Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath and Plaster
1400 S Street, Suite 203 • Sacramento. CA 95814
Phone: (916) 444-2397 • Fax: (916) 444-6635
Click on a photo to see a larger view.
Introduction to Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath and Plaster
This website is designed to be a companion to all the Plastering Industry
codes, specifications, manuals and other information available to the Building
and Design Communities, and to augment reference documents to produce
higher quality plaster specifications, and bid and building processes.
We hope to give a clearer picture of what it is that Architects are
designing, General Contractors are actually building, and what you can
expect to see during your inspections, pre-job conferences, and the
punch list process.
The proliferation of new additives, admixtures, sealants new wall
components, substrates, papers, laths and finishes can confuse even the
most astute practitioner. We think it will be helpful to provide
performance characteristics, and indicate what to look for during
inspections, how the ASTM Standards and UBC or CBC relate to each
component of specifications and what kind of performance you might
expect when you add or subtract individual components. This type of
knowledge will allow you the freedom to design plaster installations
with confidence, inspect with knowledge and apply plaster with best
practices gleaned from well over 100 years of experience in plastering
in California.
We’ve collected texture data from the last 60 years in the finish
section, and will continue to include antiquing, synthetic stucco
finishes, and information on patching, remediation and case studies of
failures and how to avoid them.
We’ve included Typical Details thanks to the Architectural Firm of SKW
Architects, especially Kelly Reynolds and Brian Wiese, with Digital
Photographs of the development of the detail in real life thanks to
Roger Henley Jr.
The History of The Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath & Plaster
In
1954 the Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath & Plaster was incorporated in
Sacramento, California as an organization to promote Lath & Plaster. The
first director was Khalil Bennett. Notable Directors during the next
fifty years were Clyde Bell, Tony Schiro and Floyd Gates. The current
director, Bruce Bell is Clyde Bell’s first son.
The Bureau’s goal and purpose is to educate the Architectural,
Inspection, and Building communities on the best uses and practices for
Portland Cement Plaster, Gypsum Plaster and Synthetic Plaster wall
systems.
To this end the Bureau:
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Assists and consults on Plaster Details for planned building
projects -
Interprets the Building Codes and Standards that relate to plaster for the International Conference of Building Officials jurisdictions in Northern California
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Diagnoses the cause of plaster failures, and consults in remediation
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Acts as an impartial trusted third party mediator and expert witness in litigation issues
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Promotes new products that raise the standards of quality for plaster installations
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Conducts free seminars to Architectural Firms on the proper installation of Plaster
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Conducts free inspection seminars to City and County Building Departments
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Consults with Home Builders on proper installation of all types of Plaster applications
Director's Message
In 1965 Clyde Bell helped compile the Lathing, Furring and Plastering in
California Reference Specifications as Director for the California
Lathing and Plastering Contractors Association Inc. The pre-courser to
the Lathing and Plastering Systems Manual that went out of print in
1988. The book was to help define the minimum requirements for a
satisfactory plaster job.
I was eighteen years old and attending University of California Santa
Barbara as an English Major and had no clue what plaster was other than
that I should stay away from the lime pit behind the garage where I grew
up.
In 1970 after an unspectacular stint as a college student I moved to
Sacramento to find my roots and get a job in a bank or as a teacher. I
ended up as a Hodcarrier working clean up on a condominium project at
4th & P in Sacramento, having been given the referral from Tony Schiro
(Director for the Bureau for Lath & Plaster) to go see Dutch Florin,
business agent for the Hodcarriers Local Union. Blisters, cramps,
hemorrhoids, a sore back and old guys who hated college punks were my
introduction to plastering. 34 years later I’m a journeyman plasterer,
the Executive Director for the Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath &
Plaster and would like to acknowledge Cornelius Bell, my grandfather (a
plasterer whose trowel handle I used on every finish trowel while
plastering) and Khalil Bennett (The first Director for the Sacramento
Valley Bureau for Lath & Plaster and current President) and the
Plastering Industry for allowing me to make a living.
As the Director for the Bureau, I’ve tried to paint as clear a picture
of the process of plastering to The Building Community as I could.
Hopefully this website will be of some additional value.
Bruce Bell
Director, Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath & Plaster
Special
Thanks
The Sacramento Valley Bureau for Lath and Plaster acknowledges the
efforts of Rich Scheuermann, Architect, Specification Writer and all
around good guy in the production of this webpage. He is a no nonsense,
(some even define him as hard headed) kind of guy with a short fuse for
folks with an agenda, a shorter fuse for bull, and an infinite capacity
to nurture those with fewer brain cells than he possesses . . . hence
his willingness to help the Bureau Director with this project.
The Architectural Community has a gem in Rich and the Plastering
Industry owes him a great debt in helping make clear what seems to be
constantly viewed unclearly.
Rich's website address is
www.saconsulting.biz
email: rs@saconsulting.biz
