Plasterer in Hatton

Hatton is a parish in the Warwickshire countryside just to the north-west of Warwick, made up of a few quite different places. There is the old village and its farms, the long flight of locks on the Grand Union Canal, Hatton Park built in the grounds of a former county hospital, and Hampton Magna, a 1960s and 1970s village laid out on the site of an old army barracks. Our team at RCR Connections Ltd is Birmingham based, covering the whole of the Midlands.

Each part of Hatton has its own kind of house, and each kind has its own plastering quirks. This page walks through them one by one, then covers the jobs we are asked to do most, how we go about them, and what to look for if you are buying or selling here.

Free, no-obligation plastering quote in Hatton: WhatsApp me on 07453 614095 or message the page. Send pictures or videos via WhatsApp for a quick response, a free quote and advice. You can also send us a message here.

Opening hours: Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm, Saturday 7am to 1pm, Sunday closed.

The places that make up Hatton

Hatton village

The old village is small and spread out, with a church, a few farms and cottages along the lanes. It has the feel of open country, with fields between the houses.

Hatton Park

Hatton Park grew up in the grounds of the old Central Hospital, a big Victorian county asylum that closed in the 1990s. Some of the old hospital buildings were turned into flats and houses, and new homes were built around them. It is now a village of its own, with a green, paths and a lot of trees.

Hampton Magna

Hampton Magna was built from the 1960s onwards on land that had been Budbrooke Barracks, the old depot of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. It is a planned village of semis, detached houses and bungalows, with a shop, a school and green spaces between the roads.

Hampton-on-the-Hill and Shrewley

Hampton-on-the-Hill is a small, older hamlet on the rise above Hampton Magna. Shrewley, to the west, is a canal village known for its tunnel. Both have older cottages and farm buildings mixed with newer homes.

The Hatton Locks

The stairway

The Hatton Locks are a long flight of locks that lift the Grand Union Canal up the hill on its way north. Boaters know it as the stairway to heaven, as it takes hours of hard work to climb. Walkers come from all over to follow the towpath and watch the boats.

Canal homes

A few cottages and lock houses stand along the flight. These are old, solid-walled buildings close to water, and they share the damp and drying issues of most canal homes.

Hatton Country World

Hatton Country World, with its farm park and shops, sits on old farm land near the locks. It draws families and traffic to the lanes at weekends and in the school holidays, which we bear in mind when we plan deliveries.

Hatton Park: plastering in a converted hospital

Tall rooms and big windows

The old hospital buildings were built big. Ceilings are high, windows are tall, and walls are thick brick. Turning them into homes meant new floors, new walls and new ceilings inside old shells. That mix of old and new is what makes plastering here different.

Old walls, new linings

In many conversions, the old brick walls were lined with boards or plastered with modern gypsum. Where the old walls stay damp, the new linings can stain or blow. We look at what is behind the plaster before we decide how to fix it.

Window reveals

The deep reveals round the tall windows are prone to cracks and damp patches. We cut back loose plaster, check for damp from outside and make the reveals good with sharp, straight edges.

Stairwells

Shared and private stairwells in the conversions rise high and turn tight corners. Safe staging goes up first so every part can be reached, and protect the stairs and handrails while we work.

New homes in the park

The newer houses around the old buildings are built with boarded walls and ceilings. Typical work there means crack repairs, patches after new lights or sockets, and plastering loft rooms and extensions.

Hampton Magna: plastering a 1970s home

What the houses are made of

Most homes in Hampton Magna have cavity walls, plastered inside with gypsum on block, and ceilings of plasterboard. Many ceilings were finished with a texture, and some walls have had several layers of paint and wallpaper over the years.

Ceilings with texture

Textured ceilings were all the rage when Hampton Magna was built. Many owners now want them flat and smooth. Before we touch them, a sample should be tested for asbestos. If it is clear, we can plaster straight over. If the ceiling is weak, we board it first.

