Northampton and Lehigh counties
Painting & drywall in Bethlehem.
Bethlehem's houses run from 18th-century Moravian stone to steel-era brick row homes and postwar streets. Each era's walls fail in their own way, and the preparation has to answer that.
Bethlehem and its houses
Moravian settlers founded Bethlehem on Christmas Eve 1741, and their stone buildings still anchor the north side of the city; in 2024 the Historic Moravian Bethlehem District joined the UNESCO World Heritage List. Across the Lehigh, the South Side grew with the steel mills, and brick row homes went up for the immigrant families who worked them.
The housing reflects every chapter. About 31 percent of the city's homes were built before 1940 and another 24 percent between 1940 and 1959, and close to 28 percent are row homes or twins. Plaster runs through the older blocks, and drywall through most of what came after.
In the Central Bethlehem Historic District, color is part of the review: the Historical and Architectural Review Board looks at exterior changes visible from a public way, paint colors included. Randy serves the whole city, north and south of the river, and the townships around it.
The houses
What Bethlehem’s houses ask for.
The Historic District
North of the river, around the Moravian core: two-and-a-half-story brick and stone buildings from the mid-1700s to the early 1900s. The review board's guidelines favor hand scraping and sanding over heat or blasting, and a repaint every five to eight years. Inside, expect old plaster carrying generations of repairs.
South Side row homes
Brick row homes built close together below South Mountain, most of the historic district there dating from about 1900 to 1935. Shared party walls mean exterior work is planned with the neighbors in mind, and the plaster inside has often been patched more than once.
West Side and Mount Airy
On the Lehigh County side, numbered avenues lined with turn-of-the-century twins, and in Mount Airy, large, ornate houses built mostly between 1910 and 1930. Plaster walls are the rule, and wood porches last longest with regular repainting.
Postwar and newer houses
About a quarter of the city's homes went up between 1940 and 1959, and two-thirds of Bethlehem Township's have been built since 1980. Later houses are drywall, where crisp seams, smooth ceilings and repairs that disappear matter most.
Services
In Bethlehem, specialty first.
Each service, written for Bethlehem’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 recently had Randy paint and wallpaper our bathroom. Extremely reasonable price. We were very pleased and asked him about painting our dining room…”
“Michelangelo of painting.”
Questions
Asked in Bethlehem.
Does Bethlehem review exterior paint colors?
In the Central Bethlehem Historic District, yes. The Historical and Architectural Review Board reviews exterior changes visible from a public way, paint colors included, and its guidelines note that a manufacturer's so-called historic colors are not always appropriate there. The South Side and Mount Airy districts go to a separate Historic Conservation Commission. Check with the city before you settle on colors.
Can we stain the porch on a house in the Historic District?
The review board's guidelines generally discourage natural or stained wood on the porch of a painted historic house, and recommend regular repainting instead. A deck out of view of the street is a different case, and stain is the usual finish there. Randy can talk it through at the walkthrough.
Our 1960s house has popcorn ceilings. Can they come down?
Usually. Texture applied before the mid-1980s can contain asbestos, so a sample should be tested before it is disturbed; if it tests positive, removal is work for a certified asbestos abatement contractor. If it tests clear, the texture comes off and the ceiling is skimmed smooth for paint.
Do you work on the South Side and in the townships?
Yes. Randy serves Bethlehem on both sides of the Lehigh, from Center City and the North Side to the South, East and West sides, along with Fountain Hill, Freemansburg, and Bethlehem and Hanover townships.
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.