Blocks with a front finish: characteristics and finishing materials

Gusevsky Andrey Anatolyevich

Options for finishing a house from blocks

You can build a house from any modern building material: brick, foam concrete, aerated concrete and other materials. The most important thing is to perform quality finishing work.
Finishing a house from expanded clay concrete blocks is no difficulty; you just need to choose the right material for it. But first you need to understand the question of what is expanded clay concrete and what are its properties.

Expanded clay and its characteristics

The name of this building material speaks for itself. Expanded clay and concrete are used in its manufacture.
The first substance goes through a lengthy process of processing and firing. After that, it acquires a porous structure.
Concrete mortar consists of cement and water, in rare cases, sand is added.

Note.
Expanded clay is large, which makes it possible to save on the purchase of building material. It is strong and durable due to the composition and structure of expanded clay concrete.

Expanded clay block finishing options

Expanded clay walls can be made with a variety of materials.
Namely:

• Stucco.
• Wallpaper.
• Plastic clapboard.
• Wooden clapboard.
• Ceramic tiles and other stuff.

In principle, there are no restrictions on the use of finishing materials.

The use of plaster in finishing work

Stucco as a finishing material

Stucco (seeTypes of plasters for interior decoration: choose correctly) for many years used in finishing work.
If previously there was only one version of its manufacture - based on a mortar, then today there are three types of this tool:

• Starting plaster ("start").
• Finish ("finish").
• Decorative.

Note.
The price of such material is very low, which makes it very popular. Starting plaster is used to smooth surfaces or to eliminate defects on them, and finishing masks defects in the starting layer.

A separate niche is decorative plaster, which has a large selection of shades and designs, there are impregnations in its composition:

• Natural stone (crumb).
• Harnesses.
• Tissues.
• Sequin and more.

The photo shows an example of finishing work using decorative plaster.

Suitable for exterior and interior decoration

Stages:

• It is applied only on a flat surface. It is preliminarily prepared.
• First, start plaster is applied to the wall in small layers. Each layer after complete drying should be treated with sandpaper.
  Then the finishing plaster is applied in the same layers. It is also processed with sandpaper.

Tip. The number of layers of start and finish plaster depends on the size of the defects on the surface.

• Apply plaster on expanded clay concrete blocks on a special mesh fixed to the surface.

To use the plaster you will need:

• Large and small spatula.
• Building level.
• Grid.
• Construction adhesive for mounting the mesh on the surface.
• Sandpaper.
• Capacity for a batch of solution.
• Construction mixer.

Tip. Do not immediately knead a large amount of mortar, since the plaster can dry out quite quickly and at the same time it loses its properties.

So:

• Application decorative plaster no different from regular use.
  The same tools and materials are also used. Only in this case will not need a grid.

Tip. Before buying decorative plaster, it is worthwhile to clarify exactly which shade it will have on the surface after drying.

• Plaster is applied with a large and small spatula in a thin layer. Since this tool dries very quickly, it is worthwhile to carefully distribute the solution on the surface.

As a rule, on the packaging of any decorative plaster there is a special instruction, according to which the solution is prepared.

Expanded clay house wallpaper

Wallpaper for decoration has always been used.
The paper was replaced by more modern types of this finishing material:

• Cork.
• Vinyl.
• Textile.
• Liquid wallpaper.
• Non-woven.

Cork wallpapers:

• The material has become popular relatively recently, they look very interesting, they look on the surface. They are made using balsa wood and a vinyl base.
• Wallpaper of this type is very elastic. Gluing them to the surface is quite simple. For this, ordinary glue is used.
  The surface can be of a different shade and is not able to absorb dirt.
• Cork wallpapers are easily cleaned with a damp rag.

Tip. This type of wallpaper should not be used in the kitchen area, since it is quite difficult to clean the grease stain from the surface without using abrasive products, and they can damage the surface and spoil the appearance of the finish.

Vinyl wallpapers:

• This type of wallpaper is practical and durable.
• Vinyl wallpapers are moisture resistant and are not able to absorb pollution, they can be easily washed. They can withstand even the use of abrasive products.
• Wallpaper does not fade in direct sunlight and thus for a long time retain their original appearance.

