What Is Gyprock, or Solid Plaster – What Is the Difference?

There are a few ways to get the walls and ceilings of your choosing. You can opt to choose solid plaster versus the traditional plasterboard

Material Differences:

Plaster:

  • Less common.
  • Considered higher end.
  • Stronger finish.
  • More labour and cost.
  • Solid plaster often provides a superior sound barrier and is harder and stronger than Gyprock.

Solid plaster is best installed and applied by a professional plasterer. Unless you know a lot about plastering you should not attempt to render your walls with solid plaster. It provides a great look and feel to any room in your house as well. The majorities of home owners prefer plasterboard for its ease of installation and cost effectiveness. It is really your decision on which type of material you want to use in your home.

Gyprock:

  • More common.
  • Faster to install, less labour intensive, less expensive.
  • Plasterboard can be applied to metal and timber framing or to masonry.
  • Can be cut to size, is easy to install and requires less talent.

Australian and New Zealand Standard requires a minimum level of straightness of the substrate for the application of plasterboard. In all substrates, dimensional accuracy is the key to success. Valleys or hollows may generally be easy to hide, but high points are very difficult to conceal.

Plasterboard will not straighten walls or ceilings. No amount of joint compound can make a poorly framed job acceptable

How else is plaster used?

Now that you have learned a bit more about how plaster is installed, its benefits and the different types, you may wonder how else plaster is used besides the traditional methods of putting it on the wall. Many ceilings are created with the board as well. For example many decorative ceilings like a decorative rose ceiling require the installation and usage of plasterboard, which is used more often that solid plaster because it is an ideal product for construction to be sustainable. It is a light weight material that is easy to transport and cheaper to purchase. It is also made of 100% recyclable material. Plasterboard is usually the number one choice of many home owners when they are considering redecorating their homes.

If you are thinking about taking on a new home remodel project you may want to dive into which type of plaster you will use in your home. With the two different types you can see just how each has its own benefits and uses. With plasterboard being easy to install and light weight it is usually the number one preferred choice of people all around.

The best way to figure out which type of plaster is best for you either plasterboard, or solid plaster is to make a list of all the pros and cons. If your cons outweigh the pros then you know which decision to make. It is important to figure out which types are more beneficial to your needs.