Crack repair, plaster-washer re-keying, and full-wall skim coats for Bellingham's lath-and-plaster homes, instead of burying the problem or ripping it all out.
A big share of Bellingham's housing stock is pre-war, and a lot of it still has its original lath-and-plaster, in the Lettered Streets, South Hill, Columbia, and Fairhaven especially. Over a century these walls move, and the plaster hairline-cracks, bulges, or keys loose from the wood lath behind it. That's a different animal than hanging new drywall, and the cheap-bid crews tend to do one of two wrong things: smear mud over it so it cracks back in a season, or rip the whole wall out when a repair would have held.
We fix plaster as plaster. Where it's pulling away from the lath, we re-anchor it with plaster washers to draw it back tight before it fails. Cracks get cut, bridged with mesh, and filled with setting-type compound that moves less than the old stuff. A wall that's rough or patched all over gets a full skim coat to bring it back flat and smooth. The result keeps the character of the old house without the cracks coming back.
What it actually costs.
Plaster repair & skim coating $600 to $6,000
ExtentA few cracks is the low end; a full re-key or room skim coat is the high end
Re-keyingPlaster pulling off the lath needs washers to draw it back before repair
Skim coatA full-wall skim to bring an old wall back flat adds material and time
Access & heightTall walls and stairwells take staging and more labor
Our four-step process.
Free walkthrough & written quote
We sound the wall for loose plaster, find what's moving, and hand you a line-item quote.
Re-key loose plaster
Where plaster has pulled from the lath, we set plaster washers to draw it back tight.
Bridge & fill cracks
We cut and mesh the cracks and fill with setting-type compound that resists cracking back.
Skim, sand, finish
We skim-coat rough areas or whole walls, sand smooth, and walk it with you under raking light.
Why hire a real drywall crew.
Crack repair that bridges and backs the joint so it won't come back
Plaster-washer re-keying for plaster pulling off the lath
Full-wall skim coats to bring rough old walls back flat
Setting-type compound that moves less than old plaster
Keeps the character of the old house instead of ripping it out
Frequently asked questions.
How much does plaster repair cost in Bellingham?
Plaster repair runs from about $600 for a few cracks up to $6,000 for a full re-key or skim coat of a room in 2026. The price depends on how much plaster is loose, whether it needs re-keying off the lath, and how much skim-coating it takes to bring the wall back flat. We give you a line-item quote.
My old plaster keeps cracking. Can it actually be fixed?
Yes. Recurring cracks usually mean the joint was never backed, so a smear of mud just cracks again. We cut and mesh the crack, fill it with setting-type compound, and re-key any loose plaster to the lath with washers. Fixed that way, it stays fixed instead of coming back in a season.
Should I repair or replace my lath-and-plaster walls?
Usually repair. Tearing out sound plaster is expensive, messy, and loses the character of an older Bellingham home. Unless the plaster is failing across whole walls or there's water and mold behind it, crack repair, re-keying, and a skim coat will bring it back. We'll tell you straight which one your wall needs.
Ready for a free plaster repair quote?
Tell us about your project, we'll reply within 15 minutes during business hours.
Lath-and-plaster runs deepest in Bellingham's oldest neighborhoods, the Lettered Streets, South Hill, Fairhaven, and Columbia. Pick your area for local notes: