sand

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christ

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still unsure about what sand to use...... the merchants in my area only sell sharp sand or building sand. also in wickes they sell platering sand but the particals are very large, very similar to the sharp sand. which1 do i use

cheers. also ive ask the merchants what sand every1 else use and they said building sand.
 
All sand comes from quarrys obviously,in different parts fo the country the geographical set up is different so is the sand.you could by plastering sand from Jewson in bath and it be totaly different from plastering sand purchsed from Jewson in say Kent.
Just talk to your local merchant and they will advice yuou on the right sand for your circumstances.
 
In Essex building sand and pit sand are one and the same, plastering sand has been washed to take out the silt so that it shrinks less. I always use building sand for internal work but even in my local area it can vary a hell of a lot. I always use a fairly clean sand which doesn't shrink to much but still fattens up into a nice bit of muck.
Some of the plastering sand I see would be OK for external rendering as long as it's not panelled work but I wouldn't want to use it for internal work. Bod is this Holme sand the stuff I've seen in Cornwall, very dark and quite coarse?
 
I havent done a hell of a lot of rendering in my life but what little i do know is a lot depends on how workable /userfreindly the sand is and most importantly how well its been mixed .
You can get light gorgoius sand thats a pleasure to work with or you can get greedy sand thats lumpy and dead which is useless to work with.
Some of the other guys that are rendering all day every day will no more or might be able to explain it better than me but sand is weird stuff,theres alot to rendering nowdays thats why i leave it well alone.
Stick to skimmin mate.
 
Yes Andy i had little look on google and apparentley holme sand comes out the bristol channel but its cleaned from salt so maybe thats why its used mainly here, it also used to be quite coarse but nowadays its getting very fine but it does vary from place to place, pit sand has always been a no no amongst bristol spreads but its is sometimes used on sparring but only for the yellow colouring and how soft and sticky it is.
 
see your pit sand sounds very much like 'norfolk' sand - very soft and yellow, brickies love it but its far to fluffy and sticky for rendering...
and jewsons in south lincolnshire have sold both norfolk sand and what is actually not a bad plastering sand as 'building sand' you have to tell em which one you want... and even then the numptys they have working in the yard from time to time will load the delivery wagon with the wrong stuff...
ive even gone about 30% norfolk and 70% sharp before today to achieve something reasonably useable..
 
Soft and yellow... yeah that pretty much describes the sand I like to use for my inside work, if over mixed gets all fluffy and horrid, but if mixed right gives a loverly bit of muck.
 
bodplasterer said:
Yes Andy i had little look on google and apparentley holme sand comes out the bristol channel but its cleaned from salt so maybe thats why its used mainly here, it also used to be quite coarse but nowadays its getting very fine but it does vary from place to place, pit sand has always been a no no amongst bristol spreads but its is sometimes used on sparring but only for the yellow colouring and how soft and sticky it is.

i should be able to get this holme sand... as i live on the channel...is the name anything to do with flat & steap holme.
 
essexandy said:
Soft and yellow... yeah that pretty much describes the sand I like to use for my inside work, if over mixed gets all fluffy and horrid, but if mixed right gives a loverly bit of muck.
We used to use it 50/50 but we started getting black like oil coming through the wall which was very odd
 
essexandy said:
Soft and yellow... yeah that pretty much describes the sand I like to use for my inside work, if over mixed gets all fluffy and horrid, but if mixed right gives a loverly bit of muck.
dont you find it holds absolutely sh'tloads of water and shrinks like a ballsack in an icebucket?
 
Chris W said:
essexandy said:
Soft and yellow... yeah that pretty much describes the sand I like to use for my inside work, if over mixed gets all fluffy and horrid, but if mixed right gives a loverly bit of muck.
dont you find it holds absolutely sh'tloads of water and shrinks like a ballsack in an icebucket?

I always test a sample before ordering sand, you only have to hold a handfull of sand in a waterbutt and you can see if there is to much silt coming out. As you say Chris some does hold to much water and shrinks like a ballsack in an icebucket ;D A certain amount of shrinkage works in your favour, you don't have to work back from door frames and beads by any great amount as the shrinkage allows for the skim, although I do do still run the float down the frames and beads.
 
what you make of all them different fibres on that chembond site andy? i'd only ever used the fibreglass stuff and thought it was the only stuff available and used for everything? just had a look in the products section and theres fine, strong, screed and concrete fibres ???
 
