Name that wall

[Jellyfire]

How long ago did you Klingstrip and wash? The beam will remain darker in colour until it has completely dried out.

Oh its definitely dried out, the first one was done about a year ago and the last one a month or so ago. I can never be accused of rushing a job! :shock:

I think its because there was so much paint on there, and the klingstrip has done the job really well by not affecting the surface of the wood at all. When I wash down with a cloth I still get black water in the bucket so there is still paint on there. They are not overly dark to be honest, and the colour suits the room and age of the wood nicely so Im not too worried by it. I only mentioned it because Robgils look like they match the colour of our upstairs beams more. Ive tried washing with warm soapy water, and I think its a bit of a forth bridge scenario, I could wash for a year and I think there'd still be black water coming off them!

 

[Penners]

It's possible that the blackening substance left on the beams is not one which the standard Klingstrip is effective on. If you want advice on how to remove it, I should contact Strippers of Sudbury. They have several different formulations of stripper and may well be able to suggest one for your particular need.

http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/contact.htm

 

[Jellyfire]

UPDATE:

Well thought I'd just follow up on this a little. Ive been removing the gypsum, cement, hardboard, plasterboard and various other things that were covering up the wattle and daub on our internal walls. Had a bit of a mixed bag of what was underneath. On the whole, its been W&D and in pretty good condition. Various big chunks were missing, and a couple of walls were a little damp, not soaking wet but enough to have a long term effect if not dealt with. This spurred me on to get on with the job and now everything has dried out, even over winter.

Im afraid I copped out a little by buying a little ready made Daub from The Old House Store and ready mixed Lime mortar and plaster from Mike Wye. I was pretty nervous about doing my own lime plastering and daubing so thought Id get a couple of tubs of each to try it out and see if Id be able to manage it. Everybody's advice was very helpful, but nobody mentioned how much fun it is to do yourself! Having tried and failed miserably at plastering in the past I was expecting lime or daub to be even harder to work with, but its an absolute joy! Providing you don't need polished flat walls, its like playing with mud when you were a kid. If you get it wrong, just mess about some more until its right. If you get up in the morning and think you haven't got it quite right, just mess about some more. The stuff is a joy to use, even for a complete novice.

Here are a couple of photos that show some of the work in progress.


This is an example of the Wattle and Daub at its worst. Some nifty work with hazel from the garden to patch up the holes, and then on with the daub


Some of the patched up W&D, and lime mortaring places


One wall almost finished, ready for lime wash


Sorry for the ropy camera phone photos. Annoyingly had my laptop stolen which had all the proper before and after photos of work Ive done on the house on (along with most of the photos of our one year old since he was born, grrr.) Serves me right for working in London!

 

[tobydog]

Top job. Finish looks really good and in keeping with the timbers and what I can see of the house.

I will be buying my first tubs of lime shortly. I too thought about mixing my own but thought I would have enough on my plate just getting the stuff on the walls. Thankfully I'm only rebuilding and plastering the plynth.

 

[Schoolmarm]

hydraulic lime, in my opinion, is predominantly for civil engineers. No place for it in pre-industrialism vernacular buildings.

I was going to use nhl 5 to repoint the chimney and reset pot after new liner is fitted. Should I not????

My dwelling is a stone farmhouse c.1750 built with sandstone.

 

[Penners]

That looks great, Jellyfire. Well done!

I hope you haven't dismantled that telephone without Listed Building Consent.

 

[Jellyfire]

I hope you haven't dismantled that telephone without Listed Building Consent.

Once it's back on the wall I plan to get it scheduled as an ancient monument and raise some extra funds by making it a visitor attraction.

 

[Penners]

Er, I believe the current politically correct term is "heritage asset".

I wonder how much the taxpayer paid someone to come up with that gem. :roll:

 

[robgil]

hydraulic lime, in my opinion, is predominantly for civil engineers. No place for it in pre-industrialism vernacular buildings.

I was going to use nhl 5 to repoint the chimney and reset pot after new liner is fitted. Should I not????

My dwelling is a stone farmhouse c.1750 built with sandstone.

Use 3.5 or lime putty , 3.5 will be fine. You should not make the mortar stronger than the brick.

 

[robgil]

Jellyfire thats a good job right there. If you ever do decide to mix your own I have a mixer you can borrow , I'm only a few miles away.

 

[Jellyfire]

Cheers Robgil, might take you up on that, think I'll have enough of the premix left to do the interior walls, exterior will probably be a different story though, from what I've seen so far there's not much left of that, so I may be digging a pond in the back garden...

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Well done Jellyfire - looks a really good job there.

 

[Jellyfire]

Thank you, only a few walls done but getting there at least now.

 

[Penners]

only a few walls done

Incorrect terminology there, Jellyfire. The correct language is, "Fantastic! I've already done several walls!"

Every step is a victory.

 

[Jellyfire]

Ah good point Penners, come to think of it I probably deserve a little rest after all that hard work. If I go too quickly my wife is going to start thinking her dreams of having a room finished are achievable.

 

[robgil]

Incredible! I've done nothing all week.
I like this game.

 

[Penners]

If I go too quickly my wife is going to start thinking her dreams of having a room finished are achievable.

Quite right. There's nothing in life more frustrating than a target that's impossible to hit. :wink:

 

[Penners]

Incredible! I've done nothing all week.

Now you're doing it, Rob! You have so much to learn.

You never, ever "do nothing". You assess, you plan, you consider.... These are all expressions which imply that, no matter how static you appear to be, there's actually lots of important stuff going on just below the surface.

 

[robgil]

It's my day off today , well almost, had to go in and load a lorry.
Anyhow , I am now researching the kitchen/bathroom services and drainage.

 

[Penners]

Oh dear, there you go again.

"Day off"?!

No, no, no - it's the day when you flog yourself half to death on superhuman projects at home.

You really must learn to represent your lengthy periods of inactivity in a much more positive light.