Plastering in Smethwick

Smethwick sits right on the edge of Birmingham, and it was built by the canals and the great works that grew up along them. Boulton and Watt made steam engines here, Chance Brothers made glass for lighthouses and the Crystal Palace, and the Mitchells and Butlers brewery filled Cape Hill with the smell of malt. Round the works came the homes: tight streets of Victorian terraces in Soho, Rolfe Street and Cape Hill, bigger Edwardian homes in Bearwood and along the Hagley Road, inter-war semis toward Warley Woods, and post-war blocks and estates in between. Many still have old plaster that is cracked, blown or patched many times over.

RCR Connections Ltd plasters, re-plasters and repairs walls and ceilings in homes right across Smethwick and Bearwood. We’re Birmingham based, covering the whole of the Midlands, and Smethwick is just a few minutes from us. Our team has 62 years of combined experience.

This page is about plastering inside the house: walls, ceilings, re-plastering and repairs. For the outside of the house, see our page on rendering in Smethwick.

Plastering quotes in Smethwick: WhatsApp me on 07453 614095 or message the page. We work Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm and Saturday 7am to 1pm, and we’re closed on Sundays.

Plastering, re-plastering and repairs in Smethwick

Plastering walls and ceilings

A fresh coat of finish plaster over sound walls gives a smooth, flat face ready for paint. In Smethwick we do it most after a rewire, when old paper comes off and shows rough walls underneath, or when a room has been patched so often it never looks right. We cover the floors and furniture, prepare the walls, fix loose areas, then put on the new coat and trowel it smooth.

Re-plastering

Some old plaster is past saving. It may be blown, cracked right through, crumbling or soft from old damp. Then we take it back to the brick and re-plaster with a backing coat and a finish coat, or board the wall and plaster over. Re-plastering is one of our most common jobs in the Victorian terraces of Cape Hill, Soho and the streets off the High Street.

Plaster repairs

Many jobs are smaller. We repair cracks, holes, blown patches, damage after a leak, chases left by electricians and plumbers, and broken corners, and blend them in so they don’t show once painted.

Ceilings

Lath and plaster ceilings sag, crack and sometimes fall. We over-board and plaster, take down failed ceilings and put up new boards, or repair a small area. We also cover artex with a fresh, smooth coat.

Plasterboard and dry lining

For new walls, stud walls, loft rooms and extensions we fit plasterboard and plaster it, or dry line walls where the old plaster has failed.

Coving

We fit coving to finish a room, and repair old coving that has cracked or come away.

Smethwick through the years

From heath to canal town

Until the late 1700s Smethwick was a scatter of farms and cottages on the road from Birmingham to Dudley. James Brindley’s canal came through in 1769, and Thomas Telford cut a new, deeper line in the 1820s, crossed by his iron Galton Bridge in 1829. Works soon lined the water.

Engines, glass and screws

Boulton and Watt opened the Soho Foundry in 1796 to build steam engines. Chance Brothers’ glassworks by the canal made the glass for the Crystal Palace in 1851 and lenses for lighthouses round the world. Nettlefolds made screws at their works in Smethwick, which became part of GKN. Thousands came to work in these places, and rows of terraces went up fast to house them.

Cape Hill and the brewery

Mitchells and Butlers built their big brewery at Cape Hill in the late 1800s, and it brewed there for over a hundred years. Cape Hill grew up round it with busy shops and streets of terraces. The site is now being turned into new homes.

Bearwood and the Edwardian streets

South of Cape Hill, Bearwood grew in the late Victorian and Edwardian years, with larger terraces and semis, bay windows and tall rooms. Lightwoods Park and Warley Woods gave the area its green edges. Many of these homes have good original features, and old plaster that needs care.

Between the wars

In the 1920s and 1930s, semis and council homes spread toward Warley Woods, round Londonderry and Uplands, and on the edges of the town. Most were built with hard wall plaster on brick and lath and plaster or early board ceilings, and they are now close to a hundred years old.

