Maintenance Matters
Rhyd-y-car Terrace in St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life For those, who have not been to St Fagans in Cardiff, it is worth the trip. Great place and an ideal way to start to understand how buildings have changed over …
Tag: repair
Home Report Video from Profiad Ni
Thought that this might be of interest as it shows the types of advice given when we do a Home Inspection Report. The winners of the Profiad Ni competition had visits from us for around 2 – 3 hours each …
Brick face failure
This is quite common to see bricks suffering from old age (and occasionally poor pointing) This is the type of wall that is commonly rendered over (using cement) because the bricks have lost their faces and hence are much more …
Cavities not immune from damp
Cavity walls were designed to keep damp out of homes Cavity walls have been the standard way of building for the past century. They are designed to have two walls (bound together by wall ties) with one acting as the …
Retrofit Guidance Tool – DECC Approved
The STBA have launched the brand new site Responsible Retrofit that can be found at http://responsible-retrofit.org/. This is the new home of the DECC funded Responsible Retrofit Knowledge Centre and Guidance Wheel. This is the culmination of years of research from …
Common re-pointing problem
I was walking around yesterday waiting for my car to be fixed and being in the ‘trade’ it just struck me how many stone walls in Cardiff have been re-pointed using cement. Almost every house (that wasn’t covered in cement …
Unifying mixed surfaced walls
Old walls can have a right old mix of surfaces on them – some old lime, some newer gypsum, paint, filler …. Trying to get an even coat of a plaster or paint over the top of this can be …
Can visible mould and damp be good in a house?
Perhaps an odd question to ask, for how can visible mould and damp be healthy, beneficial or aesthetically pleasing? The short answer is that it cannot, but there is a BUT. This BUT is quite a big one as well. …
Suspended timber vs solid concrete floors?
Many old houses were designed with suspended timber floors. These were designed into houses to keep them dry (at the expense of draughts). The timber joists and floor boards were vented underneath at the front and back of the house …
South Wales’ Victorian Terraces – Home, House or Castle?
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 »