Assess
Assessment of lath and plaster condition, including what's happening behind the visible surface.
Every lath & plaster job follows the same process
Repair
Repair of cracked, sagging, or detached plaster sections, addressing the cause behind the damage, not just the surface.
Blend
Blending repairs to match the original wall texture and character of the home.
Why plaster walls actually crack or come loose
Structural Overload
Cracks starting at a door or window frame often mean that area of the wall has ended up supporting more weight than it was originally built for — sometimes from a remodel years earlier that changed how weight moves through the house, sometimes from framing that was never quite right to begin with.
Normal Settling
Diagonal cracks are a classic sign of a house settling gradually over time, often tied to seasonal changes in soil moisture around the foundation. This is common and usually not urgent on its own.
Original Workmanship
Plaster is a skill that takes real time to master, and older homes sometimes have visible consequences of a rushed or inexperienced original job — an uneven mix, incompatible layers, or plaster applied too thin to hold up over the decades.
Moisture
Old roof leaks or plumbing problems are a common hidden cause, especially in homes where the original systems have been patched and repaired many times over the years. Because these causes matter more for plaster than for modern drywall, we check whether there's more going on behind the wall before calling a repair finished.
Lath & plaster repair FAQs
How is plaster repair different from drywall repair?
Plaster is a hard, multi-layer material applied wet over wood lath, not a factory panel like drywall. Repairs need to account for how the existing layers bond, how the lath underneath is holding up, and matching a texture that was hand-applied rather than mass-produced. Treating a plaster wall like drywall usually leads to a repair that looks and feels different from the surrounding surface.
Can a cracked plaster wall be saved, or does it need to be replaced with drywall?
Most cracked or sagging plaster can be repaired and saved, especially if the lath behind it is still sound. Replacement with drywall is usually only necessary when the lath has failed extensively or moisture damage has gone on for years. We assess the lath condition before recommending either approach.
Why is my plaster wall separating from the lath behind it?
This usually means the plaster keys, the small ridges that squeezed through the gaps in the lath during the original application, have broken over time. It can happen from age, vibration, or moisture weakening the wood lath. A sagging or bulging section is often a sign this is happening and shouldn't be ignored, since it can eventually let go.
How do you match the texture of old plaster walls?
We look closely at the existing finish, whether it's a smooth trowel finish, a sand float texture, or something else specific to the home's era, and test the match on a small area first. Older plaster often has subtle texture that's easy to miss and hard to replicate without matching the original application method.