Totally Off Topic, but need decent builders advice

[Grumpy Northener]

The use of the mortar gun is good idea as it ensures that the material is firmly pushed into the joint - personally on the tight joints I would attempt to see if you could rake them open a little - avoid any thin edges to your pointing has this in time will just blow open - you may also find it useful to purchase a wide / narrow flat jointing tool - sometimes called a tuck pointer - like these https://www.dm-tools.co.uk/browse.php/s ... 07/level/4 - miles easier than using a pointing trowel when doing flush / beaded pointing. Apologies if I state the obvious but ensure your joints are dust free - I use a stiff handbrush and immediately prior to pointing just flick a bit of water down the joints with a soft brush - good luck

[rich.]

sometimes i use a funnel & length of hose pipe to get the lime slurry down into the centre of the stone work... fiddly very messy but works great for strengthening old walls

[arceye]

Thanks again chaps, and Mr Grumpy, even the obvious is worth stating, I've done plenty of pointing and such like but always worked with cement in the past, and never sympathetically on stone of this type let alone with Lime.

I've uncovered the first wall but still have lots of raking out to do, some comes out easy but some is very hard and difficult to shift.

An alteration to the roof line is now pretty clear.





and a closer view of the stonework



So, lots to do, and I think I'm going to be making it up as I go along by seeing what gives an acceptable result.

Material wise I have hit a bit of a compromise based on what I can lay my hands on reasonably. I have ordered NHL3.5 lime which takes its initial set apparently more like cement and was advised for exposed conditions, I am going to mix this with sharp sand available by the ton from the builders merchants, but from past use I may have to riddle this sand to get rid of some of the larger aggregates for the finer work. It was this or by the bag mortar from far away along with the associated haulage costs, so I figured I'd give it a go for the first wall and see how it works out.

One possibility is to straighten up the wall by pointing and filling the low spots then to try and harl it traditionally. According to historic scotland this was historically just one coat of lime with a finished thickness of around 10mm, thrown on the wall, barely worked and more pushed back following the shapes of the wall rather than floated flat, then limewashed. This would give some shape to the wall surface in a rustic type of way.

All I can really think to do is finish getting the wall cleaned up and then try a few ideas to see what seems to work best.

[Grumpy Northener]

Well now you have exposed one wall I would discount pointing the joints - you would be there forever attempting to make this good and then you have the problem of the mismatched stone work adjacent to the roof line - your research into a lime render looks to be favourable option - if you skim out the low spots first before applying a skim over the entire wall - a plastic float will probably work better than a steel one.

[arceye]

Sounds like the best way forward, best to get out as much of the hard cement as possible first ?

[Luxobarge]

Agree with the above advice - followed by as many coats of limewash as you can.

Yes, cement is an evil thing in buildings like this, so remove as much as you can first.

Also as a few posts above, you need to get the dust & loose debris out of the joints before mortaring. Depending on the convenience factor and orientation I often use a vacuum cleaner to do this (my trusty Henry!) or failing that you could use a hose to wash it out with water. This sounds drastic, as it will get the wall wet, but you're putting lime on afterwards and lime likes to dry out slowly - really slowly, so if the wall is wet and the lime mortar is wet, then the whole lot will dry out slowly and evenly without cracking so this isn't actually a bad idea - I see you have a hose handy! Don't need a lot of pressure (i.e. don't use a jet wash!) but enough to wash out the loose stuff. Start at the top so the debris doesn't get back into where you've already washed.

Good man - you'll soon have that sorted!

[kevin]

Just caught up on this thread.
I am a chartered surveyor and am employed as a group construction director, a lot of what I do professionally is refurb on distressed buildings.
A couple of observations:

Watch the angle of your ladder and alway make sure some1 is footing it.
The hard paving to the yard seems to be abutting the gable? If it is, this will cause damp penetration. If it isn't then make sure there is adequate drainage at that junction.
Remove all the cement based pointing to a depth of 25mm then crack on with the lime rendering. Worth remembering that when built there would have been little thought given to providing a totally flat result, if you follow the wall and make sure you get the lime into the joints, get it to a reasonable finish it will add character and not look out of place.
Don't render to the base of the wall, I would aim to leave the bottom 150mm exposed but fully pointed up and perhaps painted with a good bitumen treatment with either a metal or plastic bell bead above it or go old school and use a wood lath to help form the bell.
If you decide to overpaint the render, make sure you use a paint that will allow the wall to breath, any decent paint manufacturer tech dept will advise on this.

Pm if you need to chat

Kev.

[arceye]

Cheers Chaps, looking like a plan

Kev, the ladders had been at the peak but I moved them when cleaning up so the foot is further out than I would have it in use, but must admit to being stuck for anyone to foot the them.

The flags are right up to the wall but it may be an idea to cut and lift to leave a clear section and fill with gravel ?

The house is odd in that at this end the floors are actually lower than the outside ground levels front and rear but not at the side which has a lower garden, and the large slightly raised flag next to the drystone wall seems to cover a small pit that drains freely down an old rubble drain. I think the flags here may have formed a floor for another part of the house in sometime past, possibly a second byre or outhouse / loo as the old plans show the building coming out further here up to the boundary. Fortunately we have not had a problem with damp at the low floor levels though this seems contrary to what I'd expect.

The rest of house has had the floors raised (possibly the reason for the altered roofline?) by concreting over the original flagstone floors which would also have been below ground level. Apparently it is reckoned they liked to build low up here due to the high winds we experience several times a year, 100mph plus being quite a regular occurance.

All a bit higgledypiggledy really, but I suppose par for the course with old buildings.

[kevin]

Difficult with the ladder situation, be worth looking at a ladder steady for the top.
The flags deffo need cutting back to keep moisture transference to a minimum, similarly, where the level is above the floor, either drop the external level or cut the ground back and introduce some drainage.

All helps.

Kev

[rich.]

how are you getting on with this? last week i did some lime plastering.. i will have to take some pics when i go back to get my cheque...