Unless your walls have been completely rebuilt, homes built before 1916 almost certainly have plaster walls. How to Tell if You Have Plaster Walls The age of your homeĭrywall was invented in 1916 but wasn’t widely used until the 1950’s. So despite the downsides of drywall, it’s easy to see why the world transitioned to this cheaper and faster material post WWII. Learning the craft of plastering took years to master, so the process was both labor and time intensive. In some lower end projects this coat may have been skipped to save time and money.ĭepending on the temperature and moisture during application, it was often necessary to wait hours or days to allow the plaster to cure enough for each successive coat. This coat is primarily lime or gypsum and water, which creates a smooth finish. The final coat, the skim coat, is only 1/8″ thick. This helps prevent cracking and damage as the house settles over time. The plasterer would have used a similar ratio of ingredients and applied it roughly 3/8″ thick. The fibers (horse hair, wood pulp, straw) in the scratch and brown coats gave the plaster more flexibility even after it was totally dry. The third layer, the brown coat, is applied in much the same way. The plasterer would have applied a thick layer and scratched it with tools to create a rough surface for the next layer to adhere to. Once dry, these keys hold the plaster to the wall with incredible durability. It was applied on top of the lath and forced through the gaps to create “key”. It is a rough mix of lime or gypsum, sand, fibers (horse hair, straw, wood pulp) and water. The second layer is called the scratch coat. They are nailed horizontally to the studs leaving a ¼” gap between each strip. The first layer is wood lath, which are long, narrow, thin strips of wood. Plaster walls typically have four layers. Anatomy of a Plaster Wall: Lath, Scratch, Brown, Skim WWII really prompted the shift from plaster to drywall thanks to labor and supply shortages, so it’s often considered the transitional time period. Interestingly enough, plaster walls are now growing in popularity and have been experiencing a resurgence in the past few years. Drywall was invented in 1916, and by the 1950’s it was the primary building material due to its ease of installation and lower cost. Plaster remained the most common construction material until the mid 20th century. It dates back to ancient times and is even found in the pyramids in Egypt. Plastering has been the method of choice when constructing walls for centuries. Thanks for supporting our Little House in Progress. This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission at no cost to you. What follows is the product of all that I’ve learned about plaster walls since we moved in. Thankfully our walls are in good shape and only needed minor touchups. So true to form, I read everything I could about how they’re constructed, how to care for them, and how to repair plaster walls. There were definite signs, but I didn’t pay attention because I didn’t really have a category for them. Growing up, I always lived in houses constructed with drywall, so I actually didn’t realize we had plaster walls until someone else commented on them.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |