Search results

There's no point in replacing your tiles if movement and cracking is still occuring. If you're not sure, you can glue a tile across a crack and leave it for a week or two. If it doesn't crack, you can fill the gaps and retile the wall.

I would remove the broken tiles very carefully. You'll soon know whether the rest will stay put. If the adhesive bond has failed or the skim layer has blown, I'm afraid you'll have to remove large sections and make good the substrate before replacing your tiles. As I said, tapping each tile with...

Did you take out the chimney breast in the room below? If the new timbers are supported by the remaining brickwork, you should be golden. I've only completed 6 renovations, so other contributors are far more knowledgeable regarding these matters.

I've completed a similar project. We had to put 4 flitch beams in to span the various supporting walls downstairs. That's the reason we use an experienced architect. All the finer details should be included on the drawings, with the exception of the engineer's final calculations for beam sizes...

If the building has finished settling following the work next door, you MIGHT not experience any more cracking. However, I think you'll find that the movement may have broken the bond between several of the tiles and the substrate. Try tapping the middle of each tile with the tip of your finger...

We need photos really. Is the purlin supported by uprights that have been 'bird-mouthed'?

You'd normally just seal the outside of the frame. This is to avoid trapping water within the frame profile.

I can vouch for this. I fitted a window and neglected to seal the corners where the frame meets the cill, and this resulted in damp patches appearing internally, at both ends. At least that proved it was level!

Have you checked that your window drain holes are clear? There should be at least two that are accessible to clean with a pipe cleaner or a length of electrical cable where the base of the window meets the sill.

Compressed air might force sitting water out through the vents. Have you got a leaf blower or a wet and dry vac with an output? Worth a try!

Is it worth carrying out an experiment? You could tape/fix a sheet of plastic over the area for a few weeks to see if the problem persists. You've been living with this for 5 years. It must be getting you down a bit. Really hope you get it sorted!

If you force compressed air in through a weep vent, you should be able to hear it emerging from the other weep vents... if they exist.

Thompson's Water Seal didn't solve my problem, but the £90 masonry cream did. As I said, it's gap-bridging. I applied it with a fairly stiff brush and really worked it into the bricks and joints. You'll see that there is no colour change to the treated bricks during wet weather because they no...

Noseall might be onto something. Your first floor window has been fitted without sill horns, which isn't an issue in itself, but you might find that the water that is supposed to escape from the drain holes at the base of the window is finding its way into the cavity somehow. It might be worth...

Obviously, cavity trays are useless without weep vents. You can keep these clear with a vacuum cleaner. Really.

Weep vents?

You're not alone! I've experienced similar issues. Soft reds absorb water like a MF. When the bricks reach saturation point, water can then run down the inside of the outer wall (inside the cavity). If there's no cavity tray fitted, you'll have issues. One work-around is to use a high-quality...

Tilemaster Grout 3000 looks great in grey, but it goes dark when wet and then takes time to dry out again. Has anyone used a grout sealer to prevent this phenomenon from occurring? I was thinking about wiping over the grout with Thompson's Water Seal. Silly idea? Thanks in advance! :-)

Thanks for sharing this. It was a timely reminder for me to thoroughly flush my pipes through before fitting my new shower bar. :)

Yeah, mugs like us have to work for at least 35 years to earn our full pension. Maybe we should all don a pair of sweatpants, take to the sofa and order our meals from Just Eat?