There are several types of vinyl wallpaper:

• Washable, which can be cleaned with wet rags not too often.
• Super washable that can withstand wet cleaning every day.
• Screen printing.

The last type of vinyl wallpaper is very original. It has a different design.
In its density, it does not differ from other types. Their surface is matte or with a pearly sheen.

Cork wallpaper in the interior of the house

Textile wallpapers are environmentally friendly, as they are made from:

• Papers.
• Non-woven.
• Textiles (fabric - cotton, silk, viscose, linen and much more).

Characteristics:

• Textile wallpaper does not fade and lasts a long period of time. They can act as excellent insulating material due to their dense structure.
• Velor, which has a velvety surface, is very popular among such textile wallpapers. They allow air to pass through and are very resistant to moisture.

Tip. It is best to clean textile wallpapers using a conventional vacuum cleaner.

Liquid wallpaper:

• Liquid wallpaper - This is a more modern material for decorating surfaces. It is sold in dry form.
• The method of applying this type of wallpaper resembles working with plaster.

Also required:

• Two spatulas.
• Level (if necessary).
• Capacity for the preparation of the composition.
• Construction mixer for quick kneading.

Damage to such a surface will be practically impossible. But if this still happened, then it would be enough to moisten the damaged place with water and with the help of a spatula, level the finish again.

Tip. It is very convenient to use liquid wallpaper to decorate children's rooms when the child begins to paint on the walls. All defects are eliminated by the method described above.

Non-woven wallpaper:

• This type of wallpaper is very elastic and practical. Its surface does not fade in the sun and for a long time retains its original appearance.
  Wallpaper has a denser structure than paper.

Tip.It is better to use non-woven wallpaper to decorate the ceiling surface. They can be painted up to 12 times.

Wallpapering

Wallpapering Steps

Wall decoration from expanded clay blocks can only be done if the surface is well prepared. It is impossible to glue wallpaper on the porous structure of a building material.
First, the surface is processed and leveled using plaster or drywall.
So:

• With the use of plaster, no questions will arise and after such work there always remains a lot of construction debris, which cannot be said about the use of drywall.
• This material is mounted on a crate made of metal profiles.

To make the frame you will need:

• Metal profile.
• Dowels and metal screws.
• Rotary hammer and screwdriver.
• Construction level for smooth installation of the frame.
• Hacksaw for cutting profiles.

Tip. In cutting profiles, it is best to use a grinder, which will significantly reduce time and save physical strength.

Work with drywall:

• Directly on the surface with the help of dowels, the main guides are mounted in a vertical or horizontal position.
• On top of them are attached other metal profiles. It is necessary to mount the frame in such a way that it turns out as a crate with internal cells.
• There is nothing complicated in the work, and all of them can be done by hand.
• Plasterboard sheets are subsequently attached to it with the help of self-tapping screws with wide hats and a screwdriver. The desired sheet size is trimmed with a regular clerical knife.

Fixing drywall to the wall

Tip. So that the wallpaper can be glued better, the joints of the drywall sheets are treated with plaster or putty, which after drying is passed with sandpaper and the surface is then primed.

To glue the wallpaper you will need:

• Special glue, the choice of which depends on the density and type of wallpaper.
• Foam roller for smoothing the canvas.
• Rags for blotting the adhesive solution when it gets on the surface of the wallpaper;
• Scissors.
• Ruler and pencil.

The video shows the process of gluing a room.

Tip. If the room has even ceilings and walls, which are the same along the entire perimeter, then you can pre-assemble the wallpaper of the desired size, which will speed up the process of gluing the surface.

Drywall surface is coated with glue. She needs to be allowed to stand for several minutes.
Such actions will ensure the strength of the finishing work. Some types of wallpaper also require smearing in advance because of their dense structure.

Conclusion

To glue the fabric you need to start from above and gradually smoothing it with a foam roller in the downward direction. Modern wallpapers should not be glued with an overlap, as they have properties after drying, expand.
It is better to glue their joint to joint, while well lubricating their edges.