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Two Articles on the Use of Kraft Paper as a Wall Finish
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N A T I O N A L R E S E A R C H COUNCIL
C A N A D A
D I V I S I O N OF B U I L D I N G R E S E A R C H
H O U S I N G N O T E N O .
2
TWO ARTICLES
ON
THE USE O F KRAFT PAPER
AS
A
WALL
FINISH
k
A.
T.
5,5Hansen
Reprinted from National Builder,
Vol.
X,
No. 5,
May 1961, p. 46
and Vol.
XI,
No.
1, Jan.1962, p.52-53
Kraft paper used as a wallll finish
by
A. T. HANSEN
A method of wall finishing in com- mon use in Norway may prove to be of inttrest to house builders in Canada. De- veloped over a number of years, it has been in extensive use since the Second World War and is designed to eliminate tedious finishing of wall boards prior to painting or papering.
Dampened heavy kraft paper is ap- plied to the unfinished wall surface and
i i R l P S OF KRAFT PAPER GLUED TO WALL S U R F A C E - A R O U N D PERIMETER O F WALL A N D WALL
.
.
/-'-
, ., - h95,9y)
STAPLED EDGES O F OR SHEETS TACKED+ - ADJACENT I N PLACE UNTIL G l u t SETS
SHEETS TIED 1" STRIP O F
IOGETHER TEMPORAR~LY KRAFT TO
WITH STAPLES OR TACKS J O I N ADJACENT
W H I C H ARE REMOVED
AFTER GLUE SETS SHEETS
FIG. 2
attached at the perimeter with glue. The paper subsequently shrinks to a tight even surface ready for painting. The technique was explained to the writer by Robert Wigen, a research officer of the Norwegian Building Research Insti- tute, who recently completed a year of study at the Division of Building Re- search of the National Research Coun- cil.
In order to examine the technique at first hand, the Division constructed a demonstration wall panel consisting of a stud frame covered with 4- by 8-foot sheets of gypsum wall board, with joints and nail heads left unfinished. Paper to cover the panel surface was obtained
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.
. . . . , . . . , . . . , , , ... . . A,:: .,.:. :..:..$2 This system is being field- ::':;
, -.
2):
tested in Canada for the firstii;
::::,F,:: time in the NHBA Experimen-
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Ill,
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from Norway, where it is manufactured specifically for this purpose; of the or- dinary kraft type, it is similar in com- position to brown wrapping paper, al- though heavier and thicker (about
2/100 inch thick), and is supplied in rolls about 4 feet wide. It weighs about
12 kilograms per 36 square meter roll (about one ounce per square foot). Casein glue was used to attach the paper to the wall.
The technique for covering the dem- onstration panel is similar to that used in Norway:
1. Strips of kraft paper about 4 inches wide are cut and dampened, then glued to the perimeter of the wall. Where doors and windows occur the strips of kraft are glued around the perimeter of these openings as well. The strips are allowed to dry for about 20 minutes to permit the glue to set before the large sheets of kraft paper are attached to them (Fig. 1).
2. Sheets of paper equal in length to the wall height are cut from the 4-foot wide roll; the paper is thoroughly damp- ened by sponging or spraying; and is then rolled to retard drying until it is needed.
3. A dampened strip of kraft about 4 inches wide is glued along one edge of each sheet before it is applied to the wall so that half of the strip extends beyond the edge of the sheet. This strip acts as a splice to tie together adjacent sheets (Fig. 2).
4. Glue applied to the strips of kraft on the wall over an area sufficient to receive the first sheet of paper. It is best to start in a corner of the room. Very light staples or tacks may be used to hold the sheets in place until after the glue sets.
5. Glue is applied to the splice strip on the first sheet and to the top and bot- tom wall strips to receive the next sheet of paper.
6. Subsequent sheets are applied, com- plete with splice strip, in the same man- ner as the first sheet, temporarily sta-
pled or tacked to the wall strips and to the splice strip. Adjacent edges should be butted tightly together before being stzpled or tacked in place.
It is essential that the paper be kept damp for about 20 minutes so that the glue can set sufficiently before the paper shrinks; stresses in the shrinking paper might otherwise cause the joints to open. As it dries the paper is stretched to a taut even surface over the entire wall and the staples or tacks may then be re- moved and the surface declared ready for painting. Whether or not the joints need to be filled depends upon how carefully the paper has been applied. In any event, the nature of the joints is such that they can be very easily hidden with joint filler.
Although the system may also be used to provide a ceiling finish, this type of application is more difficult and requires applicators with some exper- ience. It is not recommended for bath- rooms or kitchens since the excessive moisture in those areas might cause the paper to lose its tautness.
In Norway a painter usually applies the paper and can complete an average house in about two days, working alone. The cost of the paper there is less than one cent per square foot, so that the cost of the finish in place should be quite low. If a technique for handling larger sheets could be devised, the sys- tem might be further simplified by using rolls of paper of the same width as the wall height so that it could be applied as a single sheet with no joints. The possibility of producing paper with a decorative finish to eliminate subse- quent painting or papering might also introduce improvements.
Even at its present stage of develop- ment the technique deserves consider- ation. It simplifies future renewal since the old surface. fastened as it is only at the edges, can be readily removed; and it provides a finish that is free from nail popping or cracking and should be able to withstand consider- able distortion without showing dam- age.
