Kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough

What prompts kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough?

If you own an older solid-walled house in Hampshire, the walls may have lime plaster, which is often better repaired with lime than covered with gypsum.

After a knock-through in a Farnborough home, the new opening, beam and surrounding walls need plastering before the new kitchen goes in, then decorating once the plaster has dried. Kitchens in every part of Farnborough are covered, and the survey visit is free wherever you are in Hampshire.

What does the job involve?

Your written quote lists everything included. For kitchen plastering and decorating, that normally means:

Edges around units, worktops and splashbacks cut in neatly at the end
Walls re-boarded or skimmed so units and tiles fix to a flat surface
Ceilings skimmed or overboarded, after textured coatings in older homes are tested for asbestos
Diluted mist coat on new plaster, then moisture-resistant, wipeable kitchen paint
Free survey visit to check walls and ceilings and give an itemised quote
Ceilings, walls, skirting, architraves and door frames decorated to finish the room

What should you budget for kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough?

As a starting point for Farnborough, these ranges include VAT at 20% and allow for typical labour costs in the South East. Labour in the South East generally costs more than the UK average, which lifts these ranges a little.

What should you budget for kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough?
Typical project	Guide price
Skim kitchen walls and ceiling over sound plasterPrepared and skimmed	£400–£920
Hack off, re-board and skim a kitchenOld plaster removed back to the wall	£1,000–£2,100
Kitchen decoratedWalls, ceiling and woodwork	£460–£1,400

Guide prices are for a typical kitchen, with labour and standard materials for plastering or decorating; asbestos testing, structural repairs, damp treatment and lime plaster are not included and are quoted separately if needed. Prices include VAT at 20%.

House types around Farnborough and what they mean for a kitchen

The housing mix across Hampshire includes Victorian terraces, 1930s semis, post-war estate houses and thatched and brick cottages, so no two kitchen fits are quite alike. Terraces in Southampton and Portsmouth often have a narrow back kitchen, while post-war estate houses tend to have a compact rectangular room suited to an L-shape.

Dense terraced streets can be very tight for parking, and New Forest lanes and village roads may limit the size of delivery vehicle. Water across Hampshire is mostly hard, largely from chalk sources, so limescale on taps and boiling water taps is common and a filter can help.

Do you need approval for kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough?

Skimming, re-boarding and decorating a kitchen in England need no planning permission or building regulations approval in most cases. In a listed building, listed building consent may be needed before original plaster is removed, and older solid walls may be better suited to breathable lime plaster than gypsum. Hacking an outside wall back to brick and re-boarding it may count as renovating a thermal element under Part L, so check with building control first.

Homes within the New Forest or South Downs national parks, listed cottages and conservation areas may need consent for a new extractor vent or alterations to historic features.

Practical advice for Farnborough homeowners

Ventilate your Farnborough kitchen gently while new plaster dries, but avoid blasting heaters at it, as forcing it dry can cause cracking.
Keep a small tin of each paint used in your Farnborough kitchen, labelled with the colour and finish, for touching up marks around handles and the bin.
Photograph the walls of your Farnborough kitchen before plastering, showing where cables and pipes run, so you know where not to drill when fitting shelves later.
Choose a paint sold for kitchens or bathrooms, with a wipeable or scrubbable finish; standard matt emulsions can mark easily near the hob and bin.

Questions about kitchen plastering and decorating in Farnborough

How much does kitchen plastering and decorating cost in Farnborough?

Guide prices in Farnborough are about £400 to £920 including VAT for skimming the walls and ceiling over sound plaster. The final price depends on the size of the kitchen and what is moving, and is set out in an itemised written quote.

Do you work near Farnborough as well?

Yes. As well as Farnborough itself, we cover the rest of Hampshire and nearby towns such as Camberley and Aldershot. The process is the same wherever the kitchen is.

Should a kitchen be plastered before or after the units are fitted?

Before. Plastering is done after strip-out and first-fix electrics and plumbing, so new cables and pipes are chased in and covered, and before the base and wall units go in. Units then fix to a flat, finished surface, and the decorator only needs to cut in around them at the end. Patch repairs after fitting are possible but harder to hide.

How long should new plaster dry before painting?

Fresh plaster usually needs three to six weeks to dry fully before full decorating, depending on its thickness, the time of year and how well the room is ventilated. It turns from dark to an even, pale colour as it dries. A diluted mist coat can usually go on sooner to seal the surface, with the final coats applied once drying has finished.

Can a textured kitchen ceiling be skimmed over?

Often, yes, but have it tested first if the house was built before 2000. Some older textured ceiling coatings contain asbestos, so a sample should be tested before anyone sands, scrapes or drills them. If the result is clear, the ceiling can usually be skimmed or overboarded. If asbestos is found, follow the report's advice and use a specialist asbestos contractor.

Nearby places we cover

Close to Farnborough? We cover these nearby towns too: