MATERIALS USED FOR CONSERVATION
We can note many an example of where old meets new in all it’s glory; The Fiat 500, The Roberts radio and the SMEG fridge are all example of iconic designs that have been lovingly brought into the 21st century, adapted to meet the needs of our modern day lifestyle. Why? Because we loved them that much and the challenge to restore period properties shares the exact same objective; to bring back the best of our past and make it suitable for our life today.
Just as the engineers and designers of the products above painstakingly mixed the old format with new technology we restoration experts must be dedicated to understanding the right mix of old and new when undertaking building restoration projects.
A period (or old) property is typically constructed with solid walls using breathable materials so the use of the materials we have today must be expertly chosen to ensure longevity of the restoration. Most issues with restoration projects occur when the inexperienced use our new materials, preventing the building from ‘breathing’ as it was designed to do. I have attended many ‘rescue’ projects where restoration has gone wrong because of this; I once witnessed a 16th century timber framed house having been re rendered using cement, the timber had begun to rot at an incredible as it was unable to ‘breathe’. The building was rescued by my team and I by replacing the modern materials with traditional render and restoring the entire timber frame.
The bottom line is that the majority of the new materials and techniques we have today (and that utilised so well in new build projects) are just not right to use on our precious period properties. Even materials such as emulsion paint and standard gypsum plaster can be disastrous for an older building and often the cost of putting these mistakes right can be high; with professionals needed to not only rectify the use of the wrong materials but address any resulting damage of these errors.
As a passionate restoration professional I am dedicated to sourcing and using only the very best materials and am lucky enough to share this passion with my team. We are completely dedicated to the prevention of restoration errors through offering education and advice to our clients.
For more information on the right materials to use within your project, to seek advice on concerns with your current project or to ask us about a restoration you have planned please do get in touch.