Walls after new kitchens

Pull out a 1970s kitchen and you usually find walls scarred with holes, old tiles and patches. We take off what is loose and plaster the walls flat, ready for the new units.

Knock-throughs

Lots of Hampton Magna homes have had the wall between the kitchen and dining room taken out. Once the beam is in, we plaster the beam, the ceiling where the wall was, and the ends of the walls.

Bungalows

The bungalows here suit people planning to stay for good. Many are being updated with loft rooms, new bathrooms or wider doors. We plaster each change so it blends in.

Porches and garages

Porches and garages turned into rooms are common changes. The new walls and ceiling get boarded and finished, then tied into the house so the join is hidden.

Hatton village and the farms

Cottages

The older cottages are solid brick, with lime mortar and, in many, lime plaster. Gypsum on these walls tends to blow, so lime is our choice for both patches and full coats.

Farmhouses

Old farmhouses have thick walls, uneven floors and sometimes lath and plaster ceilings. We repair what we can and replace what is gone, using materials that suit the age of the house.

Barns

Barn homes mix old walls and new linings. We plaster in a way that keeps damp out of the new layers and lets the old walls breathe.

More on the Hatton Park conversions

Thick walls and cold corners

The old hospital walls are thick, solid brick. They hold heat well once warm, but the corners and window walls can stay cold, and cold surfaces attract condensation. In some flats, a thin thermal lining board on the worst walls, finished in plaster, makes the room far more comfortable.

Shared walls and sound

Where one large hospital room was split into two homes, the new walls between them are often stud or block. If sound carries, acoustic boards and a fresh plaster finish can help. We work with your builder if the wall needs more than that.

Ceiling heights

Some top-floor flats have sloping or vaulted ceilings under the old roofs. These are lovely spaces but tricky to plaster. Long, even slopes show every ripple, so we take our time with the finish.

Old features

A few rooms kept old features like deep skirting, arches or plaster mouldings. Where they are cracked or chipped, we can repair them in plaster so they keep their character.

Communal areas

In shared hallways and stairs, repairs need to match what is already there and be done with little fuss for neighbours. We talk to the managing agent where needed and keep the area safe and tidy.

More on Hampton Magna homes

Chimney breasts

Some of the older Hampton Magna houses had chimney breasts that owners have since taken out to gain space. Where that has been done, the wall and ceiling are left patchy. We plaster them so there is no trace.

Wallpaper damage

Many homes here have had layers of wallpaper since the 1970s. When it comes off, the plaster underneath can be torn, cracked or loose. Sometimes a fresh finish is the quickest way to a clean wall.

Old tank cupboards

When the big copper tank goes and a combi boiler goes in, the airing cupboard often becomes a wardrobe or a bigger landing. The walls and ceiling of the old cupboard usually need plastering to match.

Under-floor heating

New floors with under-floor heating can dry out the plaster at the base of walls fast, which may show as fine cracks. These are easy to fill and finish once the floor has settled in.

Working from home

With the station close by, many people here split their week between home and office. A spare room turned into a home office often needs a stud wall, a fresh ceiling or patching after new sockets. We plaster these so the room is ready for paint fast.

Farm buildings and old cottages, in more detail

Lath and plaster in farmhouses

The older farmhouses round Hatton often still have lath and plaster ceilings and, in places, walls. Where it is sound, we fix it back. Where it is not, we replace it with boards and plaster, or with lime on new laths in a listed house.

Brick floors and damp

Old cottages sometimes have brick or stone floors laid straight on earth. Damp from the floor can rise into the walls. Plaster is only part of the fix: air flow and the right floor matter too.

Uneven walls

Cottage walls are rarely flat or straight. We follow their shape so the finish looks right for the house, rather than trying to force it flat.

Gardens, trees and drying

Hatton Park has many big old trees, and homes in their shade dry out slowly. Fresh plaster in shaded rooms takes longer to be ready for paint. A window open a crack and gentle heat speed it up.

