Mount Lawley, Subiaco, Bayswater, Maylands — Perth has more heritage homes than people realise, and most of them have ceilings that are reaching the end of their working life. Here's how we approach restoration without losing what makes the home special.
What "heritage ceiling" means in Perth
Most period homes in Perth — Federation, Californian Bungalow, Inter-war — have plasterglass ceilings with run-in-place cornice. The cornice is usually the most distinctive feature: deep coves, picture rails, decorative bands, sometimes ceiling roses around the central pendant light.
The plasterglass itself is rarely worth preserving by the time we see it. Fifty to a hundred years of small movements, the original adhesive drying out, and modern insulation weight have left it cracked, sagging, or both. The cornice is what we work to preserve or replicate.
The character is in the cornice
When a heritage home loses its cornice profile, it loses its identity. A featureless plain cove on a Federation home looks wrong instantly — even people who can't articulate why know something's off.
Our approach is to record the existing cornice in detail before strip-out — photographs, profile rubbings, measurements — and either reinstall a matching cove section or replicate the profile from cornice samples we hold. Where the original is a rare hand-run profile, we'll be honest about what's achievable.
Ceiling roses
The central plaster rose around a pendant light — common in 1900–1930s Perth homes — can usually be preserved if it's structurally sound. We carefully detach, store, and reinstall it onto the new ceiling. Where the rose is too damaged to save, we source the closest matching replacement.
What we replace plasterglass with
Modern CSR Gyprock. Lighter on the original framing (which matters in old homes), takes paint identically once finished, and gives a flatter painted surface than the original plasterglass ever did. The painted heritage cornice sits on a modern ceiling that no one will ever see is modern.
Working around what stays
In most heritage homes we work room by room, sealing off finished spaces, protecting timber floors, and being careful around skirting and architraves that came with the home. The discipline isn't dramatic — it's a hundred small decisions per day about where to put a foot, what to lean a tool against, how to protect a door frame.
Lighting and electrical
Heritage homes often have charming but inadequate lighting layouts — one centre rose per room. Renovation is the moment to upgrade. We coordinate with your electrician on downlight placement, switching, and any new outlets, so the ceiling work and electrical happen in the right order.
Asbestos in older Perth homes
For any home built before the late 1980s we recommend asbestos clearance before any ceiling work begins. The plasterglass itself doesn't contain asbestos, but materials around it may. The cost of testing is small; the certainty is worth it.
What a typical heritage job looks like
- Initial site visit: assessment, photographs, cornice documentation, written quote.
- Asbestos clearance arranged where appropriate.
- Site protection: floor coverings, wall protection, door seals.
- Strip-out: existing ceiling removed in sections, waste haulered away.
- Framework: original battens inspected, upgraded where required.
- New sheet: gyprock installed, screw-fixed, glued at joints.
- Cornice: matching profile installed, run in place where the original was hand-run.
- Set and sand: full Level 4 paint-ready finish.
- Handover: clean down, written 12-Month Warranty.
Frequently asked
Usually yes, if it's structurally sound. We carefully detach, store, and reinstall onto the new ceiling.
Most standard heritage profiles, yes. For rare hand-run cornice we'll be honest about what's achievable and discuss options.
Yes. The cornice and detail is what people see and feel. The ceiling itself isn't visible as an object — only the painted surface is.
We respect any listing or character-area protection in place. Where work requires approval, we'll let you know.
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