I just moved into a house built in 1895 and went to repaint the dining room. I noticed that the wall had portions that I could press, like a large bubble. I removed some tape-like material that was covering a crack and found that the wall had been covered with a very thin (less than a 1/8") material consisting of a cardboard-like base, a very thin coating of what seemed to be plaster, and paint. Underneath this material (which I removed) was a concrete wall. Nobody I've talked to a local hardware stores seems familiar with this cardboard-type material. Any ideas? I would like to know because drywalling is not an option (the 10" baseboards aren't wide enough to accomodate even 1/4" drywall and are fastened to the concrete wall). Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

One solution would be to thin drywall the wall, and add another 10" baseboard right on top of the old one.
Good luck!
Mike

 

Is the whole wall covered with the "cardboard" material? Or just the patch. If it's just the patch; remove all the loose material. Fill the cracks and holes with drywall mud. Yes even if its a large hole. Cover all the area with mesh tape. If the area that was loose and removed was big (12 inchs or bigger) you can use fiberglass screen used for windows. Its not sticky but it's big and inexpensive. Then finish accordingly. I say accordingly because usually in the old homes the walls are semi smooth and not very flat.