You can save money and have control over the consistency and quality of the finished product by creating your own wall putty, which can be a satisfying project. Homemade putty is an affordable and efficient solution for minor flaws or for priming walls before painting.
Making homemade wall putty is easy and only requires a few staple ingredients. There are no special tools or skills required, and the process is simple. To guarantee that your wall projects turn out as good as possible, this guide will take you step-by-step through the entire process, from combining the ingredients to applying the putty.
Gaining proficiency with home improvement techniques can also be greatly facilitated by learning how to make and use putty yourself. It provides a practical approach to do-it-yourself tasks and can lessen the intimidation factor associated with wall preparation.
Why do you need putty
Putty is a finishing layer that is applied to the wall prior to the final finishing of the room to give the surface an ideal smoothness. It appears as a creamy mass of white or grayish color. It helps conceal minor flaws or fissures in porous concrete surfaces; the final puttying of the walls is carried out with an extremely thin layer, as thin as two millimeters. The putty on the wall, however, will not adhere if there are large cracks, holes, seams from the brickwork, or unevenness from loose plaster fragments on the surface.
You must pre-apply plaster in order to stop this phenomenon; putty should be applied to a very smooth surface; the coating’s primary purpose is to impart smoothness to the wall rather than level it. Putty’s primary benefit is its ability to apply a very thin layer of coating. Applying it with other dry mixes that have a thickness of less than one millimeter is very challenging.
Advice: It’s important to choose wisely when buying a material. Putty comes in two varieties: regular, or KR, and special, or VH, for use in damp rooms.
Types of material for putty
Depending on the level of readiness, these coatings include:
- Dry. The most popular option used for leveling walls, supplied in bags or packages. Advantages of the material:
- easy to prepare;
- you can get a mixture of any viscosity;
- convenient to store and transport;
- low price;
- long shelf life, regardless of temperature.
The following are the material’s drawbacks:
- the need to perform additional work to prepare the mixture;
- the solution must be prepared strictly according to the manufacturer"s recommendations;
- limited time of use after preparing the mixture.
- Ready to use. The basis for the putty is dispersions or latexes. They are sold in buckets or tanks. Advantages of the material:
- can be used for a long time, tightly closing the lid after finishing work;
- no need to spend additional time preparing the solution and purchasing tools;
- the material is environmentally friendly.
Putties’ composition can consist of:
- Oil-based adhesives based on drying oil. Their advantages:
- low cost;
- ease of operation.
- unsafe from an environmental point of view;
- short-lived;
- low mechanical strength;
- poor compatibility with many materials, with the exception of oil paints and drying oils.
- Dry based on gypsum (see. Gypsum putty: its advantages and problems of use) or cement.
- Acrylic. These are the most waterproof and durable materials.
- Based on PVA, the cheapest option that can replace acrylic materials. The disadvantage of putty is that it is afraid of water.
In line with the composition’s intended use, it is:
- Leveling – for leveling surfaces. It has good adhesion to the base, which allows you to evenly fill all its defects, smooth out unevenness, while maintaining high strength.
- Finish (cm. Finishing putty: how to apply it efficiently) – to prepare surfaces for decorative finishing.
- Specialized – used for a specific task:
- sealing joints between panels;
- carrying out urgent repairs.
- Universal, combining the properties of the two types listed above and used on almost any base.
Advice: Carefully review the suggestions made by the putty’s usage instructions before selecting and acquiring any.
How to properly prepare putty yourself
How should putty be made? There are a tonne of recipes out there for making compositions.
Usually, it is supplemented with the following:
- Gypsum, pre-sifted.
- Pure chalk.
- Laundry soap.
- Drying oil.
- Varnish.
- Animal or wood glue.
Prior to using gypsum to make putty, you will need to buy:
- Chalk – from 2 to 3 kilograms.
- Gypsum – one kilogram.
- Wood glue solution from 2 to 5%.
Here, the glue solution is added to the mixture until the desired consistency is reached. You will also require the instruments shown in the picture:
- Container for solution.
