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Just realized something about old plaster walls at the museum downtown
I was at the state history museum yesterday and they have a whole section on old building methods. They had a cross-section of a 1920s plaster wall, and the lath work was so much more complex than I thought. It made me appreciate how much simpler drywall is to repair. Anyone here ever had to match a modern patch to that kind of original plaster?
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david_palmer6mo ago
Ever try to patch a section like that? I had to fix a small hole in my old house and it was a nightmare. I ended up using a setting-type joint compound over a metal patch because it's harder and shrinks less. The real trick was matching the texture with a stiff brush and a really thin top coat. It's never going to be perfect, but you can get it pretty close if you take your time.
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maryr436mo ago
Oh man, david_palmer, you're making me feel better. My last patch job looked like a toddler did it with play-doh. I tried the thin top coat thing but I got impatient and just globbed it on. Now I have this weird lump that catches the light funny every morning.
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dylanwells6mo ago
Remember reading about a guy who tried to patch his old plaster ceiling with regular drywall mud. It all fell out in a big dusty chunk a week later. Makes sense what david_palmer said about the setting type stuff. That story, maryr43, is why I just call a pro now.
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