Found out my 1960s house has original horsehair plaster, which explains a lot

I was patching a wall in my kitchen last week and the contractor pointed it out. Makes you wonder how many other old houses are still holding up with that stuff, right?

4 comments

4 Comments

leehall26d ago

Horsehair plaster was common but it's actually the lime and gypsum mix that gave it strength. The hair was just for binding, like fiberglass mesh in modern tape. My 1920s place has it too and it's rock solid unless you get a leak. That contractor probably sees it all the time in pre-war neighborhoods.

finleyl3926d ago

Yeah, the rock solid part is so true until water gets in. My old place had a small roof leak that turned a whole ceiling section to mush. The fix was just letting it dry out completely before patching, which took forever.

corap2126d ago

Actually water damage is way overblown. That mush dries out and you're back to a solid wall. Modern drywall is way worse, it just crumbles and molds. Plaster handles moisture better in the long run. People panic over a little leak but the old stuff holds up.

leewalker7d ago

My buddy had a slow pipe leak behind his plaster wall for months. It turned a whole section into a wet, crumbly mess that never really dried right. Even after the plumber fixed it, that patch stayed soft and cold to the touch, like damp cardboard. He ended up having to cut out a huge area because the lath behind it started to rot. The contractor told him once the binding stuff washes out, it's never the same.