Homeowners usually plan a renovation around the parts they'll see: cabinets, floors, paint. The steps that decide comfort and finish quality happen in the few days when the studs are open. Here's that window, step by step.
Rough-in & inspections
Framing, electrical, plumbing and HVAC roughs are done and pass inspection. Nothing gets insulated before this, or it has to come out again.
Air sealing
Penetrations, top and bottom plates, rim joists, and gaps around windows get sealed. This is invisible later and hard to redo.
Insulation
Spray foam, cellulose, or batts, matched to each assembly. Foam needs its cure and ventilation time before other trades return.
Insulation inspection
Many building departments check insulation before walls are covered. Schedule it early, because this is a classic place to lose a week.
Board
Drywall for tape-and-paint finishes, or blueboard for veneer plaster. Board choice has to be made before this day, not on it.
Finish
Tape and mud through to a Level 4–5 drywall finish, or veneer plaster coats. Then primer and paint.
Where projects lose time
- Between 3 and 4: the insulation crew leaves, nobody books the inspection, and the drywall crew shows up to a wall they can't close.
- Between 4 and 5: a failed inspection item, such as a missed bay or a gap at a rim, means calling the first crew back.
- At 5: the board doesn't match the finish. Veneer plaster needs true blueboard. Plastering directly over regular drywall paper invites blistering and delamination.
Drywall or veneer plaster on new walls?
Drywall
Lower cost, familiar to every trade, and easy to patch. Needs taping and several coats of joint compound, plus drying time between them.
Veneer plaster over blueboard
A harder, more abrasion-resistant surface that matches the feel of older plaster homes and finishes quickly. Industry cost guides generally put it at a premium over drywall, often around two to three times, depending on scope and region.
In older New England homes, where new walls sit next to original plaster, veneer often blends better. In new additions and basements, drywall is usually the practical choice. Our plaster vs drywall guide goes deeper.
One contract, one schedule
This is why Smooth exists: we air seal, insulate, hang board and plaster under one contract, so steps 2 through 6 run on a single schedule with one accountable crew. Homeowners, builders and general contractors across the North Shore, Southern NH and Southern Maine use us to remove the hand-offs from the critical path.
Quick answers
What comes first, insulation or drywall?
Insulation. Rough-in work and inspections, then air sealing and insulation, then an insulation inspection where required, then drywall or blueboard, then finish.
Can veneer plaster go over regular drywall?
It shouldn't go directly onto standard drywall paper, which risks blistering and delamination. Veneer plaster is designed for blueboard, or for bonding agents on approved substrates.
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