Hi All,
We have an Early Victorian House in North London and have been renovating it. The lower half is rendered but the property has been council owned and as such the original integrity - lime render and lime mortar has been replaced with concrete render and cement based pointing.
The top half is old yellow brick - which is supposed to be pretty porous - and I have been told that the lower render need to be breathable because the water absorbed in the top half needs to be able to be expelled in the bottom half.
The rendering now needs replacing. The local conservation officer has said that they recommend 1:1:6 cement: non hydraulic lime: aggregate.
I have been getting conflicting advice. I am aware of the issues of breathability, flexibility etc with Lime but wanted to draw on some of the experience on here.
Will a 1:1:6 mix have any breathability at all?
Is there any advantage to going with a lime putty if using a 1:1:6 mix?
Will we be able to get a smooth finish - as opposed to a sandy finish? I know we can coat it but presumably that will reduce any breathability that it might have - assuming that a 1:1:6 mix will retain some breathability!
I am reluctant to go for a waterproof coating type of solution - or is this silly if I already have cement pointing and am planning a 1:1:6 mix?
Would be interested to hear thoughts and advice from those with direct experience - advice so far seems to split into ardent cement fans vs ardent lime advocates....
Many thanks in advance.
Chris
We have an Early Victorian House in North London and have been renovating it. The lower half is rendered but the property has been council owned and as such the original integrity - lime render and lime mortar has been replaced with concrete render and cement based pointing.
The top half is old yellow brick - which is supposed to be pretty porous - and I have been told that the lower render need to be breathable because the water absorbed in the top half needs to be able to be expelled in the bottom half.
The rendering now needs replacing. The local conservation officer has said that they recommend 1:1:6 cement: non hydraulic lime: aggregate.
I have been getting conflicting advice. I am aware of the issues of breathability, flexibility etc with Lime but wanted to draw on some of the experience on here.
Will a 1:1:6 mix have any breathability at all?
Is there any advantage to going with a lime putty if using a 1:1:6 mix?
Will we be able to get a smooth finish - as opposed to a sandy finish? I know we can coat it but presumably that will reduce any breathability that it might have - assuming that a 1:1:6 mix will retain some breathability!
I am reluctant to go for a waterproof coating type of solution - or is this silly if I already have cement pointing and am planning a 1:1:6 mix?
Would be interested to hear thoughts and advice from those with direct experience - advice so far seems to split into ardent cement fans vs ardent lime advocates....
Many thanks in advance.
Chris