Im lookig to get my hallway plastered, so Ive stripped off the old embossed wallpaper. Beneath it is old, smooth, hard plaster, and then some obvious repairs with pink stuff that looks like multifinish, but it softens when you have the steam stripper over it?

Some of the boxes round beams have been done with MDF, any problems with skimming this? Does it need replaced with pasterboard?

Someone once told me never to replair plaster without skimming it, as the odds on it being flt are slim and itll never feather in properly?

It needs to be flat and smooth because the hall is lit with halogen downlighters and the walls are going white. Can a decent plasterer do this with a float, or do they use long boards or owt?

cheers