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Restoring Plaster Wall Corners.. What To Do

12 years ago

I have removed wallpaper from a room with plaster walls. The corners of the walls (where the walls meet) has many open areas where the old plaster has broken away. What would be the best way of restoring these areas? Do I need any special tools? Thanks

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Comments (7)

sombreuil_mongrel
12 years ago
If you mean inside corners, then I'd probably just use caulk after priming, were the cracks 1/8" or less. If greater, then you need to fill them with something. I recommend Durabond 90. Ask for it at the HD/Lowe's places.
Casey
macv
12 years ago
If you are talking about outside corners, is there a round wood plaster screed?
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chipster_2007
Original Author
12 years ago
I don't know what a wood plaster screed is? The outside corners are rounded but there is a demarcation line down either side of the corner. Should I just leave the corners as they are and maybe fill in that depressed line that runs down either side of the corner with something like joint compound? Thanks for your help with the inside corners.
sombreuil_mongrel
12 years ago
Beaded plaster corners are a very early detail; I worked on a 1750's house that had them. If your house is that old (or old enough to have such neat plasterwork), it's probably worth keeping the detail.
Such corners were also formed with a wood bead molding that was plastered up to. Same again- a very cool detail that should IMO be kept/celebrated.
Much later they came up with decorative lathe-turned "corner guards" that were added to outside corners to keep them from being damaged by kids on tricycles and roller skates.
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palimpsest
12 years ago
My outside corners (c. 1840)are something like the top part of this piece of millwork, a square of wood set into the corner with a round bead. The plaster went over the square part and a joint was left between the plaster and the bead leaving that indentation. (Which I think is a really nice detail). I had one missing and I had a hard time getting someone to even try to replicate it. They tried to convince me to change the other three outside corners (on paired fireplaces) to square ones :(

{{!gwi}}
chipster_2007
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks Casey and palimpsest...My house was built in 1930 so it does not have those beautiful corners of your model. It looks like there was a rounded corner molding nailed to the corners (I can see a nail or two). The slight depression line down either side is where it meets the plaster. I was going to ask if there was anything I could do to protect them but gee, they have lasted this long, I guess they will be ok. Maybe I should just clean out the margins to accentuate the rounded corner? It looks like they tried to fill it in with some patching material.
palimpsest
12 years ago
It may be something as simple as quarter round. I would try to keep the eased edge even if you fill in the small reveal.

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