After the war and today

After 1945 many old terraces were cleared and replaced with flats, maisonettes and low-rise estates, round Windmill Lane, Galton Village and the Black Patch side. Smethwick also became one of the most diverse towns in the country, with the large Guru Nanak Gurdwara on the High Street and many shops and businesses run by families from round the world. The new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital opened at Grove Lane in 2024, and new homes are going up on old works sites.

The homes we plaster most in Smethwick

Victorian terraces

Cape Hill, Soho, Rolfe Street, the streets off the High Street and Oldbury Road, and round Victoria Park. Solid brick walls with old lime plaster, often blown and patched many times. Lath ceilings that sag or crack. We re-plaster walls where the old plaster has failed, repair what is sound, and over-board or replace old ceilings.

Edwardian homes in Bearwood

Bearwood Road, the roads off the Hagley Road and round Lightwoods Park. Bay windows, tall ceilings, picture rails and coving. We keep the features you want and get high ceilings flat and true.

1920s and 1930s homes

Toward Warley Woods, round Londonderry and Uplands. Hard plaster on brick, cracked and patched after years of rewiring, heating and new windows. Bay windows need a careful hand.

Post-war flats, maisonettes and estates

Windmill Lane, Galton Village and the low-rise estates in between. Many still have their first plaster and artex ceilings. Covering artex, plastering after a rewire or new kitchen, and repairs.

Newer homes

New streets on old works and brewery land. Plasterboard walls on dabs that crack at joins and corners. We repair the cracks, tape the joins and re-plaster where needed.

Neighbourhood notes

Smethwick High Street and Rolfe Street

The old heart of the town. Terraces, shops with flats above, and older works buildings. Full re-plasters, ceilings and repairs.

Cape Hill

North-east, toward Winson Green. Busy streets of Victorian terraces round the old brewery. Old lime plaster, blown walls and lath ceilings.

Bearwood

South, along the Hagley Road side. Larger Victorian and Edwardian homes. Tall rooms, bays, coving and careful work on old walls.

Soho and the canal side

North, along the canals toward Handsworth. Older terraces and post-war homes. Re-plastering and repairs.

Londonderry and Uplands

West, toward Oldbury and Warley. Inter-war and post-war homes. Ceilings, artex covering and walls after new kitchens.

Galton Village and Windmill Lane

Post-war and later homes near the canals and the new hospital. A mix of artex covering, plastering after rewires and repairs.

Abbey and Warley Woods

South-west, near Warley Woods. Inter-war semis and larger homes. Through lounges, bays and cracked ceilings.

Lime plaster in old Smethwick homes

The oldest terraces in Smethwick were plastered with lime. Lime is soft and lets a solid wall breathe. It can last a very long time if the wall stays dry, but leaks, hard cement patches, and plastic paints and vinyl papers that trap damp all damage it.

We look at what is on the wall first. Sound lime plaster can often be kept and repaired. Where it has blown or gone soft, we take it off and re-plaster. On solid walls that have had damp, we pick a plaster that suits the wall, and we will tell you if a lime plaster is the better choice.

Back-to-back rooms and small spaces

Many Smethwick terraces have small rooms, steep stairs and narrow halls, with a back kitchen and a bathroom in the outrigger behind. Small rooms are often the hardest to plaster well, with lots of corners, doors and pipes. We fit beads to every corner, plan the order of work so you can still use the house, and keep the mess in one room at a time.

Plastering after damp work

Many Smethwick homes have had damp work over the years. After a damp course or new drainage, the walls need re-plastering with the right plaster. We will ask what was done and by whom, so we pick the right plaster for it. If the cause of the damp hasn’t been dealt with, we will say so before we plaster, as new plaster on a wet wall won’t last.

Chimney breasts and old fireplaces

Victorian and Edwardian homes have chimney breasts in most rooms. The plaster round old fireplaces is often cracked, stained or patched, and when a fire is opened up or closed off, the wall needs making good. We plaster round new openings and over closed ones so the wall looks right.

