Plaster or paint old fireplace?

[daddydj]

We have a holiday home with a fireplace from 1955. It has cracked vertically on both sides and the plaster is quite discolored.

1. What should we seal the cracks with?

2. Should we paint the plaster with white paint? If so, what type? Or should we plaster with some form of mortar?

 

[Avemo]

How loosely is the plaster around the cracks? It doesn't look too bad, and it doesn't get so hot outside by the cracks. The simplest thing is to fill in the cracks with filler and then paint everything. However, this assumes that the plaster isn't too loose. Traditionally, masonry has been painted with some form of limewash. It is also possible to use plaster paint.

Erik

 

[daddydj]

Thank you for the quick response. The plaster sits well around the cracks. What should I use to spackle? Regular building spackle?

Plaster paint sounds great!

 

[Stefan N]

First, check to see if it is painted with regular plastic paint, as you cannot paint over it with lime paint.