Problems we see across Hatton

Damp low on walls

Old cottages and canal homes often show damp at the base. Causes include a bridged damp course, high soil, leaking pipes and blocked gutters. We look for the cause before we plaster.

Blown plaster

When plaster comes away from the wall, it sounds hollow when you tap it. We cut it out and patch it, or re-plaster the whole wall if most of it has gone.

Cracks round windows and doors

These are very common and often small. We cut them out, tape them where needed and plaster them flush.

Stained ceilings

A brown stain on a ceiling usually means a leak from above, now or in the past. We fix the plaster once the leak has been sorted.

Mould on cold walls

North-facing walls, corners and rooms with little air flow can grow mould. Better air flow, warmer walls and the right paint help. Where a wall is very cold, thermal lining boards and plaster can make a big change.

Lime and gypsum, explained

Lime

Lime plaster lets an old wall breathe. It takes longer to put on and dry, but it suits cottages, farmhouses and old lock houses far better than gypsum.

Gypsum

Gypsum is quick, smooth and ideal on block, brick with a cavity, and plasterboard. It suits Hampton Magna and the newer parts of Hatton Park well.

Mixing them up

Most of the failures we see on old walls come from gypsum put over lime. If in doubt, ask us and we will tell you which suits your wall.

How a job runs

Step one: pictures

Send pictures or videos on WhatsApp. Show us the wall or ceiling up close and from across the room.

Step two: a look if needed

For bigger jobs, we come out to check the walls, the damp and the access.

Step three: the quote

You get a clear quote covering the rooms, the work, the materials and the timing.

Step four: the work

We protect your floors and furniture, take off loose plaster, then put on the backing and finish coats.

Step five: drying

You get advice on drying time and when you can paint.

Painting after plastering

Leave new plaster until it is an even, pale colour with no dark patches. Then put on a mist coat of thinned matt emulsion. Our guide to plaster drying times gives the reasons behind the wait.

Rendering on Hatton homes

Render and pebbledash

Some Hampton Magna homes have pebbledash or render on the front or gable ends. Over time it cracks, stains or comes loose. We repair it, or take it back and re-render with a cleaner finish.

The systems we use

Our go-to finishes are K-Rend monocouche and silicone render. Each comes ready tinted, which ends the round of painting the front every few years. A cottage with solid walls may be better off with lime.

Further reading

Have a look at the K-Rend monocouche page, our guide to rendering over pebbledash, and rendering in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Rules, consents and safety

Listed buildings

Some of the old hospital buildings and older cottages may be listed. Changes to their old fabric, like taking down an old ceiling, can need listed building consent. We will ask you to check before we start.

Flats and leases

In the Hatton Park flats, check your lease before work. Some leases ask you to tell the managing agent about building work.

Asbestos

Old textures and some old boards may hold asbestos. Test before anyone sands, scrapes or drills.

Buying in Hatton or Hampton Magna

What to look out for

In the conversions, look at the reveals and the walls under windows. In the 1970s homes, look at the ceilings and any knocked-through walls. In the cottages, look low on the walls for damp.

Before the keys change hands

A house with no furniture in it is the easiest place to plaster. If there is a gap between completion and moving day, use it.

Selling

Fresh, crack-free walls and flat ceilings make rooms look bigger and cleaner in photos. A few days of work before you list can help.

Mistakes to avoid

• Gypsum over lime on old walls.
• Plastering over damp without fixing the cause.
• Scraping old textured ceilings.
• Painting new plaster too soon.
• Forgetting to check a listed building or lease.

Kitchens and bathrooms

New kitchens go in best after plastering, once the wiring and pipes are done. In bathrooms, use boards made for wet areas behind tiles, and plaster the rest.

