exterior
Adverse weather conditions and bad building practice are the two greatest risks that all homes and structures have to contend with. This is even more of a truism in the case of older properties that have either no cavity wall insulation, or for historic buildings that have no cavity wall at all, aka mass wall construction.
A friendly word of advice here - if a general builder arrives waving a damp meter, spouting the virutes of chemical damp proof injection into your mass wall, kindly but firmly show him the door. It will have limited if any benefit and probably cost a small fortune. The reason being is that there is no large vertical or horizontal void for the solution to fill, there are, instead, thousands of tiny nooks and crannies created by large and small stones that are impossible to fill on a uniform level.
The exterior of a building works in exactly the same way as our skin does by allowing moisture to escape when we get hot, and creating a barrier safeguarding the essential internal functions from the elements. The only real way to limit the damage is to maintain your property and to use the appropriate building materials for the type of structure you own.
Lime render, like lime mortar, is a breathable material that allows moisture created by central heating systems, modern appliances, body heat and atmospheric conditions to escape through it, whilst creating a permeable barrier to deflect rainwater away. It can be coloured using natural pigments and/or various ratios of stone dusts and sands to achieve an unbelievable variety of colours.
To compliment the natural benefits of the lime plaster and render we use quality limewashes, distempers and mineral or plant-based paints on plasters and renders to give a beautifully natural finish.
Apart from looking and feeling much more naturally appealing they also have key environmental and physical health benefits for our homes, ourselves and our planet.