Period Features

Sash Window Restoration

The desire to make our homes draught-proof and to upgrade the insulation has led to many traditional box sash windows been replaced with uPVC double glazed windows. Replacement windows often clash with the proportions of the house but this is a sacrifice many people will accept in order to have a warmer home. It is possible to restore and improve your existing sash windows and have the best of both worlds and there are many websites offering help and advice. Sash-style www.sash-style.co.uk offer free advice on all aspects of maintaining sash windows from DIY advice on re-cording a window to draught-proofing it with DIY kits. There is also a directory of people who can take on this work for you. DIY sashes http://www.diysashwindow.co.uk/index.htm offer DIY restoration kits that will repair and draught-proof a sash window.

Log Burning Stoves

Heating engineers and chimney sweeps alike assure me that there has been a real rush to remove gas and electric fires and return to solid fuel in order to cut down on heating bills as the credit crunch bites. It's not just heating bills that are reduced by the switch to solid fuel though; log burners, wood chips and wood pellets are some of the most environmentally friendly fuels possible as they only contribute to CO2 emissions via the processing and transport of the wood. For anyone with a ready access to inexpensive or free logs a wood burner makes real sense. However, there is very little information available on important issues such as which size and type of stove to buy, what is meant by a clean burning or airwash stove and what heat output you need for your room size. There are many factors to consider before switching to solid fuel such as the type of flue liner required and the building regulations that apply to stoves. A good source of information is Stoves Online Ltd based in Dartmouth. Stoves Online is a family business that has been making, repairing, selling and installing wood burning stoves, multifuel stoves, and wood burners for over thirty years. Their website www.stovesonline.co.uk

Fireplaces and the period home

This article comes from www.fireplace.co.uk, a consumer information site that provides up to date information about the UK fireplace industry, offers a central resource where you can find links to fireplace retailers, safety advice, regulations, and consumer advice and fireplace installation services. This article is taken from the site's useful History of the Fireplace section.

One of the most appealing aspects of owning a property is the fireplace which acts as a focal point to the living room, adding warmth and character to the whole house.

If they have been removed or inappropriately been altered over the years, it is possible to find suitable replacements. Extensions, loft conversions and outbuildings can all benefit from today's fires and fireplaces as there are a myriad of styles to suit every taste.

To do this sympathetically especially in an older house, it is useful to have an understanding of the historical style of the fireplace that would once have graced the house.

The owners of period properties often wish to retain a fireplace centrepiece to their home in the style of the house. It is worthwhile, then, spending some time looking at the origins of stoves, gas fires and fireplaces in order to place the design changes in a historical context of the era in which all, or the oldest part, of your period home was constructed. Read more from www.fireplace.co.uk

National Maintenance Week

From 21 - 28 November The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) will be holding National Maintenance Week Throughout National Maintenance Week 2008, SPAB's dedicated technical helpline will be open every morning to give callers advice and guidance on maintenance issues. Telephone 0207 456 0916.

SPAB's website at http://www.maintainyourbuilding.org.uk/ offers maintenance tips for older properties and offers advice and guidance on the approach to maintenance that owners of older properties might find helpful such as this article on rising damp which SPAB suggest is often misdiagnosed:

According to Douglas Kent, SPAB Technical Secretary, the inappropriate installation of damp-proof courses to combat rising damp accounts for much unnecessary work on old buildings. True rising damp is rarer than commonly perceived but is regularly misdiagnosed. Read more here

In Situ Manchester

For kitting out old houses, modern warehouse style apartments, clubs, bars, restaurants or shops who want to create interiors with soul and personality, In Situ Manchester is an absolute Godsend. From flooring and doors to stoves, fires and fireplaces, tiles, bathrooms and banisters, the list is endless. Browse through their online catalogue to see a current range of stock. www.insitumanchester.com

How Much Of A Purist Should You Be?

Here's an interesting article from the excellent www.bricksandbrass.co.uk - thanks guys!

You are the owner of a 'run of the mill' mid-Victorian house; not listed, no different from the others in the area. Should you be a purist or should you do what you like?

At Bricks & Brass we broadly support the principles espoused by SPAB and we caution against unthinking and careless changes which can be made to a house.

However, it is your house and you can do what you like with it. We all have budgets and personal preferences. We live in the 21st century; we are used to central heating, TVs and all the junk we have to find a home for. Some houses are already 'spoiled' but you are happy with how they look, or else you have to manage your personal priorities...

Restoration Details

What areas should you consider when it comes to restoring your house? The things that you need to pay attention to include some of the following: the design of the front fence, garden design and planting, interior and exterior hardware and light fittings, windows, doors and other joinery, exterior decorative features such as cast ironwork or fretwork, exterior colour schemes and interior decoration, including colour schemes, stencilling and wall and ceiling papers, soft furnishings and fabrics. And, of course, you can furnish some or all of the house with the appropriate period furniture.

Isn't Restoration Expensive?

Not necessarily. It won't cost any more to use the appropriate materials in the appropriate way than it does to use the wrong materials in the wrong way. Sometimes second-hand materials, such as doors, windows and bathroom fittings are not only much cheaper than their new equivalents but are also of better quality and more suitable. Hiring tradespeople yourself and supervising them is another way to economise, although many people prefer to engage a builder or architect to take charge of the whole job.

Patching Things Up

The mortar is crumbling and falling out from between the stonework (or brickwork) of my old house. Is it OK to patch it up with cement?

No! If the mortar's crumbling it's because it's doing its job. It sounds crazy but that's what it's there for! Old houses were constructed with soft lime mortars which tend to crumble in time. Mortar should always be softer than the brick or stone of a wall in order to allow the building to absorb movement, and to carry away any moisture that finds its way into the walls. Damp will always follow the path of least resistance as it evaporates. Damp from the ground carries harmful salts which crystalise as they reach the air. These crystals expand as they form and can flake away the surface of brick or stonework. But they do very much less harm if they cause mortar to crumble. Replace it with soft lime mortar, using a traditional recipe, and your old house will be much better off than if you were to use a modern, hard cement mortar.

Does Every Old House Need To Be Restored?

A large number of old houses, perhaps the majority, have been subject to changes which have altered their original form and character. In many cases, a significant number of minor changes have been made which dilute the original character of the building. Whoever said 'God is in the details' could have been speaking about old houses. The reinstatement of original details can make an enormous difference to a building. Some old houses have sustained very little alteration and require what might be called enlightened maintenance. There are an even smaller number of extremely rare buildings which are completely original - right down to the interior decoration, fabrics and furniture.