I haven't been on that site Chris but I do use 2 different types of fibre myself. I use the thicker grade for screeding and first coat render and the really fine ones for top coat render. I used to keep them in different lengths as well but just keep them both in one length now.
 
Good stuff them fibres andy not too expensive either and for peace of mind it seems essential these days i suppose its no different to the olden days with the horse hair.
 
I've been using the fibres in my render for about 15 years now Bod and it's impossible to know if it's made any difference or not. Another local firm used some and I reckon they must have used the thick grade in the top coat as I was told that when the render was painted there were bits hanging out all over the walls, the bloke that lived there called it his furry house (not that he thought it was funny). When I first used the fibres in the floors it was a revelation, no more tripping up on chicken wire and struggling to shovel off the bloody stuff.
 
agree there with grand,it is fine washed sand was employed by a local damp company before i started on my own for 6 years and we were using plastering sand day in day out,thay used plastering sand all the while never had any shrinkage problems at all no mater how thick it was put on plus it never had any salts in it ,they used to have it delivered through tp in 10 ton loads to the yard it used to mix and float up lovely,it used to be plastering sand bs1199 or the finer was bs 1166 or sumut like that
 
Same as Flaz I spread for a DPC firm and use plastering sand all the while and never have any probs.
 
I'm nr Bristol and did a job for a builder recently who ordered pit sand from selco after they told him it was good for plastering with...didn't argue, completed a huge front elevation over 4 days...scratch and top...then the whole lot failed blown and cracked everywhere...amazing to work with but has v.high clay/silt content which weakens the bond between particles which in turn causes cracking. Avoid in Bristol. If in Doubt use wickes plastering sand..yep some bits are a bit big but you only really notice them if you spread it to thin.
 
bod holme sand is dredged from the bristol channel .........its got natch running through its veins ;D
 
im guessing theres a place called 'holme' and its near the sea, and its famous for its plastering sand? am i right? ???
 
FreeD said:
I'm nr Bristol and did a job for a builder recently who ordered pit sand from selco after they told him it was good for plastering with...didn't argue, completed a huge front elevation over 4 days...scratch and top...then the whole lot failed blown and cracked everywhere...amazing to work with but has v.high clay/silt content which weakens the bond between particles which in turn causes cracking. Avoid in Bristol. If in Doubt use wickes plastering sand..yep some bits are a bit big but you only really notice them if you spread it to thin.

i know fcek all about sand for rendering but the plastering sand they sell in wickes definatly aint washed and it looks more like conrete mix.
 
spunky said:
holme west ;)
glad you said that, theres a little hamlet called 'holme' not 8 miles south of peterborough.. more famous for its clay, silt and bog arabs than sand though ;D
 
SkyZOO said:
FreeD said:
I'm nr Bristol and did a job for a builder recently who ordered pit sand from selco after they told him it was good for plastering with...didn't argue, completed a huge front elevation over 4 days...scratch and top...then the whole lot failed blown and cracked everywhere...amazing to work with but has v.high clay/silt content which weakens the bond between particles which in turn causes cracking. Avoid in Bristol. If in Doubt use wickes plastering sand..yep some bits are a bit big but you only really notice them if you spread it to thin.

i know fcek all about sand for rendering but the plastering sand they sell in wickes definatly aint washed and it looks more like conrete mix.

otherwise known as 'ballast' i absolutely hate it when your rolling marbles round the wall trying to float up!
 
I assume using beach sand is a complete no-no for rendering? I met someone on Anglesey a few years ago who filled a trailer load down the local beach and got his mate to render some outside blockwork with it :o But then anything seems to go in North Wales ::)
 
lol Chris its not that bad m8 ;) I've used wickes on several occasions...small jobs garden walls etc..it is a bit chunky in places...and the larger stones do piss you off when floating but it does the job. A skilled plasterer should be able to use any sand! :P
 
Why waste your time running around trying to find decent stuff when perfectly good sand is avaialble on your doorstep? ??? ??? ???
 
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