Cubist
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- Shropshire/Herefordshire Border
By way of an introduction the First Lady and I are the current stewards of a 16th Century Oak Timber Frame (Black and White) cottage on the Shropshire / Herefordshire border. Every cliché in the book satisfied including Primrose Path, Rose Covered Porch, Thatched (Reed) Roof and not a Horizontal, Vertical or Right Angle anywhere in sight - Grade II listed to boot. It took us five years to find the place and during that time we had a number of disappointments as the requirements list was extensive and, in our minds, there was little room for compromise. Ultimately, we got lucky and the only key requirement we had to forgo was a decent pub within walking distance - nearest is three miles away over roads that should not be walked at night.
Anyway, that was back in 2010 and in the intervening years we've been busy with many repair and/or enhance projects of the kind that most people undertake and controlled by the First Lady through the use of an index card 'To-Do List' for each room, the cottage exterior and two others for the land and outbuildings; all of which are pinned to the cork board in the kitchen. Over the last eight years many of these have been completed, albeit that every time I knock one off another, at least one, somehow appears. Most of these have been of the repair/enhance type and included the usual suspects – get rid of the ghastly green exterior paint and the equally dreadful ‘more than a hint of pink’ used in a surprising number of the interior rooms. Others, however, have been more challenging and have demanded the acquisition of new skills and the brushing up of a lot of the old ones – I try hard to follow my father’s advice ‘not to pay others to make the same mistakes I can as at least I’ll know where the bodies are buried’.
If relevant topics come up in others posts I’ll perhaps discuss some of these in reply so for now I’ll restrict myself to this summer’s Elephant Project for which some advice/input would be welcome.
Our cottage was the object of a ‘ground-up’ restoration around thirty years ago – literally, we have the photos. During this a number of new timbers were introduced to replace those that did not survive and to serve the needs of the integration of the old barn to form the present building. Naturally enough the intervening years have seen the new timbers shrinking as they dried out and we now have gaps of up to 10mm between the timbers and infill panels. Previous owners have at some point tried to remedy this using silicone caulk before the shrinkage process was complete, fortunately, as in most cases continued shrinkage of the timber has caused the silicone to part company with the frame or to simply split. This unintended consequence has probably saved the frame from extensive damage, but it is now time to clean up the mess and to close the gaps more effectively for the future.
As I write the needed Oakum and Caulking Cotton are in transit, as is a quantity of Lime Putty, and I have begun the process of cleaning out the rubbish to allow closer inspection of the timbers and to make repairs and/or allow airing/drying where needed. Which brings me to the nub of my present challenge – the infill panels are rendered with a Portland Cement based mortar!
Now current wisdom says that I should strip all of this off and replace it with a more suitable, and breathable, Lime mortar but I really want to avoid this if at all possible. With this in mind I have been contemplating a couple of alternative approaches to the caulking that may satisfy all the key needs, these being: -
1. To rake out the gaps to a depth beyond that of the current render and to then press the Oakum and/or Caulking cotton fully into the cavity but leaving say 10mm clear below the timber surface. Then to use Lime Putty to fill this cavity, to operate as a retaining key, while blending the putty back to the surface edge of the render.
2. This alternative is almost identical to the first but omits the use of the Lime Putty by terminating the Oakum/Caulking Cotton level with the surface of the timbers.
Both of these would, in effect, create a breathable membrane between the timber and the existing render which should serve to eliminate the key risk of wet rot. However, both approaches also have weaknesses as well. On the one hand Lime based products will not bond with cement so hair-line/thin cracks will almost certainly appear but I would hope that the key would prevent it simply falling away. On the other hand, there is the risk that the local bird population will steal the Oakum/Caulking Cotton or it will prove too unsightly to the First Lady.
So, here’s the dilemma – which way to go?
All ideas, suggestions, comments and opinions welcome.
I’ll keep you guys posted on decisions, progress and outcomes whichever line I end up pursuing.
Many thanks in anticipation.
Anyway, that was back in 2010 and in the intervening years we've been busy with many repair and/or enhance projects of the kind that most people undertake and controlled by the First Lady through the use of an index card 'To-Do List' for each room, the cottage exterior and two others for the land and outbuildings; all of which are pinned to the cork board in the kitchen. Over the last eight years many of these have been completed, albeit that every time I knock one off another, at least one, somehow appears. Most of these have been of the repair/enhance type and included the usual suspects – get rid of the ghastly green exterior paint and the equally dreadful ‘more than a hint of pink’ used in a surprising number of the interior rooms. Others, however, have been more challenging and have demanded the acquisition of new skills and the brushing up of a lot of the old ones – I try hard to follow my father’s advice ‘not to pay others to make the same mistakes I can as at least I’ll know where the bodies are buried’.
If relevant topics come up in others posts I’ll perhaps discuss some of these in reply so for now I’ll restrict myself to this summer’s Elephant Project for which some advice/input would be welcome.
Our cottage was the object of a ‘ground-up’ restoration around thirty years ago – literally, we have the photos. During this a number of new timbers were introduced to replace those that did not survive and to serve the needs of the integration of the old barn to form the present building. Naturally enough the intervening years have seen the new timbers shrinking as they dried out and we now have gaps of up to 10mm between the timbers and infill panels. Previous owners have at some point tried to remedy this using silicone caulk before the shrinkage process was complete, fortunately, as in most cases continued shrinkage of the timber has caused the silicone to part company with the frame or to simply split. This unintended consequence has probably saved the frame from extensive damage, but it is now time to clean up the mess and to close the gaps more effectively for the future.
As I write the needed Oakum and Caulking Cotton are in transit, as is a quantity of Lime Putty, and I have begun the process of cleaning out the rubbish to allow closer inspection of the timbers and to make repairs and/or allow airing/drying where needed. Which brings me to the nub of my present challenge – the infill panels are rendered with a Portland Cement based mortar!
Now current wisdom says that I should strip all of this off and replace it with a more suitable, and breathable, Lime mortar but I really want to avoid this if at all possible. With this in mind I have been contemplating a couple of alternative approaches to the caulking that may satisfy all the key needs, these being: -
1. To rake out the gaps to a depth beyond that of the current render and to then press the Oakum and/or Caulking cotton fully into the cavity but leaving say 10mm clear below the timber surface. Then to use Lime Putty to fill this cavity, to operate as a retaining key, while blending the putty back to the surface edge of the render.
2. This alternative is almost identical to the first but omits the use of the Lime Putty by terminating the Oakum/Caulking Cotton level with the surface of the timbers.
Both of these would, in effect, create a breathable membrane between the timber and the existing render which should serve to eliminate the key risk of wet rot. However, both approaches also have weaknesses as well. On the one hand Lime based products will not bond with cement so hair-line/thin cracks will almost certainly appear but I would hope that the key would prevent it simply falling away. On the other hand, there is the risk that the local bird population will steal the Oakum/Caulking Cotton or it will prove too unsightly to the First Lady.
So, here’s the dilemma – which way to go?
All ideas, suggestions, comments and opinions welcome.
I’ll keep you guys posted on decisions, progress and outcomes whichever line I end up pursuing.
Many thanks in anticipation.
