Hi all.
The house that I bought has had to have a new consumer unit fitted, since the previous owner decided to install it in the cavity of the external wall
. Needless to say, it had burnt out. Anyway, the electrician removed it and replaced it with a new metal one mounted by the ceiling with all the modern safety facilities, etc., but of course, where he had taken it out of the cavity, there was a 27x23cm hole left right through the internal skin of the cavity wall. I now need to put this right. Of course I could brick it up, but is there an easier and quicker way to do it, since I am short on equipment and cash (especially after the removal of the consumer unit)? Up until now, I have simply hung a picture over it ! I have considered putting a plasterboard patch into the hole, but figured that the back of it would need treating with some sort of damp proof (e.g. bitumen) so that it didn't wick damp through from the cavity. I could then skim over the join and hope that water didn't leach in through the cracks round the outside... Another problem that I thought might happen with this is that when the room is warm, the plasterboard will transfer the heat into the cold cavity and get condensation running down the waterproofed side, which will seep in through the join. I really don't want to replace one bad job with another, so I shall stick with my picture over the hole (which does a marvellous job) until I hear your thoughts.
The house that I bought has had to have a new consumer unit fitted, since the previous owner decided to install it in the cavity of the external wall
. Needless to say, it had burnt out. Anyway, the electrician removed it and replaced it with a new metal one mounted by the ceiling with all the modern safety facilities, etc., but of course, where he had taken it out of the cavity, there was a 27x23cm hole left right through the internal skin of the cavity wall. I now need to put this right. Of course I could brick it up, but is there an easier and quicker way to do it, since I am short on equipment and cash (especially after the removal of the consumer unit)? Up until now, I have simply hung a picture over it ! I have considered putting a plasterboard patch into the hole, but figured that the back of it would need treating with some sort of damp proof (e.g. bitumen) so that it didn't wick damp through from the cavity. I could then skim over the join and hope that water didn't leach in through the cracks round the outside... Another problem that I thought might happen with this is that when the room is warm, the plasterboard will transfer the heat into the cold cavity and get condensation running down the waterproofed side, which will seep in through the join. I really don't want to replace one bad job with another, so I shall stick with my picture over the hole (which does a marvellous job) until I hear your thoughts.
