling and is not attached to the walls and, accordingly, is less susceptible to deformations, - explains Bortnikov from Knauf Gips.

Fine finish of rough finish

“We have leveled the walls and ceiling, now we can start finishing, but depending on what material will be used for this, it may be necessary to putty the surface of the plaster or sheets,” says the expert.

“If tiles are glued to the surface or decorative plaster with a fraction of more than 1 millimeter is applied, then there is no need to carry out the finishing putty. But when using matte paints and structural plasters with a fraction of less than 1 millimeter as a finishing layer, it is necessary to putty the surface, ”he instructs.

Puttying is carried out in this case with a thin layer using the “scrapping” method. “The method of puttying“ on sdir ”is that a putty mixture is applied to the surface, then a wide (at least 600 millimeters wide), a hard spatula is applied with an effort to the surface at an angle of about 70 - 80 o and we draw it along the surface. With this method, the surplus putty is “stripped off” from the surface, and small irregularities below the level of the spatula are filled with a putty mixture, ”Bortnikov explains the subtleties of the technology.

When applying, for example, vinyl wallpaper, glaze or medium gloss paint, the putty is applied to the surface in a layer of up to 1 millimeter and smoothed out with a thin, resilient spatula (at least 600 mm wide, but it is better to use a wider spatula). Puttying is performed using a bright lamp (spotlight), the light from which is directed at an acute angle to the surface in order to see irregularities. After the putty has dried, it is sanded to remove small scars that remain from the edges of the spatula. If necessary, the filling operation is repeated, the expert explains.

For surface finishing puttying, gypsum-based or polymer-based putties can be used. Polymer putties can be ready-to-use, that is, it is enough to open the container with the putty, mix the contents and you can use it.

“Gypsum-based putties require experience and skill as the mixture must be applied and processed quickly enough or it will set. Polymer putties allow you to work more measuredly. In addition, polymer putties prepared from a dry mixture retain their properties and can be used for 72 hours, provided that the container with the product is closed. Ready-made polymer putties retain their properties and can be used for several months, but it is also necessary to tightly seal the container with the product, ”the agency's interlocutor draws attention. The cost of putties ranges from 200 to 1.3 thousand rubles per 25 kilograms, depending on the quality and purpose.

On average, materials for rough finishing will cost 6 thousand rubles per square meter.

Buying a new apartment is a joyful event for any person. It is especially pleasant to get ownership of an apartment in a new building, in which no one has lived before. As a rule, apartments in new buildings do not have any repairs. The owners can see the walls without any decoration, electrical wires and plumbing pipes. To turn rooms with bare walls into cozy and comfortable rooms for living, you need to make some effort, gradually completing a number of important activities.

DIY repair in a new building

This is what a newly built apartment looks like.

Bare walls - plenty of room for action

Do not buy expensive building and finishing materials for the first renovation in a new building. The building will shrink for several years, under the influence of which the finish can significantly deform and even completely collapse. In view of this, experts recommend giving preference to unpretentious and plastic materials.

New high-rise buildings will shrink for a few more years.

Plan your renovation carefully. It is not necessary to draw up many drawings detailing various sizes and important nuances. Simple sketches will suffice. Think about whether you will be redeveloping the apartment, what materials, in your opinion, will best fit into the interior of the premises, where lighting fixtures and sockets should be installed, etc.

Remember: proper preparation before starting work will save money, effort and time in the future.

It is best to start repairs in a new building with a rough surface preparation. Align the ceiling and walls. For these activities, you will need spatulas, a trowel, and different sized rules. Pre-clean surfaces from dirt and dust. Perform leveling with ordinary plaster mixture. Recommendations for the preparation and use of the formulations are usually given directly on the package.

Plastering walls on lighthouses

Throw in the solution along the markup

We do the markings, pull the guide threads and install a few more beacons

We throw the solution onto the new wall of your apartment

We rub the grooves with a solution

Before plastering, the walls must be impregnated with a primer. It will provide a better and more reliable adhesion of the plaster to the surface.

