We have been removing the hanging slates from the outside on 2 elevations of the house.  These are not just slates, but slates that have been rendered over.  It’s our belief that a lot of the damp problems may be caused (or at least not helped) by damp being trapped behind these slates/render.  The water gets in, but can’t easily dry out.  We actually started this work a week or so ago, but some solid progress here.

Always with a keen eye on health and safety, I was sure to wear a woolly hat for the high work! Removing this layer of covering on the outside has exposed how bad the last few timber window frames are.

Filler just isn’t going to work here…I think these will need replacing.We’ve also begun stripping plaster from the inside (at least on the first of the rooms).  This room will be my office…Quite a way to go, but this is a start.  It is beginning to expose some interesting features too.  We found the outline of an old window and an old doorway.  The doorway, which was from the office out to the walled garden, still had the remains of the timber lintel (rotten of course).