Drywall, Plaster & Stucco in Melrose, MA

Victorian houses and plaster worth saving

Melrose is known for its Victorian houses. Melrose Highlands, Wyoming Hill and the East Side around Mount Hood have Queen Anne and Shingle style homes from the late 1800s and early 1900s, many with deep cornices, ceiling medallions and plaster walls that have never been opened.

That plaster is usually worth keeping. After a century of settling and heating seasons, it cracks along ceilings and around windows, and some sections pull away from the lath. Owners are often told to gut the room and hang drywall, which throws away original work that could have been repaired.

We patch loose areas, skim ceilings that have crazed and repair or match ornamental pieces like medallions and cornice runs. Houses on the West Side and near downtown often mix eras, with a 1950s addition next to an 1890s parlor, so the repair has to suit both walls.

Plaster in houses from the 1880s and 1890s was often made with lime and animal hair. It is softer than modern gypsum plaster, so a repair needs a base that bonds to it and a finish that feathers into the old surface without leaving a ridge. We check how solid the old plaster is before we plan the work, and we tell you which rooms are worth saving and which are better rebuilt.