When walls need
rebuilding.
Billy Barclay handles it.

After a fire, plaster and ceiling boards are usually compromised — by direct heat, by smoke contamination, or by water from putting the fire out. We strip out everything that's been affected back to a sound substrate, seal in any residual smoke odour, then re-board, scratch coat and skim. The aim is a finish that looks, feels and smells like the room never burned.

Step one is patience. Walls have to be properly dried out before any plastering goes back on, otherwise damp gets trapped behind the new finish and the problem comes back. We work alongside drying contractors where needed, then strip out any unsalvageable plaster, treat the substrate, and rebuild the wall surfaces. We don't rush flood jobs — that's how they fail.

Yes — we work regularly on insurance-led restoration jobs. We're happy to quote off a loss adjuster's schedule, provide itemised pricing, photograph progress, and invoice in a way that fits the claim process. If you've just had a fire or flood, the first call is normally to your insurer; once you've got a claim reference, we can take it from there.

Fresh plaster typically takes 3-7 days to fully dry depending on conditions, ventilation, and the thickness applied. It'll go from a darker pinkish-brown to a uniform pale colour as it dries. We always recommend waiting until it's fully dry before painting — painting too early traps moisture and the new paint won't bond properly.

Always. Give us a call or fill in the form, send a few photos of what you need, and we'll come round to take a look (or quote remotely if it's straightforward). The quote is fixed, written down, and there's never any pressure to go ahead. If we're not the right fit for the job, we'll tell you that too.

A single room skim is usually one day. A full flat skim runs 3-5 days. External rendering on a typical extension is 2-4 days. Larger restoration jobs after fire or flood vary widely — from a week for a single damaged room to several weeks for a full ground-floor rebuild. We'll give you a realistic timescale at quote stage and update you if anything changes on the job.