Alignment of the walls in the bathroom is usually required when preparing the surface for finishing work. The quality of preparation depends on the material that is planned to be used to cover the walls.
So, the alignment of the walls in the bathroom under the tile allows small errors in the deviation vertically (up to 10 mm). In order to prepare the base for painting or wallpapering, you need to get a perfectly flat surface, and when decorating the bathroom with PVC panels, it is enough to eliminate chips and cracks.
In addition to the aesthetic function, it is necessary to even the walls in terms of the technology of the work. For example, when laying tiles on an adhesive mortar, the thickness of the layer on the wall should not exceed 10 mm. Aligning the differences above the specified value with glue leads to the formation of voids when the mixture dries.
How to align the walls in the bathroom? Methods to address the shortcomings depend on the degree of unevenness of the base and material for subsequent finishing. Typically, the following methods are used:
Drywall. This method allows you to quickly get a perfectly flat surface for subsequent staining or sticker tiles. To work in the bathroom, special moisture-resistant (green) sheets are used. Installation is carried out both with the construction of the base from a metal profile, and without a frame, by gluing sheets directly to the surface.
TO pluses This method includes the ability to do the assembly with your own hands, the speed of the work, the ability to align strong differences, and the ability to mask communications.
TO cons can be attributed to the fragility of drywall preparation around the mixer and around the bath, because even moisture-resistant GCR from excess moisture becomes unusable. In addition, frame preparation “eats” at least 30 mm of space from each wall.
The use of plaster. Leveling the base with plaster mortars allows you to achieve a perfectly smooth surface that can be used for any type of finish.
TO positive the qualities of the plaster in the bathroom include: the ability to obtain a strong base, able to withstand significant loads, the immunity of the base to high humidity, maintaining the volume of the room in almost its original form, low cost of materials.
TO negative Qualities include: sophisticated technology, the inability to fix problems with a vertical difference of more than 30 mm, the drying time of the stucco.
Wall alignment instructions
The use of giprok is recommended for further coloring of the base or, if necessary, to eliminate differences in height of more than 30 mm during further laying of tiles.
Plastering is initially suitable for further installation of tiles, but is also recommended when painting the surface, but in this case the quality of the surface leveling should be at a height.
Plastering
For such small rooms as a bathroom, it is not necessary to use beacons when plastering the base. As a border indicating the required thickness of the mortar, risks are used on the walls, ceiling and floor, or the cord is pulled diagonally.
An important condition for obtaining a high-quality surface in rooms with high humidity is the use of the appropriate type of solution. For bathrooms, it is recommended to use a standard cement-sand mortar. The use of gypsum mixtures is unacceptable, they can be used only in dry rooms.
When plastering the walls in the bathroom, use the following step-by-step plan:
- The surface is cleaned of the old coating (paint, tile, old plaster are removed);
- If the walls are made of brick, you need to remove the falling out elements, fill up the voids with new material, re-embroider the joints to ensure high adhesion with the solution;
- The surface of the wall is treated with an antiseptic solution, mold and mildew are removed;
- The base is primed with a suitable primer;
- To determine the boundaries of the application of plaster, find the most convex point on the base. 3 mm is added to its level and using a laser level or a plumb line, marks are placed on the walls, ceiling and floor;
- To apply the first layer, a solution is prepared in a ratio of 1 to 1 (one part of cement and one part of sand). Spray a thin layer and spread evenly over the entire surface;
- For the primer layer, the solution is kneaded from a ratio of 1 to 2. The main layer begins to be spread from the lower left corner and gradually moves up and to the right, controlling the thickness of the layer according to the marks using the rule;
- If it is planned to paint the wall in the future, a coating layer is applied. In this case, the solution is prepared with a predominance of the proportion of cement, in fact, receiving cement milk. A thin layer, not more than 1 mm, is leveled on the surface with a grater;
- If the surface is prepared for the subsequent sticker of the tile, a coating layer is not made.
The technology for leveling walls with plastering without beacons is described in more detail here.
Drywall
Aligning the walls in the bathroom with drywall for tiles or painting is performed in two ways. With a fairly even base, you can use GKL gluing without mounting a caracas. If the differences are significant (more than 30 mm), a metal profile frame is used to fix the sheets.
Manipulations with drywall are not difficult for beginners, therefore, it is not necessary to invite specialists to level the surface in the bathroom. When performing work with GKL without mounting frameIt is recommended to use the following algorithm:
- The surface of the base is freed from the previous coating. Molds and fungi are removed. Noticeable shortcomings (cracks, pits) are sealed with putty, sagging and protrusions are cut down.
- With the help of a level or a laser level, the maximum and minimum points are found. If the difference between these values does not exceed 15 mm, you can proceed to the sticker of drywall without a frame.
- Previously, the surface is treated with a primer and antiseptic solutions.
- Lines are applied to the floor and walls, which will be a guideline for installing GCR. Sheets are cut to the size of the wall, taking into account technological gaps of 5 mm at the junction of sheets to the floor and ceiling.
- For the installation of gypsum plaster, special foam or glue is used. If it is planned to paint in the future, it is enough to apply foam, if you plan to install tiles, use only glue.
- When mounting sheets, it should be remembered that alignment is possible only by indentation; it will not work to pull the sheet onto itself.
- The drying time of the glue or foam is determined according to the instructions for this material. After drying, the sheets must be primed, glued with a serpentine joint and putty.
Drywall Installation with frame performed by the following technology:
- Using the laser level or level find the most prominent point. Given the overlap of this protrusion, mark the mounting points of the guides.
- According to the marking, guides are installed on the floor and ceiling.
- Suspensions are fixed vertically on the walls.
- The profile is attached to the walls on the dowels, the profile is connected to each other using self-tapping screws. To trim a metal profile, you will need a grinder or a hacksaw for metal.
- Drywall is screwed to the frame with screws.
- When marking vertical and horizontal guides, it is necessary to take into account the dimensions of the sheets so that the guides exactly fall at the joints of the GCR.
The nuances of preparing the walls in the bathroom
Before aligning the walls in the bathroom, it is necessary to assess the condition of the base and the material from which the wall is made. In new buildings, most often the walls are made of bricks and left in draft form without plastering.
In apartments with history, various options are possible. These are brick walls, panels and monolithic standard blocks of bathrooms. Walls can be painted, plastered or tiled.
The most difficult thing is to prepare an already plastered surface. It is often not possible to completely remove the old layer to the base. Old plaster falls off together with pieces of brick, which can lead to complete destruction of the base, therefore only the most destroyed sections are dismantled.
Drywall bases are best removed completely.
Under the tile
Before aligning the walls in the bathroom with tiles, it is important to determine the type of tile. For standard ceramic tiles, it is enough to prepare the surface with an overfall of a difference in height of not more than 10 mm.
Tile mortar easily copes with such bumps. If you have to close the base with mosaic flexible tiles, you will have to treat the preparation more thoroughly. The surface for the mosaic should be perfect.
When working with adhesives for tiles, it is important to consider that this material has a strong shrinkage, so using large volumes of mortar to eliminate the defects is fraught with the appearance of voids and chips.
Coloring
To paint the surfaces in the bathroom, you will need to eliminate all bumps, roughness, cracks and pits. It will be correct to first plaster the base, and then putty it already, otherwise all the flaws of the painted surface will be visible under artificial lighting.
Pvc panels
For the installation of plastic panels, it is not necessary to align the base. This material is mounted on a frame made of wooden battens or a metal profile. When installing the frame, uneven surfaces are successfully leveled, so no preliminary preparation of the wall is performed.
To protect the new coating from mold or fungus, the base must be treated with antiseptic agents.