Mr. Hansen is Research Officer,
Division o f Building Research, Na-
tional Research Council, Ottawa. His
article was p r e p a r e d specially for
National Builder.
1.
Typical wall finish before applica-2,
Paper being rolled after dampen-3,
Splice strip in place and glue ap-tion of kraft. ing to retard drying. plied for first full sheet.
Kraft papei-a
method
Among the more successful ideas
tried out in the NHBA Mark I11
experimental house, completed in
Ottawa last year was this method
of using kraft paper (available at
just over
1/2cent per sq.
ft.)
as a
wall finish. Here, Mr. A.
T.
Han-
sen of the Housing Section of the
Division of Building Research,
NRC, describes the operation
in
detail for National Builder.
By A. T. HANSEN
The Mark I11 experimental project of the National House Builders Association includes a new use of h a f t paper as a wall finish.
Used extensively in Norway, the meth- od offers an alternative to the North American practice of finishing wallboard by taping and filling joints and nail heads. It has been examined by the Division of Building Research and de- scribed in the May 1961 issue of the National Builder.
In brief, wetted sheets of heavy kraft paper are laid over unfinished wallboard
and fastened with casein glue to the perimeter of the wall and around the edges of openings. Subsequent drying of the paper causes it t o shrink to a tight even surface that is free from cracking or nail popping problems.
The initial examination indicated that the new system held considerable prom- ise. As the Mark I11 experimental pro- ject offered a convenient opportunity to test its use in an actual house, several walls were finished with paper obtained from Norway.
Enquiries to Canadian paper manu- facturers indicate that similar k r a f t - 6 9 lb per 1,000 sq ft-is available from several sources in Canada at a cost of only slightly more than '/2 cent per sq ft if bought in large quantities.
The paper was applied to the outside walls in the living room and the three bedrooms only, since other finishes were to be used on the remaining walls. It was laid over an unfinished gypsum board surface and incorporated certain modifications to the Norwegian tech- nique in an attempt to simplify the method. (Fig. 1)
As a first step, the paper was cut to the desired length, dampened with water
on both sides and rolled t o retard drying. (Fig. 2). For the vertical application, strips of kraft about 4 in. wide were cut from the roll, dampened and hung from the top of the wall. The strips were fast- ened at the top and positioned to serve as splices between adjacent sheets of kraft.
A band of casein glue about 4 in. wide was applied around the perimeter of the wall and to the nearest splice strip to receive the first dampened full sheet (Fig. 3). The sheet was then tem- porarily stapled in place around the edge with lightweight % in. staples that could be removed after the glue set.
With the sheet in place, the splice strip projected half its width beyond the edge of the first sheet, ready to receive the next one. Successive sheets were ap- plied in the same manner until the wall was covered.
Where a window or door opening occurred, paper was also glued around the edge of the opening (Fig. 4)
The paper was dampened periodically to permit the glue to set sufficiently to withstand subsequent shrinkage of the paper. (Fig. 5). When dry, it provides a taut, even surface held in place only around the perimeter of the walls and openings. (Fig. 6) This vertical applica- tion is the method used in Norway and was used in three rooms in this demon- stration.
In the fourth room the paper was applied horizontally so that the joint
4,
Application of kraft 'round open-5.
Paper kept damp while glued6,
Paper after shrinkage has takenoccured at mid-wall height (Fig. 7). This method was similar to that used with the vertical application except that the splice strip was lightly stapled to the wall in a horizontal position at mid-wall height. The horizontal joint and most of the vertical joints were filled with drywall joint filler and the excess cement re- moved with a wide bladed trowel. Joint filling was completed with one applica- tion and no subsequent sanding was nec- essary. (Fig. 8 & 9).
A
few of the vertical joints were not filled in order to compareh a 1 results.
The horizontal application proved to be faster and the final appearance neater
than
the vertical application. Horizontal joints were less obvious than vertical joints, although both provided an ac- ceptable appearance after painting. (Fig.10). Unfilled points did not present an objectionable appearance when the paper was carefully applied, but they were somewhat more obvious
than
treated joints.A rough time check made during the installation showed that the rate of ap- plication of the paper, including initial cutting and wetting, was about 120 sq
ft of wall surface per hour for vertical application and 300 sq f t per hour for horizontal application. It should be men- tioned here that the paper was applied by two members of the staff of the Division of Building Research who were not tradesmen and had practically no previous experience with this system. I t seems fair to assume that exper- ienced applicators could install the finish more quickly and neatly than was the
case with this demonstration.
The paper on two walls was not kept wet long enough for the glue to set; as a result joints between sheets opened in two places almost % in. These were later filled with a single application of joint cement. It is recommended that the paper be kept damp for at least an hour before being allowed to dry
so
that the glue will have'sufficient bonding strength to resist shrinkage.The resulting finish was on the whole quite satisfactory and deserves further consideration as an economical alterna- tive to the usual practice of finishing wallboard. Both vertical and horizontal applications can produce satisfactory re- sults, but the horizontal application is preferable both from the standpoint of speed of application and final appear- ance. It would be an improvement, of course, to install paper without any joints by using rolls wide enough to ex- tend from floor to ceiling. This would simplify application even further, and is now a possibility with the 8-ft widths available from Canadian paper manufac- h e r s . Although 8-ft rolls have not yet been tested, it would appear that a method for bandling this size of paper could be worked out without too much difficulty. r
7 -
Horizontal application of- .
paper, unfilled joints.
