Coving Adhesive

What coving adhesive to use when fitting coving?

In our recently updated coving project we talked though how to measure coving and explained how to cut coving mitre joints. While we also talked about coving adhesive, we didn’t really cover the subject in any great detail, so here is an explanation if you are about to put up coving at home.

Everbuild Coving Adhesive

A coving adhesive like this one from Everbuild is a great choice if you are using plaster coving or polystyrene coving.

It has ‘quick grab’ properties which mean that it will immediately hold the coving in place, but it takes a while to go off, known as ‘extended open time’. This means that you can reposition it for a while after putting it up. It is also solvent free so you can clean up using water.

Make sure the ceiling and walls are sound and free from peeling paint, wallpaper, Artex etc. It is a good idea to score the surfaces in the areas where the coving touches the walls and ceiling to provide a key for the adhesive.

Use a skeleton gun to apply the adhesive to the back of the coving, along the two edges that will touch the wall and ceiling. There is no need to apply adhesive to the centre of the coving as this does not touch either surface and is a waste of money. As you squeeze the trigger on the sealant gun you should move the nozzle from side to side as you gradually pull the gun along the length of the coving. This will leave you with a zig-zag pattern of adhesive on the back, which helps ensure you get a complete even coverage of adhesive when you press the coving into place.

As you lift the section into place gently slide the piece of coving backwards and forwards into the corner so that the adhesive gets spread across the whole surface area.

Everbuild coving adhesive can also be used to fill the joints between sections of coving and between the coving and the wall. The adhesive has a ‘high solids formulation’ which means that it fills gaps well, and won’t shrink when it dries. It dries white and you can paint over it once it is dry.

It is not suitable for fitting coving made of plastic, polyurethane coving or other non-porous material. If you want to put up that sort of coving you should think of an alternative adhesive such a No More Nails.

Unibond No More Nails

Unibond No More Nails is a grab adhesive that is perfect for fixing coving made of plastics to a porous surface, such as plaster or plasterboard. It works best where at least one of the surfaces is absorbent, but is also suitable where both surfaces are porous, such when fitting polystyrene or plaster coving.

It is available in a tube to fit into a skeleton gun, like the one above but it is also supplied in this Unibond Kiwi Pack, which has an integral rotating nozzle so you don’t need a sealant gun. It can be used for filling small gaps too.

If you want to know more about using adhesive on coving read the free installation guide available to download from Davuka.

If you want to find out more about fitting coving check out our step-by-step guide to coving on the main website.