Property services
Plasterers in Edinburgh and the Lothians
Skimming, lath and plaster repair, cornice and lime plaster.
Plastering in period property is two trades wearing one name. Modern skimming over plasterboard is quick and cheap. Repairing lath and plaster, running a damaged cornice in situ or casting a missing ceiling rose is conservation work priced accordingly.
Most owners meet plasterers after another trade: a rewire, a leak, a wall removal or damp treatment all leave surfaces to be made good, and the plasterer usually determines how the finished job looks.
When Edinburgh owners call plasterers
- A ceiling is cracked, bulging or has been patched after a leak.
- Cornice has been damaged by a previous alteration or partition.
- Walls need making good after rewiring or plumbing chases.
- You are preparing a flat for sale and the surfaces are letting the photographs down.
Local context: Edinburgh and the Lothians
Edinburgh ceilings are typically lath and plaster on timber joists, three coats with animal hair in the base. They sag, they crack and they occasionally come down. Overboarding is the cheap fix; genuine repair keeps the cornice line and the original ceiling height intact.
Cornice is the detail that carries a New Town or Marchmont room. A specialist can take a squeeze of the existing profile and run a matching section, which is why replacing a two-metre damaged run costs more than skimming a whole bedroom.
What this work typically costs
Published ranges are market context gathered from local jobs, not a quotation. We do not price work, arrange it or take a cut of it — always get your own written quotes.
| Job | Typical range | What moves the price |
|---|---|---|
| Skim one room, walls and ceiling | £450-£900 | Two-coat skim over sound plaster; overboarding first adds cost. |
| Overboard and skim a ceiling | £400-£800 | Loses a small amount of height and can bury cornice detail. |
| Lath and plaster ceiling repair | £700-£2,500 | Depends how much of the original is saveable. |
| Run matching cornice, per metre | £70-£160 | Profile complexity and whether it is run in situ or cast. |
| Make good after a rewire, two-bedroom flat | £600-£1,400 | Number of chases and whether the electrician cut cleanly. |
Tenements and common repairs
Plaster damage frequently follows a water escape from the flat above, and the repair cost is properly a claim against that owner's insurance rather than yours. Photograph the damage, date it, and get the plasterer to record the cause in the invoice.
Where a ceiling is failing across a party floor, the joists are shared structure. If the cause is movement rather than age, get a structural view before spending money on the surface.
What to check before you instruct
- Insurance
- Cornice and traditional plaster experience for period flats
- Dust and access arrangements
- Insurance
- Public liability. Plaster dust and water damage claims are common, so check the certificate is live.
- Cornice and lath experience
- Ask for photographs of a completed cornice run or a lath repair, not just flat walls.
- Dust and drying
- Agree sheeting, extraction and how long the flat needs before decorating — usually a week or more for fresh plaster.
- Access and stair protection
- Bags of plaster and waste up and down a tenement stair need protection agreed in advance.
We publish factual detail supplied by each business. We do not rate, rank, endorse or guarantee anyone listed, and no business pays for placement. Checking registration, insurance and references is always your decision.
Questions to ask before you instruct
- Are you repairing the lath and plaster or overboarding it?
- Will the cornice profile be matched, and can you show me an example?
- How long before I can decorate?
- Is waste removal and cleaning included?
- Do you supply and fit beading and stop ends at openings?
- What happens if more of the ceiling fails once you start?
Businesses listed
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Lothian Property is a property information and professional-introduction service operated by Maybury Scotland Limited. Lothian Property is not an estate agency. Where requested, we may connect homeowners with independent estate agents and other property professionals. How we work.
Plasterers: common questions
- Can original cornice in a Georgian or Victorian flat be repaired?
- Yes. Missing runs are usually recreated by running new plaster in situ from a profile taken off surviving cornice, and enrichments are cast from moulds. Complete replacement with a modern coving is rarely necessary.
- Should lath and plaster ceilings be replaced or overboarded?
- Where the plaster keys have failed over most of the ceiling, replacement is common; where failure is localised, re-fixing and patching keeps the original. A plasterer should say which and give the reasoning.
- How long should new plaster dry before decorating?
- Typically a week or more for skim on board, and considerably longer for wet plaster on solid stone walls in a cold flat. Painting too early traps moisture and shows as patchy flat spots.