Plaster falling off corners from damp

[rreanor]

Hi,

I have a house under offer which is probably pre-ww2.

In 2 corners of the downstairs living room plaster is falling off presumably from damp in the past, although it doesnt feel damp now and there is no other evidence of damp either coming down the walls or from beneath (floor and carpet is bone dry)

On closer inspection, I picked away at it a bit expecting to see brickwork under the plaster which i was originally planning on stripping off up to waist height, but the inner layer of brickwork only comes up to about shin level. Above this (and behind the plaster layers) is a brittle clay-like material which i can only assume is adhered to the outer layer of brickwork which continues up the house (otherwise the house would fall down!).

Any ideas what this material is, is it standard material for walls to be made of? Would this all need to be taken off ? I've attached a couple of photos.

 

[23vc]

Encountered this before, it’s like a load of rubble/stone/cr@p on the inner skin. Not sure how far up it normally continues, but it’s a nightmare to fix to.
Maybe they had a brick shortage back then.

 

[rreanor]

Encountered this before, it’s like a load of rubble/stone/cr@p on the inner skin. Not sure how far up it normally continues, but it’s a nightmare to fix to.
Maybe they had a brick shortage back then.

The plaster was fixed to it before, so i assume can be done again.

I guess my main question was given that it's quite soft and brittle, would it all need to come up up to a certain point? It constitutes a major part of the wall, so what would replace it, brickwork?

 

[datarebal]

looks like cob. the bricks exposed may not be original. Lime is called for

 

[bobasd]

as above - possibly Cobb.

what part of the country is the building in?
how old is the house?


pics showing that whole interior wall - and an exterior view - would help?

you show a failing gypsum skim plaster with backing coats of whatever?
lower down the wall there seems to be some kind of skirting?

on the info so far its difficult to say anything definite.

these issues will come out in the mortgage survey? they might cause problems getting a mortgage?

 

[rreanor]

as above - possibly Cobb.

what part of the country is the building in?
how old is the house?


pics showing that whole interior wall - and an exterior view - would help?

you show a failing gypsum skim plaster with backing coats of whatever?
lower down the wall there seems to be some kind of skirting?

on the info so far its difficult to say anything definite.

these issues will come out in the mortgage survey? they might cause problems getting a mortgage?

It's in Norfolk, although i'm not sure about the age - probably late victorian although the original building may well be earlier.

I've attached a few more images. On the outside there is cobble up to the same point where the brick comes up to on the inside. As you can see, there is no evidence of existing water ingress on the outside from leaking gutters or sitting water. I've noticed that there is a line around the entire internal wall which marks the

 

[datarebal]

its not unheard of to have a mix of stone, flint , brick and cob. local availability would dictate

how thick are the walls?

in the second internal picture what is going on with the skirting on the right side of the room?

have you a close up?

 

[rreanor]

its not unheard of to have a mix of stone, flint , brick and cob. local availability would dictate

how thick are the walls?

in the second internal picture what is going on with the skirting on the right side of the room?

have you a close up?

That's just where the fallen plaster is leaning on the skirting. There's nothing untoward about the skirting. The walls are quite thick, perhaps 30cm

 

[bobasd]

on the outside pic, roughly in line with the step tread, there appears to be what could be a DPC?
however, where the exposed pebbles (black) meet the cobb (white) - the cobb, or perhaps its render, should have finished with a Bell Cast to throw the water off.
instead there's a ledge which will actually catch water, and might even be directing the moisture into the cobb - causing the water damage inside the room?

there's a hump in the floor with its crown under the step-down.
i assume the floor is a concrete slab but it needs checking that its not clay?
the Pvc doors should have been set back 75mm from the face of the building.
true cobb walls are typically more than 300mm - your cottage walls could be made according to some local practice. inquiries will have to be made with similar structure neighbours or local RICS surveyors.

check out the history of this sale - has the house been void for long, ask for copies of any earlier surveys.
is the property isolated or connected to other properties?

 

[rreanor]

on the outside pic, roughly in line with the step tread, there appears to be what could be a DPC?
however, where the exposed pebbles (black) meet the cobb (white) - the cobb, or perhaps its render, should have finished with a Bell Cast to throw the water off.
instead there's a ledge which will actually catch water, and might even be directing the moisture into the cobb - causing the water damage inside the room?

there's a hump in the floor with its crown under the step-down.
i assume the floor is a concrete slab but it needs checking that its not clay?
the Pvc doors should have been set back 75mm from the face of the building.
true cobb walls are typically more than 300mm - your cottage walls could be made according to some local practice. inquiries will have to be made with similar structure neighbours or local RICS surveyors.

check out the history of this sale - has the house been void for long, ask for copies of any earlier surveys.
is the property isolated or connected to other properties?

It's been empty for about 9 months, having gone to intestacy following the death of its owner who was elderly (so i'd be surprised it has any recent surveys, but that would be for the solicitor to find out). It's detached, and under the carpet is parquet flooring which isnt damp or damaged, it just seems to be this particular spot in the corner of the walls.

I've got a builder who i met who specialises in older buildings looking at it shortly - i guess my main question is is this fixable? Given how soft and brittle the walls are in this particular spot, i'm concerned that the walls will eventually fail to very serious consequences. Is it normal that cob becomes so soft? If damp has the effect of rendering it structurally unsound i'm surprised it's used on the outside at all.

 

[bobasd]

i have no direct experience of working with cobb - what i say is based on what i know about it, and general building experience.
doubtful that anything is due for collapsing - and there are various remedies available for future remedial work.