I can't get enough of these old Building Conservation magazines, most of my collection are from before I was born. It is both interesting and useful to read about the thoughts of the day and compare them to how we approach works in 2022. I thought I would pick out a few interesting articles to comment on.
In this issue, one of the main features was the refurbishment of a 1900’s traditionally constructed house in Lincolnshire. The article details that rotten timber floors were removed and replaced with concrete on a plastic DPM. Unfortunately, this became common practice, and whilst it may have solved the problem at the time, this method will have undoubtedly caused problems in later years. The sub-floor should have been cleared out and ventilation improved. Instead, the new slab and DPM will cause any ground moisture trying to escape to be forced to the perimeter of the slab from where it will likely struggle to evaporate. If it cannot evaporate into the room, it will get driven up into the walls and damage timber and surface finishes. This defect is often incorrectly referred to as ‘rising damp’ and all manner of inappropriate ‘cures’ are prescribed by those who use the electronic resistance meter as a ‘damp meter’.
Further down, the contractors advise that they have re-plastered damaged areas with a plaster with a ‘waterproof additive’. For a time, this may preserve the surface finish, however, it does nothing to stop the moisture, so if it cannot come out in the areas that have been waterproofed, it will simply get forced to the perimeter of the waterproofed area (more about this in a future post).
The article also advises that the chimney breast has been removed, and with it, a great source of ventilation – passive stack ventilation. The article does not note any replacement for this passive ventilation, which now removed, may cause condensation problems in the property, especially as the windows have been replaced with double glazed units.
Gosh, that’s a lot of information from four column inches!
As we can see in these photos, the damp and timber industry was in swing by this point. Note the size of the drill holes in the bottom right-hand photo!! Unfortunately, these systems are still being injected into traditionally constructed buildings today and combined with the abovementioned ‘waterproofing plaster’ systems.
This two-page spread is very poignant at the moment! Perhaps the Solid Fuel Advisory Service had a crystal ball? Or a bit of propaganda?
This two-page spread is very poignant at the moment! Perhaps the Solid Fuel Advisory Service had a crystal ball? Or a bit of propaganda?
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