Bay windows and curved walls

Bearwood homes and the inter-war semis toward Warley Woods often have big bay windows, upstairs and down. The walls and ceilings in the bay have tricky angles and curves. We keep them true and get crisp lines where the bay meets the room.

Picture rails, dado rails and coving

Many Bearwood homes still have picture rails, dado rails, coving and ceiling roses. If they come off, we fill and plaster the line they leave. If they stay, we plaster neatly up to them. Old cracked coving can be repaired or replaced to match.

Plastering for new kitchens

When a new kitchen goes in, old tiles and units come off and the walls behind are often rough and uneven. We plaster them flat so the new units sit well and the tiles or paint look right. We fit in with your kitchen fitter so the walls are ready and dry in time.

Plastering after a leak

A burst pipe or a leak from above can soak a ceiling and walls. Once the leak is fixed and things have dried out, we take off the damaged plaster and repair or replace it. A sagging, wet ceiling needs care. If you see one, keep out of the room and turn off the water.

Knocking through

Lots of Smethwick owners knock the front and back rooms into one, or open the kitchen into the back room. Once the builder has put in the steel and made the opening, the walls and ceiling round it need plastering so the join doesn’t show. We plaster the new opening, the old walls either side and the ceiling, so the room looks like one space.

How a Smethwick plastering job runs

First contact

You WhatsApp me photos of each room and the walls and ceilings you want done, with your postcode. A short video walking through helps even more.

The visit

For bigger jobs we come out, tap the walls for hollow areas, look at the ceilings, and talk through what you want and when.

The quote

You get a clear written quote that says which rooms, which walls and ceilings, whether we are plastering over or taking back, and how long it should take.

On the day

We arrive at 7am, cover the floors and furniture, and set up a clean work area. Old plaster comes off where needed, beads go on the corners, and the new coat goes on.

Finishing up

We clean up, take the rubbish away, and tell you how long to leave the walls before you paint.

What goes on your walls

• Finish plaster is the thin top coat that gives the smooth face.
• Backing coats build up the wall when old plaster comes off. Some suit hard brick, some soft brick or block.
• Lime plaster suits some old solid walls where the wall needs to breathe.
• Plasterboard comes in standard, moisture-resistant and fire-rated types.
• Beads and tape give straight corners and stop cracks at joins.

Artex: what you should know

Many Smethwick homes built or done up before the 1990s have artex on the ceilings. Old artex can contain a small amount of asbestos. It is safe while it is left alone, which is why we plaster over it rather than scrape or sand it. If you want it taken off, it should be tested first.

Bathrooms and shower rooms

In terraced homes the bathroom is often in the back outrigger, with cold walls on three sides. Old plaster round baths and showers is often soft, stained or blown. We take off what has failed, use moisture-resistant boards where needed, and plaster the rest so your tiler or decorator has a flat, sound wall. An extractor fan that works makes a big difference.

Stairwells and landings

Stairs in Smethwick terraces are steep and narrow, and the walls take knocks every day. We use proper stair platforms to reach safely, and plaster the full height in one go so there are no joins halfway up.

Questions we often get in Smethwick

Can you plaster over my old walls?

If the old plaster is sound, yes. If it is blown, cracked through or damp, it needs to come off first. We tap every wall before we decide.

My ceiling is cracked all over. Does it have to come down?

Not always. Often we can over-board and plaster it, which is quicker and less messy. If it is sagging badly, it may need to come down.

Can you cover my artex ceiling?

Yes. We plaster over artex without disturbing it.

How soon can I paint?

Usually about a week for a finish coat in a warm, airy room. Longer for thick re-plastering or in winter.

The year in plastering

Plastering is an inside job, so we work all year round. In winter, new plaster takes longer to dry, so keep the heating on low and a window open a little. In summer, sunny rooms can dry plaster too fast, so we may keep the blinds down while we work.

If you have just moved in

If you have just bought a home in Smethwick or Bearwood, the walls and ceilings are best sorted before you decorate, lay new carpets or move furniture in. We can plaster several rooms in one go so you are ready to paint.

