![]() The next room chronologically, the Revolutionary Bedchamber, and all the later rooms have plaster. This room is the oldest original room dating back to 1717. In the restoration of the Homestead, Kelly chose wood wainscoting for the Colonial Kitchen. Frederick Kelly, the architectural historian who wrote Early Domestic Architecture of Connecticut and consulted on the restoration of the Homestead in 1946, thought plaster was introduced later to the Hartford area, and only became widespread after 1735. In 1641, a general court in New Haven laid down day rates for lime plasterers, indicating that someone was doing the labor and needed to be paid for it. As the colonists became more established, building methods became more sophisticated. Walls were finished with wood wainscoting. Plaster was rare in the very oldest New England houses. It consists of a binding agent (clay, lime, gypsum, or cement), an aggregate (traditionally sand), and water fibers such as hair are often added for strength. Plaster has been used as an interior and exterior wall covering for thousands of years. ![]() It took several weeks to scrape layers of paint and loose plaster from the walls and ceiling of the stairwell from the first-floor landing to the attic. The stairwell project gave us an opportunity to learn more about the construction of Pequotsepos Manor, look at the original plaster up close, and learn how labor intensive the process is to use and restore plaster. “We were pleased with John’s exceptional work on the stairwell project seven years ago and asked him back to restore the peeling plaster ceiling in the Federal Parlor later this year,” said Julie Soto, Homestead Manager Over the last 45 years, Marshall Plastering has completed projects throughout New England and New York that include National Historic Landmarks, historic organizations, museums, churches, libraries, theaters, and private residences. Part of my plaster ceiling repair has a top coat of vinyl spackling compound and part has a top layer of latex caulk.Owner and Denison descendant, John Marshall is acknowledged as one of the top plasterers in Connecticut and is an expert at determining the proper materials and techniques for each job. In my case, since the mix of colors in my paint job hides surface defects I went ahead and used both techniques, to see which method survives the test of time. The downside is that the top surface won’t be quite as smooth. ![]() This will probably require several layers. However, if you want to try to avoid the reappearance of the crack you can rely on the caulk to form the top surface. This will delay the day when the crack eventually becomes visible. This spreads the separation over a wider area so that the spackling layer will create a bunch of very small microfractures rather than one big crack. The benefit of having the caulk under the top layer of spackling is that the caulk will tend to stretch as the crack widens. This will allow you to apply a layer of drywall mud, or spackling compound, which can be sanded. The caulk will shrink, which is actually good. ![]() In my case the paint job has a mottled surface that will hide the imperfections in the surface layer, so it should not be noticeable. The surface will look like it has been repaired. You can sand plaster down, but you can’t sand caulk. The reason caulk is not usually used in a plaster ceiling repair is that you cannot get the surface of the caulk to be completely smooth. Using a wide putty knife that I wetted down, I spread this caulk to cover the exposed area. Then I caulked the crack with your basic latex caulk. I Begin the Plaster Ceiling Repairįor my repair I cut away all the loose surface plaster with a utility knife. The problem is the compound used to repair this is even weaker than the plaster, since it lacks the fibers, and as the house continues to settle the crack will reappear. Once dried you sand this down and all looks good. The traditional plaster ceiling repair method is to mix up some plaster, or drywall compound, or use spackling compound to fill in the crack. The moisture from the shower had penetrated into the plaster enough to weaken the bond between the finish layer and the base plaster. It was this finish layer that was sticking to the paint. It lacked fiber, so it didn’t have much strength, but it could be smoothed out to provide a very flat, even surface. The fibers were usually animal hair and they did not allow for a smooth surface, so a second, finish layer was laid down. This layer had a lot of fiber mixed in with it, to bind the plaster together and give it some strength. They laid a thick, heavy layer down directly onto the lathe. When they applied my plaster (back in 1906) they did it in two coats.
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