Lime rendering and plastering is one the key ingredients of a sustainable older home. Lime putty render with a stone dust aggregate has a very low embodied energy, it is very breathable and it is the correct render of choice …
Old terraces in South Wales look great and they can be a really good buy, however they can also bring their fair share of headaches as your keen-ness to improve the house and make it your home takes hold. Many …
Buying an old terrace house? Fore warned is fore armed! Read more »
Where plaster / render / drip beads are used to create crisp and square edges on buildings you will often find that they go rusty and discolour paintwork. The reason behind this is that the cheapest beads are galvanised and …
The solid walls so common in Wales are prone to damp after the ‘modernisation’ they have received over the past hundred years. The addition of external cement renders especially has locked moisture into the walls and the remedial work of …
One of the major mistakes that we see in refurbishment of old solid walled houses is the use of modern materials over over the original substrates. I have written before about the use of cement render over these types of …
Lime can be difficult to get to grips with and use properly, especially for DIYers who might be more used to cement. Lime putty takes a bit more understanding than cement as it sets in a different way. Hydraulic lime, …
I really cannot express the amount to which I mistrust Drylining. I would not recommend anyone to undertake this exercise as it can be a real death nail to any house. What dry lining does is cover up the problems …
Old houses are seen as being a real problem with regards to carbon emissions. Their walls are seen as being really inefficient and difficult to treat. When we use computer programmes to calculate how efficient our homes are we use …
A strange title in a way, but there is rationale behind it. To many of us, the older terrace housing is a home, something to be loved and cared for as it provides us with the shelter, location and amenities …
South Wales’ Victorian Terraces – Home, House or Castle? Read more »
External render finishes to solid walled buildings (esp. brick & stone) Many of our homes are rendered, but most are not rendered using the right materials. Older houses (mostly made with solid walls of stone and brick) used breathable materials …
