How to fix gaps, nail holes, cracked wall and paint from skirting?

[vennsoh]

Hi there, I just recently received my new house from my builder. We handed the house to another company to deal with the flooring. However to install the engineered timber flooring they will need to remove the skirting. Hence, after installing back the skirting it looks worn out with gaps, many nail holes and cracked wall/paint.

I'm thinking of doing the fixes myself, I'm a total newbie in this, so I would love to get some guidances on what tools/items to buy, also what things to be mindful of, and the steps to remedy the situation.

Thanks a ton!

Venn

[Jewelleryrescue]

Hi @vennsoh 

That other company did a terrible job I dont have to tell you that.

For the most part it is pretty easy fix, All found in paint section bunnings and do ask for help if you need it there.

You need painters masking tape 2 rolls at least

Metal scraper 50mm aprox blade x1

A good cauking gun x1

""White NO More gaps"" x 4 product filler round cartridge  to suit caulking gun AND  Nozzle supplied free.

Roll of clean up chux wipes

Plastic sheet to cover floor or clean any spills with chux and clean water ASAP that day.

Method

1. Just above the skirting board on the wall mask the wall in each area for easy  clean up . We want to fill those cracks without dirting the walls so dont cover cracks with tape.

2. Cut caulking gun nozzle with razor blade type knife . make a 45 degree cut for ease running along wall  cut the  nozzle so the opening diameter is approx 4mm this is done  by cutting the nozzle higher up to get a bigger hole.). The  NO MORE GAPs tube needs to be pierced by a screw or any pointy hard object to pop the seal. Now Screw  plastic nozzle on and insert cartridge into caulking gun.  Ask the paint dept to give you a quick demo.

3 Put the caulking gun nozzle flat on the wall in the corner of the wall and on top of skirting board where the horrible gaps are start gently squeezing caulking gun trigger. while NO MORE GAPS  flows out into the cracks . This takes a little getting used to its use.  The aim is to deliver a steady flow as you wall along the wall.

No ones perfect appling stor so after NO MORE GAPS applied use your finger to smooth the white filler in to the hole. and or  use a wet chux, smooth it and cleab up 

Tip keep your hands and tool free of white filler. water wash up as needed.

Fill those little nail holes  with same NO MORE GAPs put some on you finger and dab it on nail holes. 

4. Scrape  off any raised bumps or rough spots in the paint work.

Dont put NO MORE GAPS  between the floor and skirting board it will be very messy,

5   fill all gaps and holes. 

6 The  damaged corner  needs the scraper to wipe no more gaps over it and fill those  voids, 

Water cleans  well. 

So @vennsoh  give that set of solutions a spin and see how you progress.

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @vennsoh. It's sensational to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about repairing skirting boards.

I'd be inclined to contact the company that re-installed the skirting boards and request they return to assess the damage they caused and caulk the gaps. The gaps could be expected if you didn't pay to have the skirting caulked, but I'm unsure why damage would have been caused to the plaster in the corners. 

Understandably, that might not be an option, so @Jewelleryrescue has provided some great guidelines for you to do the work yourself and fill the gap between the wall and skirting boards. Also, here's a helpful step-by-step guide: How to apply silicone sealant. For that damage to the plaster, I'd recommend you switch to plaster filler, which is easier to sand back smooth and will provide a neater appearance than silicone on the walls.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell
 

[vennsoh]

This is super helpful! Thanks for the prompt reply and I'll certainly try this method. Thanks a ton again.

Regarding the cracked wall, do I need to use Selleys Spakfilla Rapid https://www.selleys.com.au/guides/task/how-to-fix-a-dent-in-the-wall/ ? Or No more gaps is sufficient?

[vennsoh]

Yea unfortunately the company did a bad job there but they have already told us they will not fill the gaps before hand. In terms of the cracked wall etc, I'll just count that my luck. It might be a lot easier to fix it myself than all the back-n-forth with them. I'll tried the method mentioned by @Jewelleryrescue and see how things go.

[Jewelleryrescue]

hi @vennsoh 

That spakfilla rapid should  work ok for the wall repair ( it  may micro crack when drying but that is  100% ok as we let it dry and skim a top coat on it a thinner amount. sand  flat with sand  paper on a small block of timber or item.

No more gaps is the best easiest way for skirting board cracks and it is easy clean up with wet paper towels too. Cut the caulking gun nozzle supplied  with the  tube of no more gaps at 45 degrees and run the nozzle flat at 45 degrees with filling the cracks then use disposable wet  towel chux and push  the no more gaps into crack or wipe of excess at same time.  Use one  last clean  wet chux for final clean and  shaping of fillet of  no more gaps.

I think  you own this  project.   

[MitchellMc]

I'd go with the Spakfilla and that guide for the wall, @vennsoh. No More Gaps would work, but you'll likely end up with it looking like silicone filler on a plaster wall. It would be my experience that the cement Spakfilla will sand and blend better with the wall. As @Jewelleryrescue mentioned, the No More Gaps is the product to use for the gaps in the skirting.

Mitchell

[vennsoh]

I’m wondering for the corner how should i fix the gap? There isn't any tutorials around this unfortunately. You can see the before and after. I just use my no more gaps filler to vertically fill it but it doesn’t look nice because the flow of the direction is weird.

  

[MitchellMc]

Hi @vennsoh, 

Wet your finger with soapy water and wipe it up the corner over the filler; that will smooth it off quite nicely. If it hasn't cured fully, you might still have time to do so, but it's best done immediately after filling.

Mitchell

[vennsoh]

Thanks that helps alot. Regarding the gap between wooden flooring and skirting whats the best way to fix that? Is that hard to fill?