tito - You are right "may have been a mistake" - We just went through this in our home... I researched and did consider the blueboard - dh was very concerned with the loss of each piece of plaster. many think it is a real PIA - and not understanding of the qualities of real plaster.

As a matter of fact dh just saw a show (not sure which) where they were demonstrating plastering (wood lathe i believe) and it had to cure for a year before painting.

When we moved into a rental home for 6 mos while our house was under repair (had a flood) we were confirmed believers in plaster - the noise in the sheetrock spec home was unbearable!

In any case - for kit I used 5/8" sheetrock and insulation
In LR we lost a 12x23 ceiling which meant noise! - So I used Roxul (mineral wool) btwn joists then used RC channel (resilient channel)-ran perpendicular to joist (similiar to j channel) - applied to joists and a acoustic tape to applied to the channel (just like foam insulation tape) - sheet rock is applied to channel not direct to joist so, noise is kept at a minimum - worked very well

I posted a link below - good luck - at minimum i would suggest a 5/8" rock w/insulation

Here is a link that might be useful: bob vila blue board plastering

Thanks for the responses. Mightyanvil, thanks for replying to my concerns with such specificity. We will not attempt the project ourselves.

If I have the choice of the inlaws putting up drywall for free or hiring someone to put up blueboard and veneer plaster, is the plaster worth the extra expense?

Veneer plaster/blueboard shouldn't be an additonal expense over taped joints if you are in the right market. If it is more than 10% extra you are probably in a region that does not usually provide professional blueboard installation. In those areas "plasterers" sometimes charge a full plastering rate for veneer plaster which can double the cost. In eastern MA blueboard is cheaper than taped drywall. In central CT it is double.

I'm in Seattle. The trick is that my relatives will install the drywall for free, but based on your prior post, it sounds like they should not attempt the blueboard/plaster. That means I'd have to hire someone to do it. Is the blueboard so much superior to standard drywall as to make it worth trading the free labor for the professional option.

If taped joints are done well (use a big curved trowel) and the wall and ceiling areas are not large or washed by sunlight you'll never know the difference.

Mightyanvil, can't thank you enough for all the info.

Hi,
all that has been said is pretty good info. I did small amounts of three-coat plaster over old wood lath this summer, and the two base coats did need a long drying time; I allowed a week per coat as needed. Since I used durabond for the top coat it did not need such a long cure time. So months of drying time for real plaster may be accurate in some climates, and possibly more true for old plaster recipes (I used structolite for the mortar work).
OK, moving on, what I really wanted to add is that your old framing that was plastered upon is most likely not straight or even enough to successfully hang drywall upon. Plaster and lath was a system that was immesely forgiving of framing irregularities. Drywall is not. You will need to have someone dress the walls by planing the high spots and/or shimming the low spots until all is true. A lightweight power planer like Bosch makes will be very handy. For the ceiling, you may wish to use furring strips, especially if the framing is not 16" on center. For the walls, rips of framing stock can be produced for each nonconforming stud.
Casey

"So months of drying time for real plaster may be accurate in some climates..."

Too much kine, not enough gaging plaster.
Lime hardens by absobring CO2 rom the air and takes a long time.
Plaster hardens by hydration (reacting with water like cement) and hardens so quickly it is almost useless.
The mixture of the lime putty and plaster produces a quick set to allow for work to proceeed while the lime comes to full hardness after a few weeks to months.
You do not have to wait for the base coats to dry, just harden. Allowing them to dry can actually ruin the bond with the next coat. Tghe water in the next coat is pulled into the dry substrate and prevents the plaster from hardening correctly.
Find a copy of 'Plastering Skills' if you want to do 2 and 3 coat plaster.

hi to all;

I need to buy bluebord, can you please give me a contact?

I need Import to Mexico.

thank you for your help!

As someone else suggested: anyone know a plaster crew in an area that uses plaster frequetnly that is interested in a job in sunny CA? Feels like it'd still be cheaper to pay travel and lodging than to hire local talent ... if I can even find them. :-p

What part of California?

They're doing my basement ceiling this week (near Boston), would you like me to ask them if they'd like a cross-country job?

San Francisco bay area

The more I think about a cross country job, the more it seems infeasible. What about all their tools?

Yay! I found an old-school plasterer! Originally from Ireland.

Not cheap but less than I expected. And "real" plaster: scratch coat, brown coat, finish coats.

And I even added a simple plaster crown.

When this guy retires, I don't know what anyone's gonna do.

Where did you find this old-school Bay Area plasterer? Asking for a friend 🤣

Lots of web searching, yelp, etc.

I think the person I found is now retired ...

Thanks! I appreciate the super-fast response 6 years later