Internal stone walls

[Whatwhy]

Hi all,

I am hoping to get some advice.

I have a Victorian property where all the walls (internal and external) are solid stone with thick horsehair plaster/ lime and multiple layers of wall paper. Some of the external walls are quite damp as the previous occupants never did any work to the property, neglected the pointing and the roof, resulting in lots of leaks. The internal walls are all dry, but on removing the wallpaper, a lot of the existing skim and plaster has come off so I have decided to remove it completely.
For the external walls, I am likely going to frame it out, insulate it and dryline it. I did consider having it lime plastered, but have struggled to find plasterers to do it, I know it will be expensive, and the insulation will help with the heating bills.

With the internal walls (solid stone walls between rooms), I am not really sure what to do. The options are:
Lime. (expensive and still can't find someone to do it)
Timber battens, or metal (gypliner) and drylining.
Dot and dab and skim. Easiest option, but means that you can never expose the stonework again (not that I plan to)
Sand cement. (Not)
Other?????


All rooms have really high ceilings, picture rails, coving, and large skirting boards. Some rooms have a dado rail as well. I am hoping that I can save the decorative elements, but I know in some rooms where the external walls are too damaged with damp, they will have to be redone.

I know there is no consensus on stone walls, and each property is different, but hoping you guys might have some advice on how to move forward.


Thanks,
Sam

 

[JohnD]

it will vary according to the type of stone, and local building practice.

You need to say where you are, and (if you know), the type of stone.

 

[Whatwhy]

Hi John.
I'm up in rossendale in Lancashire.
The stone is most likely sandstone, like the other houses in the area, bit I'm not got at identifying stone and worse and identifying timber.

 

[tell80]

Whatwhy,
The exposed stone you pic doesn't show signs of damp.
Why not post pics of where the actual damp shows on the decorated surfaces or where woodwork has been damp damaged?
Pics showing the outside of the walls would also help?

There's no big deal about applying a lime render 3:1 mix of sand & NH lime - its roughly the same price as sand & cement and just as simple to spread.
FWIW: Many stone householders prefer to leave the stone exposed.

 

[Whatwhy]

Tell 80

Sorry if I was not clear on my original post. The walls in question are the internal partition walls between rooms, not the internal face of the external walls.
The internal partition walls (pictured) in this house are all solid stone, and are all dry. It is these walls that I am seeking advice on how to best finish them.

The external walls are the ones that are damp, and I know what I will be doing with them once they have been repointed and the roof and gutters made water tight. I will be framing and insulating with breathable insulation, then drylining them.

Exposed stone walls would not be appropriate for this property.
[GALLERY=media, 107823]IMG_20220318_231352726 by Whatwhy posted 18 Mar 2022 at 11:14 PM[/GALLERY]

 

[Deleted member 292770]

your idea of framing and insulating is spot on.
i’d be tempted to leave the internals exposed but brushed repointed and lacquered.
just because they are ‘internal’ won’t stop them suffering rising damp if you do the wrong thing.

 

[tell80]

Fine. Then why not use the mix I suggested above?
Do you have to hack off all the historic render or could you simply make good to the blown areas?
And, FWIW, why not post pics of the damp affected areas on the external walls?

 

[Nige F]

Fine. Then why not ?

He's gone off in a huff probably another name change.

 

[Whatwhy]

It does seem to pretty shot in most places, and is coming off on large chunks.
If it were solid I'd happily skim over it, but it does seem like most of it will come off.
It's also throwing up some surprises like random concrete, in places, lots of holes, and a few bits of newish plaster.

 

[Whatwhy]

Couple of the areas where the walls are wet.

 

[JohnD]

I wonder if the holes used to have wooden grounds in the for studwork to support L&P or panelling?

I have a neighbour with a flint and lime house, with L&P spaced off the inside. When a wall was repaired, the mason propped that side and left the original L&P in place while working, and tied it back in when rebuilding.

 

[Whatwhy]

@JohnD That could be. There are quite a few bits of wood scattered through the walls. I just assumed it was later additions that was done when the house was split into two properties by the council in the 60s. They are also pretty randomly scattered.

 

[tell80]

OP,
Thanks for the new pics.
Take down the recent, badly fixed, ceiling plasterboard - you need to expose whats happening in the ceiling, not to cover it up.
All modern wallpaper esp "plastic" type paper must be stripped.
I assume that the exterior pointing needs raking out to about 30mm, and be re-pointed with a 3:1 mix of sand and lime.
You need to get into the loft and inspect for leaks.
Much of what you show at coving level needs eyes on site to determine if it can be saved in-situ or does it have to be removed and made good?

 

[Whatwhy]

@tell80 The plasterboard was a temporary fix to get the Mrs off my back after I opened the ceiling up to see what was going on up there.
The roof is coming off in a couple of months and the parapet gutters (which are completely shot) are getting replaced.
Yes, the external walls are also going to get raked and repointed.
The coving looks ok once you scrape the paint off, however, whether I will be able to save it when I take the ceilings down is an other story. A lot of the lathe is rotted around the edges, so it is going to be tricky. Also, the paint used is very thick.
Thankfully the wall paper is old school. However, there are quite a few layers of it and not all of it wants to come off...
This is going to be a long costly project of a house...