Paxton Cottage

Paxton cottage, a Grade II listed 17th century timber frame Tudor cottage, is described in The Report of the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments as follows:A 17th century timber frame cottage with whitewashed brick infill; ground floor and gable of…

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Cottage with Lots of Cement

This 150 year old cottage has just been purchased recently and the new owners were looking froward to a full refurbishment. The past owners spent only the bare minimum on repairs and maintenance, so a lot of work was needed…

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Residential Building with Cellar

Here is a typical 150 year old, Victorian end-terrace house. The lady owner had some dampness problems in the cellar which she used as a gardening shed. We have done a full survey of the building and here are the…

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Country House

The lower basement and ground floor of this old, listed country house has been under complete refurbishment. The last major renovations have been done in 1970s when an electro-osmosis dehydration system has also been fitted. One of the challenges with this…

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Survey: Semi-Basement Flat

The current owners of this semi-basement London flat have purchased the property about a year ago. Shortly thereafter some damp patches and flaking of the paint started to show in the hallway and master bedroom. They contacted us for a…

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How Salts Damage Old Buildings?

Due to their importance, salts have already been mentioned several times in previous sections. We mentioned them when we looked at the key differences between sweet and saline water wetting. We discussed the role of salts as a moisture barrier…

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Traditional vs Modern Plasters. Which Lime?

In the previous section we covered a brief history of plasters, highlighting the various types of plasters and how plasters have evolved and changed over time. Let's see now the main type of plasters, how they compare and what factors determine their…

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Top 5 Renovation Mistakes

Here are some common renovation mistakes which are often done on old buildings that result in the failure of plastering or a significantly shorter lifespan of the finishing and decoration.If your walls fall into any of these categories:older than 100-150…

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Survey: Victorian Terraced Home

This building is from 1898 and it has been just purchased by a new owner, a building "enthusiast" who intended to refurbish it as part of a DIY project. The owner has just stripped the walls by removing all wallpapers and…

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