Heritage specialists

Old buildings work differently, and need to be repaired differently

Solid walls work in a completely different way to modern cavity walls. They are living, breathing things that allow for movement and fight damp and mould.

Failed lath and plaster exposing the timber and brick behind — Failed lath and plaster

Heritage specialists

Understand the wall before choosing the product

Your walls need to be able to let moisture pass freely through them. Sealing them will trap the moisture in the walls and exaggerate the damp issues. If your walls are working perfectly there should be minimal need for ventilation.

Breathability: A blanket term for permeability, capillarity and hygroscopicity. Moisture will always be present within a solid wall; it should be allowed to evaporate naturally.
Porous materials: Soft building materials like old bricks, lime mortar and stone are very porous: they are like sponges and absorb water. If sealed, they can no longer release the moisture properly.
Capillary action: Liquid water being able to move through the wall. Often misdiagnosed as "rising damp"; the main cause is the use of impervious materials and wrong ground levels.
Permeability: Water vapour's ability to move through the wall naturally. Internal walls absorb excess water vapour from breathing, cooking and showering; the external face then evaporates it.

Cement / gypsum productsPlastic / resin productsTankingSealantsInjection DPCDamp-proof paints

Traditional masonry is repaired differently

When dealing with period properties and listed buildings, it is vital to find someone with an understanding of traditional building methods and materials. Most modern tradespeople have no understanding of how these buildings work and will recommend solutions that will do more harm than good.

Materials

Cement-based mortar is a death sentence for soft bricks: it allows no movement and traps moisture in the wall. Spalling occurs when the mortar is harder than the bricks; the bricks lose their face and allow an increase of water ingress. Any plastering, rendering or pointing performed on a solid wall should be done with a breathable lime-based material.

Sensitive cleaning

Specialised equipment is required to properly clean masonry and remove paint without damaging the masonry below. Sandblasting and other similar methods are well known to be damaging to the fabric of the building. We exclusively employ gentle methods that have received widespread approval in the conservation industry, and have our own in-house DOFF III.

Sustainability