Preserving Historic Plaster
Lime plasters have been used in construction for thousands of years everywhere from Japan to Europe. When the Charlestown house was built in 1865, plasterers used lime plaster. Lime plasters are ideal candidates for repairs, because they ... [... more]
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10 Uses for Drywall Screws
Drywall screws are made to fasten wallboard to studs. But the toothy threads and trumpet-shaped heads do make 'em a tempting choice for other tasks. Short of their intended use, here are some unlikely things they're good for. This Old House ... [... more]
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Patching Holes In Drywall
Drywall is great stuff, but sooner or later you're going to have to repair a dent or hole in it. It's as inevitable as the next stock market correction. You know it's going to happen; you just don't know when. Patching drywall, regardless of the ... [... more]
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Drywall Do-It-All
Husky 5-in-1 Professional Drywall Tool, about $15; Home Depot If your next project involves dissecting drywall, you no longer need to drop $25 on the requisite trifecta of tools: blade, rasp, and saw. Husky's drywall multitool contains all three ... [... more]
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Patching Plaster
While it may be tempting to rip down an old plaster-over-lath wall and replace it with drywall, often the plaster can be saved. Firm plaster that has popped off lath can be reattached with plaster washers and drywall screws. Soft, crumbly plaster ... [... more]
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Plaster Repair Made Easier
Using a 3/8-inch masonry bit, drill through the plaster on both sides of the crack. Stop drilling when you hit the wood lath. Drill holes on both sides of the cracks If you miss lath, mark the holes with a pencil so you know not to put any ... [... more]
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Reaping Harvest Gold
Agricultural waste, such as straw and rice stalks, that would otherwise be plowed under or burned in the fields is finding a second life as pollution-free, particleboardlike sheet material used in furniture, shelving and countertops. Isobord and ... [... more]
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How to Fix Damaged Plaster: Overview
Drilling lath holes and smoothing plaster takes special care You just gotta love plaster. That rock-hard substance, which was applied to the walls and ceilings of nearly every house in this country until the 1950s, gives us surfaces that are ... [... more]
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How to Install a Decorative Wall Niche: Overview
No carpentry skills required, although you must measure and mark accurately to cut the correct size hole The interiors of homes built between the mid-1800s and early 1900s were often adorned with beautifully ornate plaster molding and millwork. ... [... more]
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How to Hang Drywall: Overview
The sheets are heavy and a bit unwieldy, especially when covering the ceiling. Call it wallboard, plasterboard, Sheetrock, or just plain "rock," like some pros do, drywall revolutionized the way walls and ceilings are covered. Before the 1950s, [... more]
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How to Patch Holes in Drywall: Overview
A doorknob swings into the wall one too many times. An electrician moves an outlet box or fishes wire to a new fixture. An energetic teenager Jackie-Chans the Sheetrock. Whether it's by accident or intent, sooner or later, a wall or ceiling gets ... [... more]
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Stucco Repair: Overview
At first glance, the seamless coat of stucco on the East Boston house looked as bulletproof as a sidewalk, the perfect foil against the harsh wet weather of this coastal city. Yet beneath its lush cloak of ivy, the cement shell was a mess of ... [... more]
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