How to externally insulate 1930s house with brick façade?
mizz dune
3 years ago
Hi, I wonder if anyone can advise re: insulating my 1930s semi with solid wall? The front of the house is brick on the ground level and pebble dash on the first floor level. Is it even possible to insulate it externally while keeping the brick and other original features? Or should we decide on the internal insulation?
Thanks in advance
Featured Answer
Comments (7)
Daisy England
3 years ago
mizz dune
3 years agoRelated Discussions
House external
Comments (41)Definitely agree with Design7, the added bonus with fibre cement cladding are: - no maintenance (unlike timber weatherboarding or painting render) - insulation can be added between existing render and fibre cement cladding - an almost instant improvement by adding texture to a very flat facade The risk you face by going with a bold colour over the whole rendered front of your house is that being such a flat and (no offence) uninspiring property, you will only make the situation a lot worse. By adding the texture to the first floor, you can then go bold underneath should you wish to. The other option that no one has suggested yet, will depend on the construction of your house (might be concrete blocks rather than brickwork) and if you do have to strip off the render and start again, it might be worth seeing if you have desirable brickwork beneath it. If so you can either acid strip the brickwork to clean it off or paint the bricks. I would suggest stripping the render off the ground floor and either going for a rendering or cladding to the first floor. I can imagine for a contemporary look, off white with grey Windows and doors, or for a softer cottage style go for a pale cream and mushroom/taupe Windows and doors....See MoreRe-model our 1930's detached house: can you help please?
Comments (8)To me the proportions of the windows don't look right. I don't think that the front face of the bay would've originally been one pane - I think there wouldn't been one or two vertical dividers. To improve the look of the house I would replace the windows with something that looks more in keeping. I would also re-render with a smooth render. I would either put the front door where the flat window is, or make more of an entrance of the for where it is. You don't say whether you use the driveway down the side of the house for a car. if not there are things you could do to make the existing entrance more appealing with a path, planters, etc....See MoreHome Insulation - what you wanted to know but dare not ask...
Comments (17)Thank you Owl for pointing me in the direction of the very informative homebuilding article. I have what I believe is chimney salts in the chimney breast and a small amount in the alcoves. I intend to have the plaster hacked off, leave it a while before replastering to make sure the diagnosis is correct, and I have no more damp. Then I hope to apply internal insulation. I have the original ceiling coving. I would like to stop the insulation at the base of the coving. I presume the coving acts as insulation, so I’m hoping that I won’t have condensation....See More1930s semi-detached single storey extension layout advice please
Comments (14)Hello and thanks for your prompt reply. The drawings provided show that the support beams are 203mm depth and therefore they will be too big to sit inside the ceiling void. As the weight per linear m is 23Kg as detailed on the drawings it may be worth asking the engineer to reduce the depth and and increase the weight so the beam can be inserted into the ceiling void. I note that there is also a couple of posts in the stud wall and these could be upgraded if necessary. I do not make these suggestions lightly. The main benefit of inserting the beam inside the ceiling is the removal of the shadow cast on the ceiling. The return nibs on either end could be cut back and if needed posts could be fixed direct to the brickwork to provide vertical support. There may need to be a spreader plate welded to the bottom of the post in order to mitigate the point load on the foundation. Obviously this is more of a structural design issue. Is there a good reason for not centring the bifold doors to the external wall? You have so much height on the flat roof why not put a warm deck roof on instead of a cold deck with in cross ventilation? Can I also suggest a warm pitched roof too. You may find Web Dynamics TLX Goldto be a very useful form of insulation as you will only need about 75mm of PIR insulation in between the rafters. I've never been fortunate enough to meet a building control officer willing to accept a heavy duty Catnic lintel over a 4M bifold door. I thought the under stairs might be the position of the meters. I would consider relocating these to an outside wall. Then turn the WC through 90 degrees and design it under the stairs. If I was planning a kitchen diner extension with a beautiful bi-fold door looking out into the rear garden would try and create a direct flow from front of house to the back. I would move the utility room into the middle of the house to provide a direct line of sight from the front door to the rear garden. GD3 would provide access into the utility room. I'd consider moving the door along the living room wall so it could open into the hallway. This would allow a 950mm wide fully glazed door to be placed between the hallway and the kitchen diner. With regard to the position of the new extension wall which is adjacent to your adjoining neighbour I suggest that you look up the party wall act 1996 booklet online here - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/523010/Party_Wall_etc__Act_1996_-_Explanatory_Booklet.pdf The part that is of interest is "Line of junction - building astride the boundary". If you build across the boundary you should gain at least 150mm of additional internal floor space along the length of the outside wall. Also if in the future your neighbour decides to build an extension they can utilise your wall for if they pay half of the cost of its construction. I'm sure you know that you are responsible for paying all of the costs from all sides relating to the party wall agreement. If the neighbour on the other side is within 3/6m then you will need an agreement with them as well. The architects drawing indicates that the drain is not adopted or shared and therefore you will not require a build over agreement with the water authority. Best wishes Andrew...See Moremira x
3 years agomizz dune
3 years agoMarcus Francis
last yearmizz dune
last year
Philip S