Hi,
I am planning on creating some shelving in an area of an outbuilding.
It is an enclosed area is between the house (1950s) and the main outbuilding (1970s). It is brick on 3 sides (back of the house and the two walls in the shots), with a aluminum sliding door on the fourth wall and an insulated flat roof.
When I cleared the area I found what looks like crystals on the surface off the mortar on a single skinned external wall. I have attached some pictures. The unpainted wall to the left is double skinned with an unheated outbuilding beyond it, and the painted wall is single skinned external.
I have seen standard efflorescence on brick walls in the past, and this clearly looks different but does look like it could be something leaching out of the mortar and forming crystals.
I just wondered if anybody could please tell me what it is, and whether anything needs to be done about it. As far as I can tell the DPC is directly above the two courses of bricks that are affected.
Also, I want to lay untreated timber on the tiled floor as part of the shelving structure, and will also have untreated timber against that external wall. Do I need to take any precautions in terms of treated/protecting the timber, or use any barrier or gap between the surfaces and the timber?
Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
I am planning on creating some shelving in an area of an outbuilding.
It is an enclosed area is between the house (1950s) and the main outbuilding (1970s). It is brick on 3 sides (back of the house and the two walls in the shots), with a aluminum sliding door on the fourth wall and an insulated flat roof.
When I cleared the area I found what looks like crystals on the surface off the mortar on a single skinned external wall. I have attached some pictures. The unpainted wall to the left is double skinned with an unheated outbuilding beyond it, and the painted wall is single skinned external.
I have seen standard efflorescence on brick walls in the past, and this clearly looks different but does look like it could be something leaching out of the mortar and forming crystals.
I just wondered if anybody could please tell me what it is, and whether anything needs to be done about it. As far as I can tell the DPC is directly above the two courses of bricks that are affected.
Also, I want to lay untreated timber on the tiled floor as part of the shelving structure, and will also have untreated timber against that external wall. Do I need to take any precautions in terms of treated/protecting the timber, or use any barrier or gap between the surfaces and the timber?
Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
