Upper Bucks County
Painting & drywall in Quakertown.
A masonry town of stone, brick and stucco, full of twins, row houses and front porches, inside a township built mostly since 1980. Plaster and porch floors in the borough, newer drywall in the township around it.
Quakertown and its houses
Quakertown began as a Quaker settlement in what was called the Great Swamp, sheltered the Liberty Bell overnight in 1777, and became a borough in 1855. The railroad arrived in the mid-1850s and the town built toward it; an account from 1859 counts twenty-four new dwellings that year, many of them three-story brick houses.
Most of the borough is now a National Register historic district, listed in 2011, with 2,197 contributing buildings. Its nomination describes a preference for masonry, stone and brick with some of it stuccoed, front porches on most of the houses, and clusters of solid twins and row houses with towers, gambrel and stepped gables and full-length porches.
More than a quarter of the borough's homes were built before 1940. Richland Township, which surrounds it, is newer: more than two-thirds of its homes date from 1980 or later, about three in ten from the 2000s alone.
The houses
What Quakertown’s houses ask for.
Stone, brick and stucco
The district's character comes from masonry: stone and brick, some of it stuccoed, in large, square, two-and-a-half-story houses. Inside, plaster on masonry walls cracks where the building has moved, and outside, stucco and mortar joints need repair before any coating goes on.
Twins and row houses
Quakertown built doubles and rows as its factories grew and the trolley came, with details like corner towers, stepped or gambrel gables and full-length porches. Shared walls and matched facades mean exterior colors and repairs read as part of a row, not a single house.
Porches on most houses
Front porches are on most of the houses in the historic district. Floors and steps wear first, then rails and posts; soft wood is replaced before anything is stained or painted, and floors and rails are finished as separate jobs.
Foursquares, bungalows and Richland
The 20th century added solid masonry Foursquares and Craftsman bungalows, most notably in the middle and northeast of the borough. Out in Richland Township most houses date from 1980 on, with drywall ready for repairs, smoother walls and a Level 5 finish where light demands it.
Services
In Quakertown, specialty first.
Each service, written for Quakertown’s houses: what it involves here, what to check, and what people ask.
- Level 5 drywall finishA skim coat over the entire surface, for walls that hold up under raking light and dark paint.
- Skim coatingRough, patched or uneven walls resurfaced smooth, often after wallpaper comes down.
- Plaster repairCracked, loose and failing plaster in older homes, repaired and made sound.
- Interior paintingWalls, ceilings, trim, doors and millwork, prepared properly and finished clean.
- Exterior paintingSiding, trim, porches, stucco and brick, prepared to stand up to Pennsylvania weather.
- Drywall installation & repairNew drywall hung, taped and finished; cracks, holes and water damage repaired invisibly.
- Drywall texture matching & removalTexture matched so repairs disappear, applied where you want it, or taken off for a smooth wall.
- Popcorn ceiling removalOld acoustic texture taken down and the ceiling finished smooth.
- Wallpaper removalOld wallpaper and wall linings stripped without tearing up the wall beneath.
- Wood stainingDecks, porch floors, doors and trim, inside and out, stained by hand.
From clients and job sites
“We hired Randy to paint the trim and stain the floor of the porches in our Victorian style home, some light repairs were also required. We had to work around some weather issues but in the end they is an awesome job…”
“Our house outside looks brand new, Randy is a nice guy, he knows his craft!! His workers Connie and Josh are very professional!! They get the job done!! Thank you for working so hard!!💓❤️💜”
Questions
Asked in Quakertown.
Most of Quakertown is a historic district. Does that limit how I paint my house?
The National Register listing on its own does not. The National Park Service says listing places no restrictions on what a private owner does with a property using private funds. Local rules are a separate matter, so check with the borough's code and zoning office before changing an exterior.
Do you work in Richland, Milford and Trumbauersville?
Yes. Randy is based in Easton and serves Bucks County, including the borough, Richland Township and Richlandtown, Milford Township and Trumbauersville.
Can you repaint the stucco and brick on an older Quakertown house?
Yes, with the right preparation. Stucco and previously painted brick can be repainted once loose material is removed, cracks and joints are repaired and the surface is dry. Brick that has never been painted is a bigger decision, because paint on masonry is hard to undo.
Our porch floor is soft and peeling. Is it a repair or a replacement?
It depends on how far the soft wood goes. Rotted boards are cut out and replaced, the rest is sanded, and the floor is stained or painted before the rails and posts are scraped and finished. Randy walks the porch with you first and explains what can stay.
Nearby
Neighboring towns.
Consultation
Request a private consultation.
Private walkthrough & written estimate, complimentary. Tell us a little about the house and the rooms, and Randy will be in touch to arrange a time.
- Hours
- Monday – Friday8:30 AM – 5:30 PMSaturday10 AM – 3 PMSundayClosed
- Service area
- Easton, Bethlehem, Allentown and the greater Lehigh Valley; Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Fully insured — proof on request. Residential and commercial.