Painting fiberglass ("web")

What is painting fiberglass?

Painting fiberglass or as it is also called “spiderweb”, as well as glass wall paper, consists of fiberglass filaments. Only, unlike wallpaper, the painting fiberglass is not woven on the machines. In the manufacture of "web" fiberglass is pressed in a manner similar to the process of producing ordinary paper. The result is thin and perfectly smooth sheets, with a density of 25-50 grams per 1 m2. Despite the similarity of the manufacturing process, fiberglass is very different from paper sheets - not to be afraid of water, chemical reagents and mechanical damage, do not burn, do not accumulate static electricity and do not attract dust, reinforce the walls. But they also have qualities that resemble the properties of paper - the web webs consist only of natural ingredients, allow air and steam to pass through, prevent the formation of fungus and mold on the walls, and do not cause allergies. Simply put, glass fiber has all the same qualities as glass wall paper - only with the difference that they do not have a pronounced relief and woven pattern. But you can repaint glass fiber as much as you like - once there is no relief, there is nothing to fear that it will be lost.

Why are painting glass fiber?
Why do you need something to glue on the walls, which you are still going to paint? Everything is very simple. Fiberglass allows you to easily and quickly prepare the surface for painting - no need to level the walls for a long time, and to putty small cracks - it is enough to fill the large ones. It is possible to glue the “cobweb” on any surface, be it concrete or brick, as well as drywall, chipboard, plastic or metal. The “cobweb” will hide the small cracks and irregularities that exist on the walls, and, in addition, protect them from the formation of new ones. The fact is that the walls in new buildings have been shrinking for several years, and because of this, cracks appear on them. As a result, ordinary paper wallpapers will simply tear, the plaster will crumble. And the cobweb will not only withstand all these pressures and hide the existing cracks, it will not allow them to grow and protect the walls from the appearance of new ones.

How to work with fiberglass?
As mentioned above, the “cobweb” is surprisingly easy to use. In order to stick it on the walls, you must first clean the surface of dirt and dust, putty large cracks, if any, and prime the walls with a weak glue solution or a special primer, such as latex Oscar primer. Glue "web" is easier than regular wallpaper, because the glue is applied to the wall, and not on the fiberglass. Moreover, for gluing the "webs" it is best to use special glue for Wellton fiberglass. Glass fiber cloths are glued butt and aligned with a spatula. Fiberglass has another amazing property - it can be safely glued using the “lap” method. This method is indispensable when working on broken and curved surfaces where it is necessary to apply the coating with small cloths. Overlap glued fiberglass and then, when due to improper storage, or due to inaccurate transportation of the edge of the canvas were damaged and stick them butt impossible. The gluing technology is quite simple: apply glue to the surface, glue the first canvas, or piece of fiberglass, without smoothing it along the edge of the “docking”. After that, apply glue to the surface with a slight approach to the just-glued canvas, attach a second piece of fiberglass and lightly smooth the spatula without any effort in the area of ​​the “overlay” of two canvases. Immediately after that, use a regular stationery knife to cut two webs, then remove the cut parts of the “lower” (first) and “upper” (second) canvas and smooth the two blades at the butt joint with one movement of the spatula. Then it is necessary to primed the surface of the fiberglass with diluted glue and wait until it dries. Well, now everything is ready - you can begin to paint, or to decorate the walls on your own!