Placing a box into old plaster.

[bud16415]

Today I’m tackling the last room in our house I haven’t touched yet. Spare bedroom as the Holidays are coming and we might need the room for more than junk.



The house was rewired before we bought it but the guy that did it hacked holes in the lath and horse hair plaster walls and used metal boxes with the clamps that try and grab the sides of the hole. All they do is crumble the plaster and you end up with lose boxes being held up by the plastic cover plate.



I have done a hundred of these over the years and even described the process a few times but today I took some pictures. The only picture I didn’t take was the box falling out of the wall to start.



The pictures should be self explanatory. The last picture is I just mudded over it quickly with drywall compound as that’s all I had around in the way of plaster. It will dry and crack over the next day or two and I will sand it and fill it better after that happens.



Hope this helps someone with a 100+ year old house with lath and plaster.

 

[Snoonyb]

"The only picture I didn’t take was the box falling out of the wall to start."

Thanks, used the same process many time, but used rock lath or button board.

 

[bud16415]

"The only picture I didn’t take was the box falling out of the wall to start."

Thanks, used the same process many time, but used rock lath or button board.

I generally take a measurement on how thick the plaster job is and then take a walk over to my scrap pile in the corner and find something I know is just under that thickness.



I have in the past when I knew I was facing a lot of these cut them out in the shop ahead of time sizing them for a plastic box. Nothing worse than cutting a hole with a saber saw in a lath and plaster wall and shaking all the plaster off the keys. I will chip away the plaster and then screw the piece on and then cut the lath thru the hole. Having it attached helps a lot. I used to have a pile I made of ½ and 3/8 plywood for a single and double box and it goes fast if you don’t have to cut one out.

I put a slit in that one today so I didn’t have to take the wire out.

 

[SlimSavage]

Absolutely brilliant idea. I've not worked in very many houses with these type of walls but I won't be stressed out when I do. This will go into my "everyday wiring tricks" file and be used any time I can. Thank you so much.