Plaster or dry lining?

• Wet plaster goes straight onto brick or block in a backing coat, then a finish coat. It is hard and solid, and good on walls that take knocks. It takes longer to dry.
• Dry lining means fixing plasterboard to the wall, then a finish coat. It dries quicker and suits walls that are very uneven or where old plaster has failed badly.

On old solid walls in Cape Hill and Soho, the right choice depends on the state of the wall and whether there has been damp. We will tell you what we think suits it best.

Uneven walls in old houses

Walls in Victorian terraces are rarely straight. They lean, bow and dip, and corners are not square. We can make them much flatter, but on very old walls we will talk to you first about how far to go.

Cold walls and black mould

Solid brick walls are colder than cavity walls. In winter, damp air from cooking, washing and drying clothes settles on them, and black mould grows in corners and behind furniture. New plaster won’t cure that on its own. Good airflow, extractor fans and keeping furniture a little off the wall all help. We will give you honest advice on what is plaster and what is air.

Flats above shops

The High Street, Cape Hill, Bearwood Road and Rolfe Street have many flats above shops. They often have old ceilings and walls that need care. We plan the work round the shop below and keep dust and noise down.

Flats and maisonettes

Smethwick has many blocks of flats and maisonettes. Getting materials in and rubbish out takes planning, and the work has to fit round neighbours. We protect lifts, stairs and shared halls, and keep the job tidy. If you rent from the council or a housing group, check with them before any work starts.

Old wiring, pipes and plaster

If you are having a rewire or new heating, have it done before we plaster. Chasing cables into new plaster means patching it again. We are happy to fit our work round your electrician and plumber.

Before you sell or let

Buyers and tenants notice cracked ceilings and patched walls. A fresh coat of plaster and a coat of paint make a home look clean and well kept for photos and viewings. Landlords in Smethwick often want work done quickly between tenants, with photos of what was done, and we can work to that.

Rooms we plaster most

• Front rooms and through lounges: walls after paper comes off, ceilings with cracks or artex.
• Bedrooms: ceilings that sag, walls with cracks and old patches.
• Kitchens: walls after old units and tiles come off.
• Bathrooms: walls and ceilings in damp rooms, with the right boards and plaster.
• Halls, stairs and landings: walls that take knocks, and steep stairwells.
• Extensions and loft rooms: new boards and block, plastered ready for paint.

Dust and mess

In a terraced house there is nowhere for dust to hide, so we take care. We cover floors, stairs and furniture, seal doors, and carry rubbish out through the house with care. When a ceiling has to come down, we close the room off. At the end of the day the room is swept and tidy.

Loft rooms and extensions

Many Smethwick and Bearwood families add space rather than move. Loft rooms in terraces and semis, and single-storey extensions at the back, all need boards fixed and plastered. We work with your builder and fit in at the right stage.

Old works and chapels turned into homes

Round the canals and the High Street, some old works, chapels and shops have been turned into homes or flats. Their walls mix old brick, newer block and boards, and some have tall ceilings. Joins between old and new need tape or mesh so they don’t crack. We plan the job so the finish is even all over.

Working with other trades

The electrician and plumber finish first, then we plaster, then the decorator, carpet fitter and kitchen fitter follow on. We are happy to talk to your other trades so the timing works.

Questions to ask any plasterer

• Will you plaster over the old walls or take them back?
• What plaster will you use, and why?
• How will you protect my floors and furniture?
• Who will do the work, and how long have they been plastering?
• How long before I can paint?
• Can I see finished jobs?

We are glad to answer all of these before you decide.

Painting new plaster

New plaster needs to dry right through before you paint. It changes from dark pink to an even pale pink when it is ready. The first coat should be a mist coat, a thinned-down emulsion that soaks in and seals the plaster. Avoid vinyl or wipe-clean paints for the first coat, as they can peel.

Why plastering makes such a difference

Smooth, flat walls make a room look bigger and brighter, and paint goes on easier and lasts longer. In a small terrace front room, new plaster and a light colour can change the whole feel of the house.

