Just moved in to Edwardian house

[fothers]

Hi everyone,

We have just moved into an Edwardian house. It is 1907 semi detached stone and brick built house still with stacks of lovely features. It is not a major restoration project like some of you have but has been a bit unloved lately and needs some tlc repairs.

I am so glad to have found this forum as I have learnt so much already reading through a lot of the past posts.

We are lucky enough to have all the original windows- mainly sashes but with a couple of fancy casement ones with really unusual opening bars, and a couple of pivot ones that someone posted about a long time ago. I now know how they can be removed to draughtproof which is great. Most of the glass is original but sadly some panes are cracked.

I think we have wooden gutters which need some tlc as some joints are cracked and leaking, plus at a couple of points there appears to be a lawn growing in them.

We have beautiful cornicing, quarry floor in the breakfast room and kitchen, gas lamp points on the walls still (no gas lamps attached except in the cellar and we found one lying in an attic space) and lots of lovely doors (though none of them are hung properly so most don't close.

Our list of jobs which I have been trying to get quotes for the last few weeks is window restoration and I need to look into the guttering but not sure how to start with that.

I have had a big window firm (Ventrolla, just out of interest- don't plan to use them) and several local sash joiners round to look at the windows. I am still waiting for the quotes from the local men about the windows. We have A LOT of windows so it is going to be a case of a few here and there.

I would also like a stove in one of our empty fireplaces- ideally before winter as this place is going to cause horrific gas bills.

British gas are also coming to inspect the loft for their insulation scheme- currently there is none at all :shock: so hopefully that should help.

We have 3 very small children so finding the time to do work ourselves will be difficult so we might need to try and get people in for a lot of things.

We are in Derbyshire by the way so if anyone has any recommendations of anyone round here please let me know!

 

[Baron de Gynes]

Firstly, welcome to PPUK! Your house sounds lovely, although I'll chime in before anyone else does - we love pictures here!

First posts often take a while to appear on the site, so I'm just posting to bump this up a bit.

 

[jackpoint]

Congrats, good luck and photos please

 

[Feltwell]

Welcome!

It was probably me with the pivot windows. Mine are much better since I draughtproofed them!

Usual advice, take your time, don't rush into things apart from obvious repairs to stop further damage - of which I would regard guttering as definitely being one, more urgent than your windows unless they are really really bad.

Re. your glass - I have the same problem, and hope I have found a source. Tatra Glass in Loughborough stock something called Goetheglas, a German machine drawn glass that they tell me is very similar to that used in most late Victorian / Edwardian houses. It's like the P1 on their website (below) but without reams and bubbles apparently - it's a little cheaper (still pricey....) and it can be toughened, unlike P1, which is a big advantage if you've got sashes that start near the floor and young kids, as I have. Of course I found out it could be toughened just after I'd got some float glass toughened for my lounge sash :roll:

http://www.tatra-glass.co.uk/restoration_glass.php

I shall be going to get some cut next week and will report back on what it's like.......

 

[DJH]

Hello Fothers. I guess your wooden gutters are lined with lead? Like everyone says...pictures please.

Doug

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Hello and welcome Fothers--your house sounds lovely! Re-iterate--pictures please!!
Enjoy!

 

[fothers]

Here are a few photos- don't want to overload you with them in my first post!
Some are a little blurry- I took them on my phone.

On closer inspection by doing a bit of an acrobatic move out a top window I think the gutters are actually cast iron not wood. Most parts of the house are 3 storey so difficult to see from the ground. The leaks seem to be at the joins so I will try and phone someone on Monday to come and have a look.

I have also discovered some bizarre jar things in the cellar- not sure if they are some sort of weird early electrical battery? I have added a picture of them at the bottom in case anyone recognises them!

 

[plasticpigeon]

Lucky you to get a house with so much intact. Prepare to be very very picky with tradespeople as the default position is to rip everything out and replace with new (usually cheap rubbish). I predict anyone you get round to look at the gutters will suggest replacement with plastic.

 

[plasticpigeon]

Just a thought, and I don't know how far these people are from you, but this place Ingarsby conservation, is a supplier of traditional materials. The business spawned from a need for traditional materials for use on the owners rather lovely farmhouse, so they may be able to give you recommendations for sympathetic tradespeople.

http://ingarsbyconservation.co.uk/products/index.php

 

[Feltwell]

Are you more a DIY-er or a "get someone round to do it"-er?

I agree with PP - most tradespeople will want to rip your guttering off and replace it with nasty plastic. Resist this! Some may say that cast-iron effect plastic is available, which is true, but like all plastic it will fade, it will likely creak in the sun and the joints look totally unrealistic. Providing your guttering hasn't rusted through or is cracked then it can be saved, and if any sections are shot they can be replaced and the rest saved. The only really way to solve leaky joints though is to take them apart properly - cut the bolts off with a grinder (they will almost certainly be rusted solid), use a hammer and punch to extract the remains, take apart & clean the joint out (probably made with linseed putty which will be rock hard), re-seal the joint (I use roof&gutter seal - it stays flexible, unlike linseed putty) and them remake the joint with a new bolt & nut.

