From our own correspondent: Modern technology has a place in renovating old houses

Marrying the old with the new

30 October 2008 00:00  [Source: ICB]

Marrying the old with the new

When we bought our small cottage near Canterbury, Kent, UK, we naively estimated that it would take about a year to fix the crumbling interior. Although the cottage, which is partly 16th century, was attractive on the outside, inside it was a disaster.

Chronic damp was the main problem, so we went in search of a chemical injection damp-proof course. But following discussions with a conservation architect, it emerged that instead of injections of polyoxoaluminum stearate, what we needed was a more traditional solution, lime plaster.

The solid-wall con-struction flint and brick building was built without a dampproof course, which means capillary action draws moisture up through the walls. Although it was originally built with lime plasters, which allow the walls to 'breathe,' previous occupants had rendered internally with cement-based mortar. This modern render, combined with non-breathable paints, was trapping moisture inside the walls, causing cracking.

"Old houses need to breathe," explained Bruce the builder. "Using lime doesn't get rid of the damp, but it means that you don't have to consider damp to be a problem."

After months of lime plastering, a painfully slow process, our walls are now able to breathe again.

But there is a place for modern technology in traditional houses, and our renovation project has introduced us to impressive products. On the floor, we used a latex-based self-leveling compound and a two-component liquid damp-proof membrane, before laying slate tiles. The liquid damp-proof membrane, made of epoxy resin, is an effective method for retro-damp-proofing floors in old buildings (in new builds, a polyethylene [PE] sheet will work).

We also used epoxy resins to strengthen structural timbers and window surrounds damaged by woodworm or rot. This wood-filling product, which my husband was pleased to discover is so groundbreaking that it comes with an instruction video, involves combining a liquid epoxy resin based on diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A with a second component based on a methylamine.

For filling small holes in beams, where no structural strength was required, we used a wood-filler gel mixed with wood dust.

Renovating a small, two-bedroom country cottage has been satisfying but demanding, consuming most of our spare time. Two and a half years into the project, we still have no door on the toilet.

Visit ICIS Company Intelligence for an overview of key companies within the chemical industry worldwide

By: Anna Jagger
+44 20 8652 3214

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.

Printer Friendly