If the thickness of the plaster layer is more than 3 cm, it is recommended to carry out the work in two stages. At the first stage, the surfaces are simply leveled, at the second, they must be carefully ironed.

Apply the first layer of the mixture with a trowel. Thoroughly level the plaster and let it dry completely. Apply a primer to the dry layer of plaster, let it dry, and then apply a second layer of plaster. The application procedure remains the same, but this layer must be smoothed as efficiently as possible. Periodically check the evenness of the plaster with a spirit level.

Piping in a new building

Plumbing installation is a rather difficult stage of apartment renovation

After the surfaces are completely dry, you can proceed to the finishing decoration of the walls and ceiling. However, before that, it is recommended to install plumbing fixtures, and, if necessary, mount (replace) double-glazed windows and doors, so as not to damage the finish in the future.

The rough preparation of the walls has already been completed, therefore, in the future, new door frames and double-glazed windows will not be stained with plaster and putty. If there are doors, dismantle them together with the frame, because new canvases usually come with their own boxes.

Plumbing installation can also be done in-house. Domestic users most often prefer toilets with horizontal outlet. The installation of such a toilet bowl is reduced to its connection to the sewer pipe. The legs are usually rigidly screwed to the floor. Usually, installation instructions are included with the toilet, so there will be no special problems with this.

The installation of the remaining plumbing fixtures is at the discretion of the owner.

Installing an acrylic bathtub

Diagram of connecting the sink and bathtub to hot and cold water and sewerage pipelines

Choosing wallpaper for the room

In the previous steps, you leveled the surfaces and prepared them for finishing, so you don't have to carry out any additional preparatory measures.

For wall decoration in living rooms, wallpaper is usually used. Choose the finishing material for the ceiling yourself. During the first repairs in a new building, it is better to limit yourself to ordinary plastering or painting, because the building, as noted, will shrink, as a result of which the finish may collapse. It is better to use more expensive finishing options within a few years after buying an apartment.

The technology of applying paint to the surface in several layers

When painting walls, fantasize

Make the walls in the kitchen and bathroom at your discretion. Typically, such premises are decorated with ceramic tiles.

In the bathroom we put tiles on the wall and floor

Laying tiles on the wall with your own hands

When choosing a ceiling finish, start from your preferences and available budget. Inexpensive finishes can be done using:

paints;
whitewash;
wallpaper;
foam tiles.

Styrofoam ceiling tiles

How to glue ceiling tiles

Ceiling tile gluing options

The surface must be leveled before using any of the above finishes. As a standard, putty and primer are used for leveling.
Among the more expensive and interesting options for decorating the ceiling, one should highlight:

installation of plasterboard structures. First, guide profiles are attached to the surfaces, after which drywall sheets are fixed to them. Using drywall, you can equip both simple single-tier and complex multi-tiered curly structures. Also, this finish allows you to hide the wiring, elements of the ventilation system and other communications, which is very convenient;
arrangement of stretch fabrics. The PVC film is stretched and secured to the pre-assembled frame. The installation procedure is more complicated than in the case of plasterboard structures, because when performing repairs, it becomes necessary to use a special heat gun;
plastic hinged structures. Also attached to the frame. The main advantages are: ease of installation, high assembly speed, low cost and beautiful appearance.

Stretch ceiling installation diagram

Scheme of a two-level plasterboard ceiling

As a rule, when a newly built house is delivered, there is wiring in it, but there are no electrical appliances, or their quality leaves much to be desired.After finishing the ceiling and walls, proceed with the installation of outlets, switches and lights. Remember the elementary precautions: you can work with an electrician only after the apartment is completely de-energized. Choose the location for the installation of sockets and lighting devices at your discretion.

Remember safety precautions!

Repair in a new building traditionally ends with the arrangement of the floor. As a rule, the condition of the floors in newly commissioned houses is poor. If the house is built of concrete panels and the apartments were handed over in a draft version, the screed must be poured.

Screed cracks (new building)

A screed is a layer of concrete mortar poured over the sub-floor and necessary to level the base. There are several types of this alignment. The most popular and easiest to do it yourself is a wet screed. All work comes down to eliminating irregularities and cracks with a concrete solution.