For a quick bodge fix that may last a year or so until you get round to doing it properly, clean the inside out as best as you can and smear some roof and gutter seal over the joint. Don't let anyone kid you that this is a permanent fix though.

http://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-roof-gutter-sealant-black-310ml/67521

Are you sure it's the joints that are leaking? First step is just clear the muck out of the gutters, then see what happens next time it rains!

Very nice that you've got so many features left. Any pics of the outside?

Re. your jars - early battery for a doorbell perhaps? A pure guess!

 

[MatthewC]

Those jar things do indeed look like batteries - that seems to be lead on the top isn't it? If they don't belong in a museum then at least they would get a few pounds as scrap! Did they power a servants' bell system perhaps?

Is your house listed or in a conservation area?

I see you don't intend to use Ventrolla - if you were to, the first thing is that you would lose all your original glass!

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Super original features, love the hall floor!

 

[Penners]

Those jar things do indeed look like batteries - that seems to be lead on the top isn't it? If they don't belong in a museum then at least they would get a few pounds as scrap!

I agree that they look like batteries - or, more accurately, piles. But please don't sell them for scrap! They're a fascinating historical feature of the house.

Anyway, welcome to PPUK, and please keep us informed about your progress!

 

[steveb]

one thing if you are working with cast iron guttering - do not underestimate how heavy it is. Not a job to work on from a ladder, you need a scaffold tower or cherry picker. You do not want to be on a ladder when a piece becomes detached from a rotten fascia , either intentionally or not!

It seems like between 10 and 20Kg for a 6 foot length - try standing on a ladder catching a bag of cement as it rolls of your roof

 

[Feltwell]

Good point there from Steve. I've put cast iron guttering up from a ladder, but that's a bit different, you're expecting the weight!

 

[fothers]

Thank you everyone!

I have had another window repair joiner in this morning and he was lovely. His small company get really good reviews and he has done several other properties in the area. He is very enthusiastic about old thing and period things which was great. He also stores wobbly glass that people want replaced when they get windows overhauled so has a small stockpile for us enthusiasts that he can sometimes use to replace broken panes

I want to get on and get a few windows started but these little local joiners seem to take weeks to get quotes back.

I have tried to speak to some roofers about patching up a few tiles and overhauling the gutters but they all seem to be busy at the moment. Luckily there seem to be a few locally who happily repair cast iron. We are in a conservation area which probably helps.

Pre kids we would have attempted more ourselves but we just don't have enough time these days. I work full time night shifts (works around 3 shifts a week as the are LONG shifts) and hubby is FT too.


We are looking into getting a stove fitted and they will need a cherry picker for that and they will clean out the weeds from some patches of guttering where there is a lawn growing but we are going to need someone to mend them properly.

I will try and take some outside piccies soon

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Sounds as though you are getting off to a good start--never mind the budget, nurture your builders/joiners good ones are like gold dust.!

 

[Feltwell]

Re. your glass - I have the same problem, and hope I have found a source. Tatra Glass in Loughborough stock something called Goetheglas, a German machine drawn glass that they tell me is very similar to that used in most late Victorian / Edwardian houses. It's like the P1 on their website (below) but without reams and bubbles apparently - it's a little cheaper (still pricey....) and it can be toughened, unlike P1, which is a big advantage if you've got sashes that start near the floor and young kids, as I have. Of course I found out it could be toughened just after I'd got some float glass toughened for my lounge sash :roll:

http://www.tatra-glass.co.uk/restoration_glass.php

I shall be going to get some cut next week and will report back on what it's like.......

Well, I won't be reporting back on what it's like I'm afraid. I'm sure it's lovely, but at £108 per m2 + VAT compared to £19 per m2 for float glass, it was over £400 more expensive to do my bay in the Goetheglas. Much as it pains me, I just couldn't justify £400 extra for something purely cosmetic when so many other, more urgent things need spending on to keep this house in good order. I shall console myself with the knowledge that there was no original glass left there anyway, and I'm replacing dreadful, badly made side-sashes - that don't match each other let alone the rest of the house - with ones made as faithfully as I can get to the original pattern.

Serves me right for buying a house with very large windows..... But they do look lovely and let lots of light in

 

[plasticpigeon]

Ah well, don't beat yourself up. Rolled, crown, drawn or whatever old glass has a charm, but on a TV program about Pugin I saw recently, it was said that Pugin chose very expensive flat ground glass for a large bay window in his library so that he had an unadulterated view of the sea!