New oak frame!

[malcolm]

Exciting news - the new oak frame started going in yesterday. The old one had been covered by concrete render for 100 years and was past saving. Some photos of the old frame here: http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=15138

The old wall plate in the photo is better than it looks - the end has rotten where someone decided to 'protect it' with waterproof paint, but it is is sound where the new beams are. I am tempted to fit a lead hat on top of it to keep the rain off as it will drip onto the end grain of the wood below. I'm thinking of a piece of lead with the edge trapped under the beam above, perhaps extending an inch outwards from the wall plate, a curved edge and a half inch drip edge folded over. Does this sound like good form or are there traditional ways of doing it?

 

[livias]

Dunno if it is traditional but I did exactly that on the previous house 12 years ago and it has been fine. The brick below (in my case) has remained reasonably dry and the oak has not complained either

Must pop down and look at your frame

Exciting news. I have just bought some ?Victorian? pargeting tools at auction

 

[Flyfisher]

I am tempted to fit a lead hat on top of it to keep the rain off as it will drip onto the end grain of the wood below.

I've done a similar thing with gateposts to keep the weather out of the end grain. Seems to be working well and looks quite good into the bargain!

 

[malcolm]

Excellent. I'll fit a lead hat tomorrow before the frame is pegged together. Something small and simple that doesn't touch the wood apart from where it is clamped in place.

Do pop over Livias. There isn't much frame there yet but it ought to be finished by Wednesday. The front of the house has been transformed since you last saw it.

 

[DJH]

Malcolm, over time you might get an unsightly brown stain on the lead capping which happens when new oak gets wet and run off occurs. If you had time to give the part that tucks under the oak a lick of bituminous paint this will help prevent this from happening. At a push any paint will do...

Doug

 

[Penners]

I'm thinking of a piece of lead with the edge trapped under the beam above, perhaps extending an inch outwards from the wall plate, a curved edge and a half inch drip edge folded over. Does this sound like good form or are there traditional ways of doing it?

The only thing you need to ensure is that water cannot creep along the top of your new piece of lead and create a pool of damp where the bottom surface of the new plate rests on top of the old member (with the lead in between).

 

[formerly known as]

you need to use building paper between oak and lead otherwise oxidisation will cause rot.

 

[formerly known as]

you need to use building paper between oak and lead otherwise oxidisation will cause rot.

 

[malcolm]

Oops! That's the trouble with deciding to do things at the last minute. The other side of the frame went in today and I put a couple of lead hats in place. Just needs fixing to the brickwork, studding, infill, rendering and lime washing now.

 

[DJH]

Nice leadwork FF and Malcolm. Is that timber gutter Malcolm in your picture?

Doug

 

[malcolm]

Sadly not, it is extruded aluminium guttering fitted maybe 20 years ago. The square profile matches the mock tudor on the facade quite well.

 

[DJH]

Right, I thought the offset on the downpipe looked like the corrugations they use to enable bends to be made for aluminium pipe.

Doug

 

[mattice]

Nice lead hat FF, did you achieve it without a join? Just had some 200x200mm oak gate posts fitted,unfortunately before I profiled the top so need something to protect the end grain. Did you use 'building paper'?... need to look that up

Good luck Malcolm, it's reassuring to see oak in that condition and still structurally sound.

 

[Flyfisher]

Nice lead hat FF, did you achieve it without a join? Just had some 200x200mm oak gate posts fitted,unfortunately before I profiled the top so need something to protect the end grain. Did you use 'building paper'?... need to look that up

You can just about see a join at the right hand corner, more of an overlap really, but there is no join over the top sloping sides of the post. I did the first gate post on a whim using a scrap piece of lead but was pleased enough with the result to end up doing four of them. I basically centred the lead sheet on the point of the post and then spent a long time gently hammering it into shape around the post. I used a smallish steel hammer and you can just see the hammer marks in the lead, which gives a 'worked' finish rather than a smooth 'lead sheet' finish. Just a case of experimenting really. I didn't put anything under the lead and there has been no staining, but it's not an oak post just treated softwood - which is why I wanted a bit of extra protection. Five years on it's still looking much the same.

 

[Feltwell]

Did you use 'building paper'?... need to look that up

It's a craft paper with a bituminous core. As I understand it, Doug feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, it's used under lead partly to keep any moisture away from the lead from what's underneath but mostly to stop the lead sticking to whatever it's laid on, so that as it expands and contracts it can do so freely. Hence on a little job like the post caps above there would be real need for it.

Nice job FF & Malcolm! Beats my personal leadwork efforts - bending a bit of old flashing into a square around the base of a downpipe shoe to stop the water splashing out of the gulley when it rains hard. Still, it works!

 

[formerly known as]

also the tannin in lead / sweet chestnut / possibly others can cause oxidisation to the underside of the lead, which in turn can rot the wood.

 

[malcolm]

Good luck Malcolm, it's reassuring to see oak in that condition and still structurally sound.

I found photos from before and after the cement render was removed. It is remarkable the wall plate survived so well. I think it must have had some unintended ventilation or have been able to dry through the wattle and daub lime plastered internal walls. The end was soaking wet when I uncovered it.

I'm about a quarter of the way through the stud work now. It is taking ages as the oak was air dried after cutting and none of it is straight. All of the joints have two angles. I'll keep on going but suspect I might not finish this year.