How to Top Coat a Cement Wall

Although durable, a cement wall can't last forever. Usually, the surface on a cement wall will crack or even gain a potted appearance. With a "parge coat," however, you can cover the cracks and surface damage with a thin, mortar material and restore the surface of the wall. Once properly mixed in the correct ratio, the parge coating can be easily applied in a single day's worth of work.

Wire brush
Garden hose
Wheelbarrow
Portland cement
Hydrated lime
Washed sand
Garden hoe
Shovel
Steel trowel

Instructions

- 1
  Rub down the cement on the wall with a stiff-bristle wire brush. This will remove any loose pieces of cement from the wall and leave behind a sturdy surface that will allow the parge coat to adhere properly.
- 2
  Pour one part lime, one part cement and six parts sand into the bucket of a wheelbarrow. Position the wheelbarrow next to the cement wall.
- 3
  Stir the materials in the wheelbarrow thoroughly with a garden hoe.
- 4
  Add water to the lime, sand and cement in small batches. Between the small batches of water, stir the materials with a shovel. Stop adding water once the material has a peanut-butter-like consistency.
- 5
  Lift the material onto a steel trowel and spread it over the wall in a 1/4-inch thickness from bottom to top. Sweeping motions with the trowel will give a less textured look to the wall, while short strokes will give more texture. The coating will dry within 24 hours.

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