Q. We're buying a house that is probably close to 100 years old. It has been vacant for the past several years and needs a good amount of cleaning up and fixing up. One thing we're concerned about is ...

Q Am I right that when sections of plaster break away from the lath, an accepted repair technique is to roughly fill in those gaps with drywall and then drywall over the whole wall or ceiling? — M.H., ...

Dear James: My parents' older house had plaster walls, but most builders now use drywall. I'm making a room addition. Which interior wall material is best to use? — Melanie N. Dear Melanie: From the ...

A worker is applying a finishing coat to the drywall on a ceiling while standing on a platform. - Virrage Images/Shutterstock When it comes to finishing a wall, homeowners have a ton of options to ...

Dear James: We are planning a substantial room addition to our dream home. We are not on a tight budget, and we want everything done right. Should we use plaster walls or standard drywall walls? — ...

Dr. Elizabeth Yuko is a bioethicist and adjunct professor of ethics at Fordham University. She has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, CNN & Playboy.

Q: The walls of our 1938 San Francisco home are lath and plaster, with a canvas-like fabric over the plaster. There are cracks in the plaster, which can be seen through the paint as raised creases in ...

Follow the transformation of a historic ceiling from demolition to a fresh painted finish. Discover traditional building techniques, drywall installation, plastering, sanding, and the final steps that ...