plaster

[mwagoner]

This is my first time posting anything so I hope it works.
I thought I read something here the other day about uses for old drywall, spreading on the garden, lawn or drive????
I am curious if anyone has any good uses for old plaster?
Could it be spread on a gravel drive?
Looking for any suggestions.
Thanks,

 

[Blu21]

mwagoner,gypsum is good for breaking up clay soil,adding it to the garden helps soil composition,I dont think it would do any harm to the drive.The hard part is separating the paper from the gypsum.Tom

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

mwagoner,

It worked/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif, welcome to TBN.
Adding Gypsum to the garden is generally a good move.

http://www.glcalcium.com/lawngarden.html

I have done this to my potatoes to add Sulfur, Gypsum is Ca SO4. Getting it broke up is quite a job.

Have you been hanging sheet rock?

 

[Mike H]

I toss all my scraps from new drywall work in the garden. Old drywall heads to the dump - don't know what's in the paint!?!?!? And when I say "all scraps" I'm only talking about remodelling my own home. I just let the rain degrade the paper for a while and the rototiller do the rest.

 

[mwagoner]

No I haven't been hanging sheetrock, not yet, a friend of mine is remodeling and I have been helping.Hanging sheetrock is one aspect of remodeling I don't enjoy.
Being an old house it is actual plaster, is plaster made of gypsum?
The tough part here is seperating the lathe and removing any nails.
Thanks for all the help,

Matt

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

mwagoner,

<font color=blue>Being an old house it is actual plaster, is plaster made of gypsum?</font color=blue>

Your question just got a lot harder. Plaster use dates back to the Romans and was made with Hydrated lime(Calcium Hydroxide), sand and water. Unlike anhydrous Calcium Sulfate which sets quickly by the addition of water (plaster of Paris), plaster forms a crystilline structure of calcium hydroxide which binds the materials togather. The crystalline form is then gradually converted to calcium carbonate by the carbon dioxide of the air.

That was the long answer, the short one is, put a chunk in some water and if it dissolves it is Calcium Sulfate (Gypsum) if not it is Calcium Carbonate. The prior web link identifies the benefits of Calcium Carbonate in the garden.(it will raise the PH)

Mike H's earlier post is really more important with respect to any paint on the plaster. Many older homes used lead based paint and you don't want that in your garden and for that matter in your lungs as you tear this stuff out, any doubt wear a good respirator.

Al A.K.A MR T (squared)