Why do you add glue and soap to putty?

Many people are afraid of it like fire, but for me personally, renovation is wonderful. This is an opportunity to implement new ideas and transform the space around. But before choosing wallpaper, furniture or curtains, it is necessary to go through an inevitable stage, including preparing surfaces for final finishing. It is at this time that these scary words for many are used: plaster, putty, primer, self-leveling floor, etc.

Perhaps any adult, even one who has never dealt with repairs, has an idea of ​​what putty is and what it is needed for. Simply put, this is the final leveling layer on the walls before painting or wallpapering. And although after the completion of the repair the putty is not visible on the walls, a lot depends on it. If it is of poor quality or applied without following the technology, the walls will soon begin to crack or the putty will begin to come off in layers, along with the finishing coat.

Why are glue, soap and other ingredients added to putty?

When you go to any hardware store, you will see many types of putty from a dozen manufacturers, domestic and foreign. Advertising posters communicate the innovative and unique features of their product.

People were engaged in construction many centuries ago, and as practice shows, centuries-old masonry mortar, which was based on only the simplest components, for example, egg yolks, is much stronger than modern high-tech cement compositions produced on the most modern equipment.

Reference! The most common universal gypsum putty in construction from most manufacturers consists of more than 95% ordinary chalk and a binder based on the same components that are part of the well-known PVA glue. And only less than 5% is occupied by specific additives, such as antifungal components and plasticizers.

There is nothing innovative about plasticizers either; these are compositions very similar to ordinary soap, only without fragrances and dyes.

The compositions of putties from most major manufacturers are almost identical and brought to perfection. Therefore, if you are facing repairs, the problem of purchasing good putty is unlikely to worry you.

But this was not always the case; just 30 years ago, buying ready-made putty was a great success; you had to improvise. In Soviet-era magazines you can find many recipes for homemade putties. They used PVA glue and soap as a binder and plasticizer.

How to make putty more elastic

Buying high-quality putty is not a problem, but sometimes, wanting to save money, we purchase a low-quality product. As a rule, these are compounds that have expired, violated storage conditions, or are outright counterfeit. Low-quality putty is understood as a product that does not dissolve well when applied and has low elasticity.

You can return the product to the seller and purchase putty of normal quality. Bad materials can not only ruin the entire repair, but also the master’s nerves when working with them.

But there are times when you need to somehow work with the material that is available. In this situation, we can only advise one thing: try to somehow correct the situation and make the putty more elastic.

As you already know, PVA glue and liquid soap or any detergent will help you. How much to add in a particular case can only be determined experimentally. Carry out the experiment with a small amount of solution and you will notice how the elasticity of the putty increases noticeably.

Attention! If you overdo it with PVA glue, the putty will become better, adhesion will improve, but sanding the walls between layers will be very difficult.

That's all I have. I wish you only high-quality materials and perfectly smooth walls.