Loft rooms and extensions

Loft rooms in the bungalows and houses of Hampton Magna are popular. We plaster the slopes, dormers and knee walls. For extensions, we plaster the new rooms and make the joins with the old house neat.

Coving and cornice

The conversions may have old cornices in some rooms. The 1970s homes often have plain coving. We repair, replace and fit both.

Living with the work

We keep the work to as few rooms as we can, sheet everything, and clean up daily. Keep pets and children out of rooms with wet plaster.

Seasons

In winter, plaster takes longer to dry. In summer, it sets faster. We plan for both.

A good quote includes

• Each room, wall and ceiling we will cover.
• Whether old plaster is stripped or overlaid.
• The backing and finish used.
• How the room is protected.
• When you can paint.

Good things to ask us

• Is my wall lime or gypsum?
• What is causing the damp?
• Does the ceiling need boarding first?
• How long until I can paint?

1970s quirks in Hampton Magna

Serving hatches and old doors

Many Hampton Magna kitchens once had a hatch through to the dining room. When owners fill these in, or block up a door that is no longer needed, the new patch must sit flush with the old wall. We fix board or block in the gap, tape the edges and plaster the whole wall face, so the outline of the old hatch does not show through the paint.

Open-plan stairs

Some homes have open-tread stairs that rise from the lounge. When owners box them in or add a wall to stop draughts and heat loss, the new wall needs plastering to match the rest of the room. The edges where it meets the stairs need neat beads.

Fireplace walls

Stone or brick fire surrounds from the 1970s are often taken out. Behind them, the wall is rough and full of fixings. We fill and build it up, then plaster the whole chimney breast so it reads as one flat face.

Long through-lounges

Through-lounges run from front to back, with a long ceiling and long walls. Light from both ends shows every bump. Here the finish has to be very flat, and we often re-plaster the full ceiling rather than patch, so the light falls evenly across it.

Cracks that come and go

Truss lift in bungalows

In many bungalows and some houses with modern roof trusses, a crack opens where the ceiling meets an inside wall in winter, then almost closes in summer. This happens because the trusses bow up a little as the loft gets cold and damp. Filling the crack with hard filler does not work, as it opens again. The fix is to let the ceiling move: a flexible joint or a coving fixed to the ceiling only, not the wall, hides the gap and moves with it.

Cracks in new extensions

A new extension settles in its first year or two. Fine cracks where it meets the old house are normal. We tape the joins, and if needed come back once the movement has stopped to tidy them up.

Cracks that need a builder

If a crack is wide, runs at an angle across a wall and gets wider over time, or can be seen on the outside as well, we will say so and suggest a builder or engineer takes a look first.

Fire safety in the conversions

Fire-rated ceilings and walls

In flats made from the old hospital, the walls and ceilings between homes are built to slow a fire. They are often made of special boards in set layers. If you cut into them to fit lights or move a wall, the gap must be closed with the right materials. We use fire-rated boards where they are needed and keep the build-up the same as it was.

Ask before you cut

If you are planning to move walls or put in new lights in a Hatton Park flat, talk to the managing agent first. They may have rules on what can be changed.

Re-plastering a Hampton Magna lounge, day by day

Day one

We protect the floor and furniture, take off the old wallpaper if it is still up, and strip any loose or blown plaster. Corners get new beads, and the ceiling is checked for loose boards.

Day two

Walls that were stripped get a backing coat to bring them flat. Where the old plaster is sound, it is primed ready for the finish. The ceiling is taped at the joints or boarded if needed.

Day three

The finish coat goes on the walls and ceiling. We work it until it is flat and smooth, then clean up and take the waste away.

The weeks after

The room dries out. Once it is pale all over, the first thin coat of paint goes on, and then your normal coats.

Every room is different, and some take less time, some more. This just gives a feel for how a typical room runs.

Blockwork and board

Plaster on block

Many walls in Hampton Magna are block. Blocks soak up water from wet plaster, so we use a backing that suits them, or a bonding coat on dense blocks, to make sure the finish does not dry too fast and crack.

