Time flies but one year into the project we were making good progress on the external work. A Some welcome early spring sunshine, and strategic felling of a couple of trees, allowed the light and air to do its work in curing the lime renders to a bright and sound finish all round. Painting the sills and front door helped breath some life into the house.
Cleaning the septic tank revealed no hidden horrors and the drains were modified to pipe in the grey as well as black water (rather than running sink, bath and washing machine into the garden). We pulled out what had passed for a kitchen and fitted new worktops, sink, storage and extractor fan and were finally able to realise our vision of washing the pots with a view of the mountains through our new window.
With more functional services in place and milder weather attention turned to some landscaping. Having opened up the plot to the road to make room for the heavy machinery the main task was to rebuild stone boundary walls, fit gates and lay the base for a driveway and courtyard.
For the walls, we decided to lime render and wash. We would pull away old mortar, fillers and crumbling run-offs, and chisel away what we could in places where concrete render had been applied to the old walls. After repairing and securing the stonework, and inserting some new lintels, we would use a thick coat of Natural Hydrating Lime (NHL) to daub out the uneven surfaces, apply a scud coat and finishing coat of lime plaster and five coats of white lime wash. NHL has remarkable natural properties for the protection of stonework, allowing water to be absorbed and removed gently in a breathable way. It would also transform the external appearance of the house, softening the surface lines, while preserving the undulation of the rough stonework. All in all, a much bigger job, but a satisfying one.
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Lime render coats |
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