Interior Painting serving Peabody and Metro West MA.

The year a house went up says a lot about what is under the paint. In Peabody, the Census counts 3,092 units built in the 1950s and 4,101 in the 1960s, and the city's median construction year is 1966. A house from those years may have drywall or plaster over lath, and pulling an outlet cover is a quick way to tell which before deciding on prep.

About one unit in five, 21.8%, was built in 1939 or earlier. Inside those houses you are more likely to find plaster walls with hairline cracks, ceilings that have sagged or been patched, and painted woodwork with many layers on it. The 1980–2009 decades add another 7,522 units; where those have drywall in good shape, the job is mostly patching and a fresh coat. In West Peabody, South Peabody or the Proctor neighborhood, the right prep starts with checking which of these wall types a room has.

Plaster and drywall need different prep

Old plaster cracks along lath lines and around door frames as the house moves. Cracks get opened slightly, filled with setting compound or reinforced with mesh tape, then sanded and primed so the repair doesn't flash through the finish. Loose plaster that has let go of its lath needs reattaching before it is painted, or the crack will return.

Drywall in a mid-century or newer house mostly calls for nail-pop repair, patching of anchor holes, and spot priming. Ceilings in kitchens and baths can carry grease or moisture stains that need a stain-blocking primer before any topcoat.

Lead dust indoors

In Peabody, 64.4% of housing units date from 1979 or before, and any of those homes could have lead paint in an older layer. Friction surfaces such as window sashes, stools, doors and baseboards are where worn paint turns into dust. Sanding those surfaces without controls spreads fine dust through the room and into the HVAC system.

Lead-safe interior work means sealing off the room with plastic, covering floors, using wet methods or HEPA-vacuum sanders, and cleaning with HEPA vacuums and wet wipes at the end. Read more on our lead-safe painting page, and if you have young children or pets, see our notes on painting with kids and pets at home.

Rentals and multi-family buildings

Peabody has 7,702 renter-occupied households, 34.4% of the occupied total, and 3,190 units sit in two- to four-unit buildings. A turnover between tenants can be a quick refresh in a washable eggshell or satin, while the owner's side of a two-family might call for more detailed trim and door work. In a pre-1978 rental, lead rules apply to painting that disturbs old surfaces.

Choosing finishes room by room

Flat paint hides surface flaws on ceilings and older plaster walls, but it marks easily. Eggshell and satin hold up better in hallways and bedrooms; semi-gloss is the usual pick for trim, doors and bathroom walls. Our interior paint finish comparison goes into the trade-offs.

• Walls and ceilings, including stairwells and high foyers
• Baseboards, casings, crown molding and doors
• Plaster crack repair and drywall patching
• Stain-blocking primer for water marks and smoke