26 June 2026

When do you schedule the plasterer? Order and drying time in a renovation

The plasterer comes after the installer and before the painter — and drying time belongs in your schedule. The renovation calendar.

The fixed order in a renovation: first all pipe, wiring and chasing work, then the plasterer, and only then the painter and the floor layer. Smoothly plastered walls are not something you want to break open again for a forgotten socket — every recess added later means repair work and visible colour difference.

Plan drying time explicitly. The rule of thumb in the trade is roughly one day of drying per millimetre of layer thickness, with normal ventilation; thick levelling work therefore needs weeks, a thin topcoat a few days. Painting or wallpapering too early traps the moisture and causes blistering — ask the plasterer at handover when the wall is ready for the next step.

Exterior work is seasonal. Facade rendering happens in dry weather from roughly 5 degrees — in practice the facade season runs from March through October, and frost or rain shifts the schedule. Whoever requests quotes in winter is first in line when the season starts.

Interior work, by contrast, is possible all year round, and many plasterers have more room in their diaries in the winter months. Request quotes well in advance and set them against the price index — that way you compare calmly and the work starts when it suits you.