Home Remodeling - How to Remove Plaster and Lathe

There are many tasks involved in home remodeling that I do not look forward to. Removing plaster and lathe is one of them. Unless you enjoy being sweaty and filthy and choked in dust by the end of the day, removing plaster from the walls and ceilings of a home is not very pleasant. So what would make a person want to do such a chore? I can assume from experience that most "gut" jobs are connected to a whole house renovation. The old home has been purchased, but not moved into yet, and the owner wants to start from scratch by removing all of those cracked and uneven walls. Or it is simply a one room remodel job where the same unwanted defects are in need of a remedy and tearing everything out is the logical solution. If you are considering removing plaster and lathe, here are a few tips.

Firstly, remove the trim. If you are not replacing what is already installed then your job just got easier. If you are saving the original trim, chances are you will be dealing with old, square headed nails that are not in the mood for any disturbances. Needless to say you must take your time and slowly pry from one end little by little, and even then, you may find yourself cracking the wood. After this is done you want to consider all areas that will need protection from the falling plaster. Plaster is very hard and even some of the smaller chunks can cause damage. If there is wallpaper attached, be careful of plaster swooping across the room like Tarzan swinging on a vine. Also, remove the plaster first. do not worry about the lathe until the plaster is cleaned out of the room. There is nothing worse than trying to separate the two all mixed together on the floor.

Once you start removing the plaster it is very tempting to yank on the lathe that is behind and tear it all off in one mighty blow. Kill two birds with one stone you might say. That works fine until, inevitably, the plaster and/or lathe give you a pop in the chops! There is quite a bit of spring in some of them old boards. Once they let loose, projectiles are flying everywhere so wearing goggles is a must. I have always been one of those guys that shunned protective gear. I have learned my lesson when it comes to plaster removal. Besides the protective eye-ware, gloves are also a necessity . Your knuckles will take a beating without them and the dust from the plaster will leave your hands dry and irritated. Speaking of dust, wear a mask. This stuff gets and goes everywhere. By the end of the day I am even cleaning it out of my shorts! The dust can be downright choking. I have been dumb enough to not wear a mask and it would get so bad that I would have to leave the room just to breathe. Needless to say you must also take great care in sealing off the room you are gutting. Dust will more than likely still get out but you can cut back considerably with a little plastic and tape.

The removal of the plaster itself can be anywhere from a breeze to a headache. On some walls the stuff just peels off once you get behind it with a crow bar or your hammer claws. Others you need to beat and beat until it cracks off one miserable little piece at a time. You can attack the removal of plaster with whatever works best. On walls, I usually start hitting with a hammer until I expose the lathe and then try to pry from behind. Ceilings are pretty much the same technique other than I use a 2 x 4 at just the right length to hit the ceiling until it starts to fall. Watch your head here.

As I stated earlier, removing plaster and lathe is not a fun job. Approach it with a plan and take precautions, mostly for yourself. Falling plaster can be dangerous. You never know how large of a piece is waiting for it's moment to crown you on the head...did I mention wearing a helmet?

Curt Levans constructs new houses and renovates the old. To view and read more about his projects, visit http://www.renovatehome.blogspot.com