Types of Plasters: Technical Characteristics and Prices

Leveling Plasters

Ceresit Plaster

The most popular in the company's dry mix series are cement plasters: Ceresit ST 24 and ST 29 for repair, rendering, and thin-layer leveling of cellular concrete or mineral substrates respectively. This material is typically applied at 3-30 mm thickness with a mix consumption of 1.5 kg/m².

Plaster price averages $6.7 per 25 kg.

Photo 1 — Color range of Ceresit plasters

KNAUF Plaster

In the series of materials for manual application, KNAUF offers gypsum plasters Goldband (for walls), the popular Rotband (universal plaster) among plasterers, and Rotband Pro.

Technical characteristics:

• mix consumption for these types is approximately the same − 0.8 kg/m²;
• coating thickness ranges from 5 to 50 mm;
• drying time − up to 7 days.

Material price: $4.5 per 30 kg, $9.62 per 30 kg, and $8.3 per 30 kg for Goldband, Rotband, and Rotband Pro plasters respectively.

Gypsum plaster MP 75 for mechanical application is available in a series of products, with an average consumption of 8-12 kg/m² (price of M 75 − $6.25 per 25 kg).

Important element for any work − a well-prepared substrate. For room repairs, you can use the starter gypsum plaster HP START KNAUF priced from $5.3 per 30 kg.

IMPORTANT! On the market, interchangeable products are common. For example, Rotband plaster, you may find the gypsum plaster EC TG40 priced at $8.6 per 30 kg. The same applies to the gypsum plaster Perfecta (Perfecta) − price $8.5 per 30 kg.

Regarding cement-based plasters, six types are available, with KNAUF Grünband − thermal insulation plaster for facades and KNAUF Unterputz − cement facade plaster being the most popular.

KNAUF Cement Plaster: Price

• "warm" plaster Grünband costs approximately $6.6 per 25 kg;
• facade plaster Unterputz − $6 per 25 kg.

Volma Plaster

Volma-Slой plaster is well known among professionals: it is a high-quality and affordable domestic product. With a consumption rate of 8-9 kg/m² (layer thickness of 1 mm), it dries in about a week and costs around $8-9 per 30 kg.

Photo 2 — One of the most budget-friendly plasters — Volma-Slой

TEPLON − Plaster with Insulation (Unis Plaster)

Thermal insulation gypsum plaster Unis TEPLON − a relatively expensive material, but justified by long service life and insulation properties.

Average price for this material is about $9 per 30 kg dry mix (although Grey TEPLON is cheaper than similar products from other manufacturers − only $4.8 per 30 kg). The manufacturer also produces other plasters, for example, facade and base plasters − the "Silen" series (price $8.325 per kg).

Maximum layer thickness for these plasters − 5-30 (50) mm.

Dry naturally for gypsum plasters − in 5-7 days.

Starateli Plaster

The company offers five options, including gypsum plaster for machine and manual application, standard gypsum plaster, gypsum-cement mix MIXTER, and Optimum.

Except for gypsum-cement mixes (10 kg/m² or more), consumption is approximately 10 kg/m².

Drying time − up to 7 days.

Layer thickness up to 5-50 mm.

Average price for gypsum plaster from Starateli is $8.5 per 30 kg.

BOLARS (Forman/Форман) Plaster

BOLARS offers a wide range of plaster mixes based on gypsum and cement. These plasters are easy to apply on brickwork, concrete, gas concrete, and stone.

Available in BOLARS series: standard gypsum plasters in 20 and 30 kg packaging, facade plasters, frost-resistant, and thermal-insulating mixes.

Standard plaster consumption: 2.4 kg/m² (10 mm layer).

Vapor permeability − 0.23 mg/m·h·Pa.

Layer thickness − up to 5 to 60 mm.

Water content in mix − 0.6-0.62 l/kg.

Price of BOLARS SIVA (Siva) gypsum plaster: $8.4 per 25 kg.

Vetonit Plaster

Company Weber-Vetonit (Weber-Vetonit) offers a range of dry building mixes, including cement-based moisture-resistant and lightweight moisture-resistant plaster (Vetonit TT and Vetonit TTT respectively). For facade repair, you can use cement plaster Weber Stuk Cement (up to 30-50 mm layer). Price for such plaster is approximately $11.5 per 25 kg.

UMKA Plaster

UMKA brand produces a series of environmentally clean thermal-insulating mixes. Among the most popular products: base and finish layer thermal-insulating plaster mixes (UB-21 and UF-2 respectively).

Mixes are cement-based with lime. Consumption ranges from 3.5 to 4 kg/m², material cost $17.5 per 7 kg.

Osnovit Plaster

Osnovit produces gypsum, cement-based facade, and decorative plasters at moderate prices. You can choose the right type using the table below:

Photo 3 — Choosing Osnovit plaster

Bergauf Plaster

Bergauf produces crack-resistant gypsum plasters (Putz Gips) for walls and ceilings, suitable for wallpapering, frost-resistant cement plasters with water-repellent properties (Rutz Zement) for facade finishing, lightweight plastic plasters (Bau Interier) suitable for both manual and mechanical application, and economical, easy-to-apply and process thermal-insulating cement plasters (Bau Facade) for facade work without taping.

