Archives for 2010

Damp – but not rising damp

Damp specialists like me make money treating damp problems.  So it’s good news when a domestic client asks for a survey to ‘quote for the rising damp that the mortgage surveyor has found’. With this open invitation to quote for work, the clients is lining him/herself up for a loss – this is why we […]

Free Damp and Timber surveys – I was wrong all along.

I’ve been a damp and timber specialist for 34 years – starting work with my Dad’s old firm in 1976. I actually started surveying houses for damp and timber infestation problems in 1980.  I don’t know how many surveys I’ve done since then, but I do know that it is considerably more than 10,000 and […]

Cintec ties are the thing for rubble walls – see why….

I visited site this morning where my chaps were inflating Cintec ties using Prestec grout. These ties are great for weak substrates and hollow walls.  They are particularly good for rubble filled stone, where getting a descent fix with a mechanical or resin bonded tie can be difficult or impossible. Katrina, my office manager, has […]

Testing time for wall ties

The interesting collapse job in Leeds is now complete.  Well, our involvement is anyway.  My lads have installed the helifix ‘starter ties’ and lateral restraints and this morning, they inflated Cintec grouted anchors installed in the rubble filled areas. The Helifix items are installed in naked brick, so swinging on them is a good test, […]

Collapsed wall update.

Brick-Tie Preservation senior wall tie technician Stuart Lattimer has now started work on repairing the collapsed wall in Horsforth, Leeds. With the scaffold up, the full extent of the damage can be seen and in the video below I talk you through the proposed repairs. I’ll be on site again later this week to show […]

Copyright © 2010 Preservation Expert. Legal Stuff: All the advice and information in the posts on my blog is made in good faith and is based on my experience and knowledge at the time of writing. However, nobody is infallible and whilst I’m confident that most of what I write about preservation issues is accurate, there’s a good chance there’ll be an error or two somewhere. I do change my mind about stuff, as I gain more experience. In view of this you must make your own decisions on whether to follow any advice I write and think about this; I could be wrong. No responsibility will be accepted by the author for any losses anyone may suffer as a result of any mistake or for the consequence of any action you take as a result of reading this blog. If you do suffer a loss, resulting from anything I’ve written, a verbal heartfelt apology will be your only compensation.