- Electric drill with stirring attachment. For small volumes, this can be done manually with a regular spatula.
- A gauze bandage to protect the respiratory tract from fine gypsum dust.
The steps involved in making gypsum putty:
- Gypsum and chalk are mixed well.
- The resulting powder is gradually poured into a container where the adhesive solution was placed.
- The mixture is mixed again until a uniform texture is formed.
Advice: This type of putty hardens rapidly. It should be produced in small quantities so that it can be used immediately in order to process minor defects.
The composition of gypsum is appropriate for finishing:
- Concrete surfaces.
- Sealing plasterboard seams (see. Puttying plasterboard seams – how it is done).
- For other surfaces located in dry rooms.
Oil paints are applied to the surface using a universal oil composition.
To prepare it, you will require:
- Olifa – one kilogram.
- Sickativ – 100 grams, serves to accelerate drying.
- Cretaceous powder – 2 kilograms.
This mixture works well for surfaces like wood windows that are frequently subjected to the damaging effects of moisture and temperature changes. Adhesive putty is used when staining surfaces with adhesive compositions, such as walls and ceilings after plastering.
To get ready for it, they take:
- Olifa – 25 grams.
- Glue solution 10 % – one kilogram.
- Sifted chalk – 2 kilograms.
Method of preparation:
- The glue is heated.
- The glue is mixed with the Olifa, until the result is a homogeneous mass of the solution.
- Chalk is added to the desired consistency.
- The chopped household soap can be added to the mixture, which will allow putty to spread easily on the surface.
How to properly prepare a solution using dry semi-finished products
It is essential to closely adhere to the manufacturer’s instructions, which are listed on the mixture’s packaging, in order to produce a putty composition of superior quality.
Prior to getting the content ready, it’s essential to:
- Purchase a clean, wide container of the required volume. A regular plastic bucket or one from facade paint is best suited, which should first be cleaned of any remaining contents.
- An electric mixer, to obtain a high-quality solution, it must be thoroughly mixed during preparation.
Guidelines for getting ready the answer:
- The mass of the mixture prepared at one time should be such that it can be used up in about 40 minutes of work.
- A quarter of clean water at room temperature is poured into the container for mixing the composition.
- Gradually add the required amount of dry mixture, according to the requirements of the instructions.
- With a mixer or a drill attachment, the mixture is stirred until a homogeneous composition is obtained, preventing the appearance of lumps.
- The solution is left to stand for about 10 minutes.
- Mix thoroughly.
- The finished solution should have the consistency of thick sour cream. If the composition is too thick, it will adhere worse to the surface being treated, and will crumble when applied to it. A mass that is too liquid will simply flow off the spatula, forming drips on the wall.
Advice: If you have any leftover ready-made polymer-based solution, fill it with water so you can use it again later. Carefully empty the water out without stirring the mixture.
Ingredients | Instructions |
1 cup of plaster of Paris | Mix with water until you get a smooth consistency. |
1/2 cup of white glue | Add to the plaster mixture and stir well. |
Water (as needed) | Adjust the amount to achieve the desired thickness. |
Colorant (optional) | Add a few drops to tint the putty if desired. |
Producing wall putty at home is a useful and satisfying project. You can get a smooth, polished wall finish without using store-bought products by using a few simple ingredients. It is an easy process that lets you adjust the mixture to suit your own requirements and tastes.
You’ll save money and get the satisfaction of finishing a do-it-yourself project by following the easy instructions provided in this guide. This homemade putty can smooth over flaws and get your walls ready for paint, leaving them looking perfect.
Recall that practice makes perfect. Your results will get better as you become more accustomed to the mixing ratios and application methods. Your walls will appreciate you for taking pleasure in your work and enjoying the process!
Creating your own DIY wall putty at home is an easy and affordable way to give your walls a smooth surface. You can make a high-quality putty that smoothes out imperfections, fills in cracks, and gets your walls ready for painting or wallpapering by combining basic ingredients. This do-it-yourself method not only saves costs but also allows you to customize the putty’s consistency and texture, guaranteeing a flawless finish for all of your wall décor projects.