How to Remove a Plaster Section of a Wall
Removing plaster is an easy job, but can be very dusty and dirty as well. Be sure to wear a face mask while working with plaster to protect your lungs, gloves and goggles should also be used. Drop clothes should also be used to limit the dust that will spread throughout the house.
Before beginning make sure that there are no electrical or plumbing components behind the section of the wall you intend to remove. If any pipes or wires exist, you must be sure to work around them carefully, and plan to have them rerouted. If there are wires in the wall, be sure to flip the circuit that services the electrical objects in the wall.
Begin by marking the section of the wall you wish to remove with masking tape. The masking tape should be on the side of the wall that you wish to keep. Using a straight edge and a utility knife, heavily score against the line made by the masking tape. Your cut into the wall should be at least 3/16″ deep.
Once all of the edges are scored, start in the center of the desired hole removing the plaster. To do this, tap the middle of the wall with the side of a hammer gently, The plaster should fall away. Continue removing the plaster until you reach approximately four inches from the masking tape edge.
To remove the plaster around the masking tape, use a small piece of scrap lumber to cover the remaining plaster between the open hole and the masking tape. Then tap the scrap lumber with a hammer to remove the plaster underneath. Use a prybar to remove any stubborn pieces of plaster.
Next you must remove the lath underneath. Use a jig saw to cut through the wooden lath and pry the lath away with a prybar to expose the studs underneath. Sometimes there is not wooden lath but metal lath. If this is the case, you can use aviation snips to remove the lath. Be sure to wear gloves when working with metal lath; it is easy to cut yourself.
Next you should remove any insulation or other building materials within the wall cavity. Most can be removed with a sharp utility knife while wearing gloves. Once the wall cavity is empty, you can repeat the process on the other side of the wall. To insure that your holes line up, you might want to drill several holes through the wall to help you mark the wall on the other side.
If you don’t think that you can remove your plaster easily, contact a contractor with some experience working on older houses. An experienced worker should be able to remove the plaster and make the needed alterations to your home in a few days.
