New brick floor for cellar

[slmonline]

I live in a 300 year old farmhouse with two cellars. I use the cellars for storage in the same way most people use their lofts. Both cellars have very old brick floors which have seen better days, they have moved so much over the years that they now look like the surface of the sea.

I want to replace the floors. Nothing too drastic, just new brick floors to hopefully last another few hundred years. I don't know what bricks to use. I am very aware of maintaining breathability in the cellars, don't want to create damp problems, but I do want a hard wearing brick that will not dissolve in the damp down there and I am working to a very tight budget. I was wondering whether using blue engineering bricks, surrounding by a good lime mortar would do the job - I know the bricks have low porous characteristics, but I hope that the lime mortar will do the job of keeping the floor breathable, while the bricks make it tough and long lasting.

Am I making a huge mistake, will I end up pushing damp into the walls etc? Or could this combination work? Any help, advice on alternatives for the budget conscious would be much appreciated.

 

[Penners]

Aren't there any re-usable bricks in the current floors? I would salvage as many of the existing as I could, and then trawl the architectural salvage yards to find some as similar as possible to make up any shortages. Not only is that good conservation practice, but it should save you some money!

 

[robgil]

i wouldnt replace them either but if you do can i have your old ones?

 

[Flyfisher]

Any chance of a photo?
It would help to know if the existing floor is unlevel through wear, erosion or ground compaction/heave.

It sounds as if you don't have any damp problems so I'd be wary of doing anything to reduce the permeability of the floor. Engineering bricks would almost certainly do that and I doubt if lime mortar alone would give the same level of breathability as the existing floor.

Also, you're seeking something more durable, yet you say the existing floor has lasted for 300 years. On that basis, if the bricks really do need replacing then I'd be looking for the same types that have served so well over that time. If the bricks themselves are in good condition then I think I'd just relay them for a level floor. If it's a mixture of good and bad bricks then still relay them to be level and selectively replace the bad ones with similar types.

Which, I think, is more-or-less what Penners' suggested.

 

[Lime]

Am I making a huge mistake

Yes I think you are.
Engineering bricks are the last thing to use IMO.
(apart from the expense)
If you are just using it for storage the floor doesn't have to be flat.
Try storing items on pallets if you can get them down there.

The character of the cellar is all about the uneven floor giving a sense of history to the whole house.

The last thing that I'd want to see if I were buying your house is a "nice" modern flat floor in the cellar.
It would immediately put my guard up.
Why wasn't the old floor any good?
Why was it replaced?
What problems has this new floor covered up?
etc.

And probably more important, what problems has it created?

 

[Tom]

The last thing that I'd want to see if I were buying your house is a "nice" modern flat floor in the cellar.
It would immediately put my guard up.
Why wasn't the old floor any good?
Why was it replaced?
What problems has this new floor covered up?
etc.

And probably more important, what problems has it created?

I completely agree. Most of of here are striving against the odds to maintain the historical character of our houses and most who appreciate older houses will be looking for just that when buying yours. Please don't destroy your floor if you can help it. Do all you can to save it and appreciate it for what it is

 

[JoceAndChris]

I agree with the above posts - do as little as possible, and be aware in thinking about future buyers that people who really appreciate, and are right for period properties, will be looking for something resembling the surface of the sea in their floors.

Good luck from Joce (owner of a 200 year old brick floor in the cellar, and many other lumpy uneven surfaces!)

 

[Flyfisher]

and many other lumpy uneven surfaces!

All part of the attraction, I'd say. :wink:

 

[Tom]

and many other lumpy uneven surfaces!

All part of the attraction, I'd say. :wink:

Definitely!

I remember the day I came home to find our builder had put the slabs on one the window sills in, perfectly level. I nearly had a fit!! :lol: That was the day I banned spirit levels on site! I made him take them out and put them in in line with the wonky window.....and it looked so much better

 

[philpjuk100]

Just returned from Gainsborough old hall (only the second trip this year!) the brick floor in the kitchen is just as you describe"like the surface of the sea" I am not sure how it fits in with "elf and safety" but its wonderful.phil.