slate walls with plaster

I'm thinking your talking about plaster and lathe walls. (Nice old homes).

Blown in insulation is done alot with this type of walls. It is usually blown in from the exterior. Is this something your thinking of trying yourself?

Blown wool is a better product. It cost a little more. If I understand things correctly cellulose tends to settle quicker.

My previous house had lathe and plaster and blown in insulation.

There was no lathe or plaster behind the baseboard trim board. Could see right into the wall cavity (in my case , see the insulation) They're not necessarily easy to remove without crunching the plaster, so: Might be able to see in through any poor cuts at light switch boxes or electric outlets with a cover off.

Course, you could also carefully drill a half inch or so hole, being careful not to hit any wiring and look in.
A hole for a piece of bent welding rod to feel around with would work, too. You'd have to tap to not drill into a stud (wall, not your buddy).


Mine was blown in. The repair shingles they replaced when drilling the access holes outside had two nails and rusting streaks. Pretty easy to spot every 16 inches or so.

Properly done dense-pack cellulose insulation (google that for a better understanding) is extremely effective (I have it), does not settle (unlike the older cellulose blow-in installations before they understood dense-pack) and will work inside plaster & lath walls, as long as your plaster isn't deteriorated to the point that it's becoming detached from the lath (in which case it may come off as the cellulose is pushed in via air).

Getting a ood_ installer (and/ or taking time to understand/ do it right) makes all the difference. This is something you don't want to go with the lowest bidder on.

pybyr said:

will work inside plaster & lath walls, as long as your plaster isn't deteriorated to the point that it's becoming detached from the lath (in which case it may come off as the cellulose is pushed in via air).

Click to expand...

Good Info on dense pack. I will look into it myself. I've never heard of it.

On a side note for those who have plaster which has become detached. If you have smaller areas. google a product called ceiling buttons. I have found not allot of people have seen these. They are small galvanized washer type devices. Simply put a screw through the center onto your wall. The washer has holes in it ( like a cheese grader) to help hold a coat of plaster. It allows you to "re-attach" your plaster, then cover the button.

Nice little item. I used som in an old home to fix a small ceiling which was falling apart.