Lewisham is terrace country. Long streets of two and three storey Victorian housing, solid nine inch brick walls with lime plaster on them originally, lath and plaster ceilings, and a hundred and thirty years of alteration since. A very high proportion has been converted into flats, often more than once.
That history is the job. A wall in one of these houses may be original lime, may be gypsum from the seventies, and may be board from a conversion in the nineties, all within one room. Skimming over that gets you one surface out of three, and the part that needs attention first is wherever the old lime has let go of the brick.
Lath and plaster ceilings
The ceilings here are the thing to take seriously. An original lath ceiling holds itself up on nibs of plaster squeezed through the laths, and when those break the ceiling starts to come away as a sheet. In a tall Victorian room that is a long span and a lot of weight, and because it is so far above eye level it can be well advanced before anyone notices.
Where it is sound it gets repaired and skimmed in place, which is cheap and quick. Where it moves under a hand, overboarding or replacement is the answer, and the board goes up to the cornice rather than through it so the original run survives.
Conversions, neighbours and access
A converted terrace means somebody on the other side of every wall and usually somebody above and below as well. Noisy work is kept to sensible hours and said in advance, the common stair gets covered rather than walked across, and waste goes out in bags as it is made.
Parking is controlled across most of the borough and it is a genuine constraint rather than an inconvenience. A permit or a suspension gets arranged before the start date, because materials for a ceiling job do not get carried three streets.
“Good honest business, we called SMB after we had a bad experience with previous contractors. ... The work is immaculate (we had our house skimmed), the detail, care and attention is spot on.”
“Frank and Steve did a fantastic job on my hallway! Really professional team and their work is seamless. I was really impressed, and they even fixed my skirting board and put it back on for me, a very appreciated extra! Would highly recommend.”
“They did a great job. I had an awkward hallway area and a large ceiling to skim. I thought they'd finished earlier in the day as it looked great to me then, but they went over the whole area to make sure that the finish was perfect.”
“Excellent work! Scott plastered our living room including some tricky details around fireplace and bay window. Great finish looks really good, all the work was tidy and well communicated all done on time. Would highly recommend.”
“Frank completed a wall for me that needed plastering, he was on time, very polite and nothing seemed an issue. ... Although only a small job, kept my house tidy, even outside the house, cleaned up after he finished and done a perfect job, highly recommended from myself.”
“Hi, Had the team in plastering for a week. What a joy. There were no problems they turned up on time everyday and very polite. Would recommend them to anyone. Thanks very much guys.”
“I don't often leave reviews, but Frank was so helpful and pleasant to work with that he deserves 5 stars. Very responsive and professional. He did a great job and left our place clean and tidy. Thanks again Frank!”
“Frank very kindly stopped by to plaster a chipped wall. Perfectly done and really helpful and kind guy. 100% calling if I ever need any more plastering done!”
“Although we didn't require any work, Frank was extremely helpful and knowledgable on his visit to inspect our issue. He was prompt and on time and responded quickly.”
“Very, very happy with Franks work finishing off kitchen walls after having been let down by a builder. It was a tricky job as the granite worktops ect had already been installed but I couldn't be happier with the result.”
“Really happy with the work. Great finish and very professional. Turned up on time, kept things tidy, and did a top-quality job. Would definitely recommend.”
“very pleasant experience in communication and the level of service provided. tradesman was very polite. He came around for a diagnosis before outlining the job in details with cost and what needs doing.”
“Just had Scott round, Arrived on time started straight away and just got on with the job. Pleasant at all times clean & tidy worker will definitely use again. Work looks good and he stuck to his price. Thanks Scott was was good to meet you.”
“Very professional, was very clear on what exactly will be done. Agreed a price and kept me update all the way through. Happy with the work completed and after care as well. Very helpful and highly recommended.”
“Scott called me before booking a date to come and do work. He reasured me about somethings i was worried about. He come in time he said he would and helped me with another job as well. Very helpful and happy with service”
“Great job by Scott plastering the small room, he managed to sort out the uneven ceiling and walls. Will be using Scott again to sort out a couple of other rooms.”