Price for this group does not exceed average category levels: for example, gypsum plaster costs $8.6 per 25 kg.

IVSIL (IVSIL) Plaster

IVSIL produces gypsum plasters for manual and mechanical application, high-strength cement-based facade plasters for indoor and outdoor use, thermal and sound-insulating plasters for indoor and outdoor use, and decorative textured plasters of type "Cockroach" and facade plasters of type "Sheepskin" at moderate prices. For example, you can buy sound-insulating plaster Termosil for $21.9 per 12 kg, with a mix consumption not exceeding 3 kg/m² (1 mm layer). This material is frost-resistant and withstands up to 50 cycles without damage to appearance or physical properties, so the price is justified.

Kreps Plaster

One rare feature in Kreps plaster catalogs is the production of special plaster for restoration work. These are the mixes Antik-1 and Antik-2. They are made from lime base, coarse-grained fractionated sand, and modified additives, and contain synthetic reinforcing fibers.

Kreps Antik mixes can be used to repair and restore historical buildings and architectural monuments made of brick, concrete, and reinforced concrete.

Material cost: from $7.2 per 25 kg.

IMPORTANT! Restoration plaster is also available in the Runit series (price $7.1 per 20 kg).

Gerkules Plaster

The company offers a standard range: cement-based plasters include lime-cement mix, facade plaster M100, and standard cement plaster; gypsum mixes include Rotger plaster, gypsum mix for mechanical application, and white plaster; in the decorative series − "Cockroach" plaster.

With a consumption rate of 1.43 kg/m² per 1 mm layer, the mix must contain at least 0.26 l water/kg. For cement mixes, consumption is slightly lower − 1 kg/m², and water demand − 0.5 l/kg.

Materials from Gerkules can be considered among the most economical in terms of cost − $7.5 per 30 kg.

Photo 4 — Rendering brickwork using materials from Baumit: 1 − cement masonry, 2 − plaster mix Baumit MPI 25; 3 − primer Baumit Grund; 4 − tile adhesive Baumit Basic; 5 − elastic grout for joints Baumit Premium Fuge; 6 − silicone sealant Baumit Silikon

You can also find wall leveling and facade insulation plasters at relatively low prices in catalogs of companies such as Glims (Russia, leveling and decorative plasters Glims Velur), Typhoon (Belarus, LUX/Lux series), Yekaterinburg-Gips (Russia, plasters Gifas/Gifas), Krayzel (Maschinen Putz − machine lime-cement plaster), Pobedit (Egida TM35 Elite), ABS (ABS, starter plaster Siva), Terralit (warm plaster SH1), Bittex (Germany, facade textured plasters),

Negative reviews online are mostly about the gypsum plaster "Sindika" from Habes (price $6.5 per 30 kg). Users complain about cracking after drying and difficulty in achieving a glossy finish.

Brozeks Hyperplast (gypsum-perlite) − $5.3 per 25 kg. Etalon (gypsum plaster) − $7.3 per 20 kg.

Also, there are special types of plasters that perform a protective function to a greater extent than their "younger siblings." For example, the barium-based radiological shielding plaster FullMix, price $24.68 per 25 kg.

Decorative Plasters

We begin the series of decorative plasters with the most budget-friendly material (if the word "budget" even fits this category of finishing materials).

Ceresit (Decorative Plaster)

In the "budget" class, the most popular are "cockroach" and "pebble" type plasters, creating simple grooves and protrusions on the surface. Technical characteristics are visible in the table below.

Photo 5 — Technical characteristics of Ceresit plasters

Ceresit ST 35 (grain 2.5 mm) costs about $14.5 per 25 kg, which is a relatively low price for decorative coatings (for comparison: cockroach plaster from Senedzhi costs $26 per 15 kg, Classic Cord from LAES − $70 per 26 kg, roller plaster from LAKRA − $24 per 15 kg).

The budget trio of plasters also includes "lamb" type (Kratzputs) and "sheepskin" (Rollputz). Price for these types does not exceed $40 per 15 kg.

IMPORTANT! For coloring dry mixes, a special colorant is required (e.g., from the colorant catalogs of Tikkurila, NOVACOLOR, TEX COLOR, or Alpa).

Decorative Plaster BOLARS

Pebble plaster and cockroach plaster can be found almost everywhere. BOLARS offers pebble plaster in 25 kg packaging priced at $51.2 per 25 kg.

Photo 6 — Decorative pebble plaster BOLARS. Technical characteristics

BAYRAMIX: Decorative Mosaic Plaster

Acrylic plasters − a rich selection of finishing materials.

Bayramix (Bayramix) offers buyers the opportunity to purchase mosaic plaster, whose main advantage is thin finish layer: layer thickness is only 1-2.5 mm! Price − $51 per 25 kg. With a consumption rate of 2 kg/m², one package can cover up to 12 square meters.

