Did you locate a source? If so cost info would be much appreciated. I am looking as well.

Posted by: NYrenovator at November 11, 2007 10:09 AM in response to Entrance Hall Tiles

Remove the baseboard molding on either side of the wall and you should be able to gain access to the lower track to make a visual inspection and/or work the door free from the pocket.

Once the door is out of the pocket you should be able repair the floor and/or track so that the door can move freely.

Posted by: NYrenovator at November 12, 2007 10:31 PM in response to Pocket Doors

Thanks Johnife for the courage boosting advise.

I had previously worked with a very capable plaster guy (lots of cornice repairs and general restoration), but he considers himself an artist (mundane details such as price and schedule do not apply) and the work I need done is just making the flat wall repairs.

Q: Cement Mortar - is that the same as 'thinset'?
Q: How much time between the Cement Mortar and the gypsum plaster/lime coat?
Q: "...need to finish it off with a skim coat of the more workable vinyl spackling compound."
So this is a third coat? Time between 2nd coat? And how long to wait after vinyl gypsum for painting? And source for vinyl spackling compound is the same the other materials?
Q: How large an area do you work? And achieving flatness is just eyeballed?

thanks again

Posted by: NYrenovator at May 17, 2008 3:47 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

Johnife - thanks for the follow-up.
guest - thanks for the link.

bes regards

Posted by: NYrenovator at May 17, 2008 6:53 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

thanks all for the links,

Posted by: NYrenovator at May 19, 2008 10:51 AM in response to bathtub fixtures

please send pics to: AlbanyPrime@yahoo.com

Posted by: NYrenovator at May 29, 2008 2:57 PM in response to 1920s lighting fixtures

A skilled carpenter should be able to remove the doors without damaging the walls or surroundings moldings. We moved a very large set of pocket doors and reinstalled them in another part of the house without a problem. For the reinstallation, our carpenter hung the doors on hardware designed just for this purpose and available from Simon's on 3rd Ave in Manhattan. They operate much more smoothly than our other set of pcoket doors than still run on a track on the floor.

Posted by: guest at November 13, 2007 1:16 PM in response to Pocket Doors

Cement mortar = same stuff as used for bricklaying. Just go to store and ask for a bag of mortar mix. It's just cement and sand. If you're applying directly on brick, wet the brick first. I find that the easiest way to get the first layer on is actually to schmeer (sp?) it on with your hands. Thereafter the remainder clings better with the proper tool, a plasterer's trowel.

I left the scratch coat about a week before applying the actual plaster. I'm actually not sure how long it's supposed to be but I can't imagine it's more than two or three days.

I didn't regard the skim coat as a "third" coat. It was really more a means of filling in the imperfections resultant from my neophyte plastering skills. If I were really good there wouldn't be a need for it. When I re-decorated another room, where there wasn't such a big area to do, just deteriorated/cracked parts about two or three inches wide by four or five feet long that needed cutting out at patching (on lath) it was easy enough not to require the spackle. You get the spackle from virtually any hardware store.

The area I did in my son's room was about 3' 0" x 7' 0". Did it in two applications, largely by eye but checking also with a straight edge spanning across the area I was doing. I have to say that I would be much less confident of doing a decent job if there weren't the depth guide of having still intact plaster around the perimeter of the area I was doing.

Just a note if you are prompted by success in this venture to patch plaster where it's on lath, I've discovered that cutting out just a portion of the decayed plaster and patching just the cut-out portion achieves a sufficient "pin" to hold up the surrounding plaster. Doing it that way makes it a lot easier (for the novice) to achieve a surface that's smooth overall.

Posted by: johnife at May 17, 2008 5:39 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

Go to the message board www.masterof plaster.com you can get answers to any and all plastering questions.I have and you dont have to buy their products they are just a bunch of old time plasterers who give free and great advice

Posted by: guest at May 17, 2008 5:41 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

Johnife - thanks for the follow-up.
guest - thanks for the link.

bes regards

Posted by: NYrenovator at May 17, 2008 6:53 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

CALL MR LUIS HE ARE EXPERT IN PLASTER luisenrique0571_62@hotmail.com 646 2968466

Posted by: guest at May 18, 2008 8:37 PM in response to Plaster Wall Repair

DEA Bathroom Machineries:

http://www.deabath.com

Posted by: guest at May 20, 2008 12:40 PM in response to bathtub fixtures

I am interested, if you post your email address I will contact you directly.

Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 4:08 PM in response to 1920s lighting fixtures

I walked by a place in Manhattan a couple years ago that sold just old lighting fixtures, I looked a prices because some of them were quite attractive. Oooh la la they ask a pretty penny.

Might have been on East Houston...

Posted by: phripley at May 29, 2008 5:14 PM in response to 1920s lighting fixtures

Thanks for posting. We might be interested in these for our renovation. Could you please send pics to tzaluv@yahoo.com? Thanks.

Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 5:29 PM in response to 1920s lighting fixtures

Could you please send the pictures to Pearls320@aol.com if the fixtures are still available?

Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 2:29 PM in response to 1920s lighting fixtures