Homes by the canals

Smethwick has more canal than most towns its size. The old and new main lines run side by side through the cutting at Galton Bridge, and the Engine Arm and other branches wind off them. Homes close to the water, in Soho, Galton Village and along the Oldbury Road, sit in damp air for much of the year. Walls on the canal side can stay cool, and plaster on them can stain or blow. We check walls for damp before we start, use plasters that suit them, and tell you plainly if there is a problem outside, such as a leaking gutter or failed render, that needs fixing first.

Cellars and front rooms

Some of the bigger Victorian and Edwardian homes in Bearwood and off the Hagley Road have cellars under the front room. The walls down there are often damp, and the floor above can be cold and draughty. If you want to use a cellar as a room, it needs the right treatment from a damp specialist before any plaster goes on. We are happy to plaster once that work is done, and we will tell you if a wall isn’t ready.

Bearwood’s tall houses

Bearwood’s larger homes have three floors in some streets, with tall ceilings, deep cornices and long stairwells. The ceilings in these homes are often the original lath and plaster, and many have cracked along the joists or sagged in the middle. We look at each one and tell you whether it can be repaired, over-boarded or needs to come down. Where you want to keep a cornice or rose, we plaster up to it with care.

Garden rooms and home offices

More people in Smethwick and Bearwood now work from home, and many have built a garden room or turned a box room into an office. Garden rooms need the right boards and plaster inside to give a smooth, solid finish. Box rooms in older terraces often have the worst walls in the house, as they were never a main room. We plaster both so they are ready to paint and use.

Picking the right time

Because plastering is inside work, the weather doesn’t stop us. Most people like to have it done in one block, room by room, so they only live with the mess once. In a busy family home, we often start upstairs and work down, so you always have a clean room to sit in. If you are planning a new kitchen or bathroom, we fit in before them.

Homes near the new hospital

The new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital has brought more people to live and work round Grove Lane, Cape Hill and Windmill Lane. Many older homes nearby are being done up for new owners and tenants. We plaster whole houses here, from ceilings in the front bedroom to the kitchen walls at the back.

Plaster round new windows and doors

When old sash or metal windows are swapped for new ones, the plaster round the frame inside nearly always gets damaged. The same goes for new front and back doors, and for patio doors set into a widened opening. The reveals, the sill board edges and the wall above the frame need making good. We plaster the reveals with new beads so the edges are straight and strong, and blend the patch into the wall round it so it doesn’t show once painted. In Smethwick terraces, where most homes have had new windows at some point, old patches round the frames are one of the most common things we put right.

Small jobs welcome

Not every job is a full room. A patch after a leak, a crack over a door, a hole where a fireplace came out or a wall chased for new sockets are all jobs we are happy to do. Send us a photo and we will tell you what is needed.

Areas we cover around Smethwick

We plaster homes across Smethwick and Bearwood, including the High Street and Rolfe Street, Cape Hill, Soho, Galton Village, Windmill Lane, Londonderry, Uplands, Abbey, Warley Woods and Bearwood, and on to Oldbury, Langley, Quinton, Harborne, Edgbaston and Winson Green.

Nearby pages include rendering in Smethwick, rendering in Oldbury, plastering in West Bromwich, plastering in Harborne, plastering in Edgbaston and plastering in Birmingham. See every town on our plastering areas page.

More services: Plastering repairs · Plastering and coving · Plastering extensions and lofts.

Get a plastering quote in Smethwick

WhatsApp me on 07453 614095 or message the page. Send pictures or videos via WhatsApp for a quick response, a free quote and advice. Send a photo of each wall and ceiling and your postcode.

Opening hours: Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm, Saturday 7am to 1pm, Sunday closed.

You can also email rcrconnectionsltd@gmail.com or use our contact page. See finished jobs on our projects page.

More from RCR Connections Ltd: All plastering and rendering services · Rendering in Smethwick · Plastering areas · Areas we cover