Repairing a big ceiling hole with new lath and plaster?

16 years ago

Hi all,

I just had a new furnace and ducts put in. One of the installers took a little mis-step in the attic, and his foot went through the lath and plaster. The resulting hole is about 1ft by 3ft (a bit wider than 1' in places). My husband insisted that they repair it with lath and plaster, and they said ok. They claim their contractor is experienced with lath and plaster (we'll see about that--he isn't coming until Thursday).

My question: we won't pay in full for the heating job until our ceiling is fixed (but we'll pay the majority). The heating guy made some comment like "that's fine; the celing will be fixed on Thursday." But it *won't* actually be fixed on thursday, right? The original plaster is 3/4" thick. I'm assuming that such an amount has to go on in layers, and takes a while to dry. Is that right?

So, about how long will this repair take (so we can explain to them why they aren't getting the rest of their money this Thursday)

Also, if this guy is experienced with plaster, should texture matching be easy? The original texture is rather gritty (lots of teeny tiny lumps--like a precursor to the modern popcorn celiling!).

Thanks so much for your help!

Francy

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Comments (4)

brickeyee
16 years ago
Wood lath?
The repair will take a couple days for 3 coats.
The same for expanded metal lath.
Gypsum lath is a one day repair (only 2 coats).
hendricus
16 years ago
We had a roof removed and a second story added and one of the workers misstepped, same as yours, about 1'x3'. Contractor said no big deal and he would send out a plaster guy. I have no idea what he used, it was lath and plaster ceiling, but after he finished, hour or two, it looked exactly the same as rest of the ceiling.
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lobsterbird
16 years ago
I don't think you need to worry about explaining anything. I'd just tell them they get their final payment when the ceiling's finished, whenever that is.

Years ago I had my floors refinished, and part of the job was to put a threshhold between the hall and living room floors (two different woods). Because the house is old and wonky, it wasn't a simple task and they couldn't complete the job that day. It was scheduled for another date and still they couldn't fix it when they came out. I called several times to reschedule, and several months later someone came out and the same thing happened and the dope couldn't create the threshhold! I let it go, figuring they'd call and have it fixed when they wanted their money. Sure enough, they called at the end of the year saying they were trying to close their books. I said fine, but they'd have to complete the job before I made the final payment. I reviewed how many times they had been out and didn't do it. They never called back. I paid a carpenter to do it and pocketed the final $200 I owed the floor people.

This was an unusual experience for me. Most of my contractors get their work done in a timely manner and get paid promptly. But it's always good to be careful, especially when using someone new.

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lobsterbird
16 years ago
Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that your contractor wasn't going to finish your job. I just meant that you don't need to feel uncomfortable not paying them if they're not done on Thurs. and could be up front with them about that.

Tina

Repairing a big ceiling hole with new lath and plaster?

Comments (4)

brickeyee

hendricus

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