Optimist Plaster

Optimist brand offers a range of decorative finishes, including the same "cockroach" plaster (however, sold ready-to-use, price $38.78 per 15 kg), decorative coatings "Byzantium", "Rome Stone", "Sea Breeze" for indoor use, several types of "Venetian plaster", and more. (For comparison: Clavel’s Encausto plaster costs $155.9 per 25 kg, while the similar product from Optimist costs $70 per 15 kg.)

IMPORTANT! Stucco veneciano (stucco venetian) or Venetian plaster is a costly process. Be aware that it must be applied in 3, or even up to 10 layers, pre-treating walls with a special starter layer, and finishing with a protective wax. Even though consumption for a single layer averages 0.15-0.2 kg/m², one package will not be enough.

San Marco (San Marco): Decorative Plaster

The company offers over twenty types of universal finishes. Among the most interesting are Cadoro − a decorative coating with a moiré silk effect (price $54 per 1 liter), Marmorino Classico (marmorino classico) − a mineral decorative coating "in the style of marble" with 0.7 mm quartz grain (price $242 per 25 kg).

Photo 7 — Venetian plaster San Marco Stucco Veneziano. Color palette

Caparol: Decorative Plaster

Decorative plaster Caparol − a high-quality material, primarily intended for external finishing (facade plasters). The company offers silicone and acrylic decorative plasters of type "cockroach" and "pebble" starting from $118 per 25 kg.

Silk Plaster Plaster

Decorative plaster from Silk Plaster − simple to apply and use, liquid wallpapers priced from $11 per 1 kg. One package (economy class) typically covers 5 m² with minimal layer thickness. This offer should interest those who like to experiment with finishes without exceeding budget.

Dufa (Dufa) Plaster

Ready-made plasters "cockroach", "lamb", and "sheepskin" are available in Dufa’s catalog. Prices range from $58 per 25 kg. Among other items, there is a rare item − plaster for computer color matching. Not every manufacturer can boast having this product in their range. Advantage of computer color matching for synthetic plaster − wide color selection and even coloring. Price for such material ranges from $60 per 25 kg.

Parade: Decorative Plaster

"Sheepskin" from Parade costs $55.6 per 15 kg, placing it in the mid-price category. The manufacturer also offers high-quality ready-to-use liquid wallpapers (price $59 per 15 kg, almost three times cheaper than Silk Plaster). Additionally, Parade produces plasters that mimic stone surfaces and wax glaze. A pleasant addition in the product line − a special primer for decorative plasters from the manufacturer − Parade PUTZGRUND G100 PROFESSIONAL (price $21 per 2.5 liters).

Oikos (Oykos) Plaster

Below are technical characteristics for decorative plaster line from Ukrainian company Oykos − plaster Ottocento Antico Velluto (price $75.5 per 1 liter) and plaster Travertino Romano (price $25 per m² including material cost).

Photo 8 — Technical characteristics of Ottocento Antico Velluto plaster

Photo 9 — Technical characteristics of Travertino Romano plaster

Derufa Plaster

"Cockroach" plaster is also in the Derufa factory catalog. Price − $26 per 15 kg. With relatively economical consumption (1.3 kg/m²), this material is among the most cost-effective (mid-range pricing).

Here is a comparison of several other offers on the market for "cockroach" type decorative plasters:

• Decorazza Corteccia (Seta) − consumption 1.5 kg/m², price $54 per 15 kg;
• StoLit R 1.5 − consumption 1.7 kg/m², price $54 per 25 kg;
• KREISEL Acrylputz − consumption 2.1 kg/m², price $48.5 per 25 kg;
• FEIDAL REIBEPUTZ (Olimp/Olimp) − consumption 2.2 kg/m², price $35.6 per 15 kg;
• SPS − consumption 2.3 kg/m², price $27.5 per 15 kg;
• Kale Cockroach − consumption 2.3 kg/m², price $47 per 25 kg;
• ilmax 6800 − consumption 2.4 kg/m², price $29 per 25 kg;
• Vincent S-2 (Vincent S-2) − consumption 2.4 kg/m², price $45 per 18 kg;
• TPD-181 ByProc (ByProc) − consumption 2.5 kg/m², price $15 per 25 kg;
• AURA Dekor PUTZ − consumption 2.5 kg/m², price $48.5 per 25 liters;
• Elf-Decor − consumption 2.5 kg/m², price $25 per 15 kg;
• Decorex (Decorex) − consumption 2.5 kg/m², price $27 per 15 kg;
• Thermokreps Minerek − consumption 2.6 kg/m², price $11 per 25 kg;
• ANSERGLOB − consumption 2.6 kg/m², price $45 per 25 kg;
• TISSU − consumption 2.6 kg/m², price $38 per 15 kg;
• Alpina Strukturputz R20 Cockroach − consumption 2.7 kg/m², price $33.3 per 16 kg;
• Evromiks (polymer-cement white) − consumption 3 kg/m², price $11 per 25 kg;
• Olympic Stone − consumption 3 kg/m², price $42 per 25 kg;
• Ferozit (white) − consumption 3.25 kg/m², price $13.25 per 25 kg.