In the Boston area veneer plaster is standard and is usually a bit cheaper than taped drywall because it's much faster and cleaner. I assume the reason it's not used in many areas of the US is that it requires considerably more skill and Boston has a long tradition of skilled plasterers, originally Irish, now Brazilian. The advantage to the owner over taped drywall is that it has a hard plaster finish instead of paper so it's more durable, takes paint better, takes fewer coats of paint, the paint lasts longer, and it's easier to patch. You only have to go a hundred miles outside of Boston to find general contractors who have never heard of it. After the blueboard is hung (usually horizontally) adhesive mesh tape is put over the square edged joints and 1/16" of plaster is applied in one continuous coat. It doesn't require a second coat or sanding.

If it looks BS, sounds like BS and smells like you know what, then it is. Old three-coat over lath plaster is put on in layers, the under layers (rough and scratch coats) can look a little rough, and they are supposed to be so for good adhesion. If your other walls are smooth then you have finish coat plaster on top, which is usually smooth as as silk. Its smoothness comes from the final polishing. My finish coat plaster is so smooth that little silicate (sand) particles in my unpainted bedroom ceiling will sparkle if the light hits them right. Now the contractor who did this, is he a plasterer, or something else? Did he use real plaster or joint compound? Is the plaster (if that's what it is) over lath or is a skim coat over board? And what is the nature of the roughness or texture: ripples, waves, orange peel or more than that? Also, though this may not be so important for modern plaster mixtures, older ones at least, need to cure and be primed before they can take any paint. Has anybody taken that into account? And yes, you can sand plaster; a big mess (lots of dust), but it can be done. Usually the problem is the other way around; in some areas of the country it is apparently customary to have a "knock-down" finish to plaster, in those cases the patch is often too smooth compared to the remaining walls. What was the outcome today? Good Luck! Molly~

Thanks for the advice! So, here is the follow up for anyone interested⦠I tried several products including a 2 step epoxy, a white glue (not E), goop, PlasterWeld and a thin liquid nail product with a fine dispensing tip. The thick stuff was too thick and I couldn't get it in the cracks. The PlasterWeld was too runny and just dripped through the lath to the floor. What I really wanted was a medium consistency product that could be injected in the crevices and used to reattach the keys. Boy, was I naïve about how tedious this would be AND about how long it would take. I reattached a bunch of keys on one section of one wall, tried to insert glue where there were gaps between the lath and plaster in a small area. Then I gave up. It would have taken hours and hours to really cover the walls. I have no idea if the newly glued keys will hold or if the fills in the gaps will help. But I tried! I am happy that the sheet rock will be going up over those exposed areas this week so I wonâÂÂt feel like I am supposed to keep trying. Again, thanks for the suggestions!

Hi: I have veneer plaster walls in my kitchen and love them BUT I need to find something to make them more stain resistant behind the sink and stove. My plasterer said tile and grout sealer would work but want to make sure as he didn't give me any specifics. Would love any and all advice from you gardenweb aka houzz pros. Thanks