Board on dabs

Some walls have plasterboard stuck on with dabs of adhesive. If a board sounds hollow or moves, more fixings can hold it back, or it can come off and be replaced. Then the wall gets a fresh finish.

Which is best

Neither is better in every case. Wet plaster is hard-wearing and feels solid. Board is quick and warmer to the touch. We pick what suits the wall and the job.

Lock houses and canal cottages

Next to the water

Homes by the Hatton flight and near the Shrewley tunnel are close to water and mist. Their walls take in damp from the air and the ground. Lime inside and good drainage outside are key.

Narrow access

Some canal homes can only be reached on foot along the towpath or a lane. We plan how we bring in materials and take out waste, and keep the path clear for walkers and boaters.

Haseley, Beausale and Budbrooke

Haseley

Haseley is a small spread of farms and houses on the lanes west of Warwick. Homes are a mix of old farm buildings and newer houses. Old farm buildings turned into homes need lime on their old walls, while the new stud walls inside them take board and gypsum. We can do both in one visit and make the meeting point between the two neat and strong.

Beausale

Beausale is a quiet hamlet in the fields, with old cottages and farms. Lime work and lath ceilings are common jobs here, along with damp low on old walls.

Budbrooke

Budbrooke gives its name to the wider parish round Hampton Magna. The homes are much like those in Hampton Magna, and the work is the same: ceilings, walls after kitchens, loft rooms and extensions.

The newer houses at Hatton Park

Built round the old buildings

The houses built round the old hospital are mostly from the 1990s and 2000s. They have cavity walls with board fixed on dabs, and board ceilings with a thin finish. Many have a mix of styles, with some meant to echo the old brick buildings nearby.

Common jobs there

Nail pops, where a screw or nail head pushes through the ceiling finish, are common. So are cracks on board joints, often on landing and stairwell ceilings. We fix the boards back, tape the joints and put on a fresh finish across the whole ceiling, so the repair does not show.

Second rounds of change

Lots of these homes have changed hands a few times by now. Kitchens are being replaced, garages turned into rooms, and studies made into bedrooms. Each change leaves walls that need making good.

Rooms over garages

Some Hampton Magna and Hatton Park homes have a bedroom over a garage. These rooms tend to be cold, as the floor sits over an unheated space. Cracks and damp corners are common. Warming the floor from below helps most, and once the builder has done that, we can board and plaster the garage ceiling below it.

New lights and old holes

Downlights

Swapping a central light for downlights leaves a cluster of old holes and a patch where the rose was. Many of the newer ceilings get new holes cut too close to joists or board edges. We fill the old holes, tape any cracks and finish the ceiling so it is smooth again.

Moving sockets and switches

Moved sockets leave old back boxes and chases. We fill these flush with the wall. Where there are many of them, a new finish over the whole wall gives the cleanest result.

Keeping dust down

Plaster dust gets everywhere if you let it. We sheet floors and furniture, seal doorways with dust sheets or plastic, and keep the mess in the room we are working in. Mixing is done outside or in one set spot. Each evening we sweep up and bag the waste.

Nearby places we work

Beyond Hatton, Hatton Park and Hampton Magna, we are often in Hampton-on-the-Hill, Shrewley, Budbrooke, Haseley and Beausale. See plastering in Warwick, plastering in Kenilworth, plastering in Leamington Spa and plastering in Henley-in-Arden.

About RCR Connections Ltd

RCR Connections Ltd plasters and renders homes, Birmingham based, covering the whole of the Midlands. We have 62 years of combined experience between us. On the outside, our render work uses K-Rend monocouche and silicone.

Opening times: Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm, Saturday 7am to 1pm, Sunday closed.

For a quote, WhatsApp me on 07453 614095 or message the page, adding pictures of the rooms you want done. Browse our services and areas we cover for more.

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