Recently, a client approached us and asked for our help to renovate an old house he had bought recently. The client had neglected the house for a long time, so it was in a quite poor condition. During the renovation process, we faced numerous challenges. Here are the summaries of the five main problems we encountered and the solutions we took to renovate this old house:
- One of the main problems was a hole left after we removed the roof chimney. The hole required proper repair. After a search, we found matching tiles and carefully fixed the hole and decorative cornice.
- Furthermore, we found cracks on the outdoor brick wall. The wall was partly demolished and risky. We repaired it to restore it.
- Meanwhile, the indoor low-sloped roof had poor insulation. So, we built a three-step flat drop ceiling to increase height, transform appearance, and improve insulation and ventilation.
- Also, we knocked down the wall between the kitchen and the laundry and properly finished the new wall opening. We finished it differently to match the environment.
- Finally, the walls in the main rooms were in poor condition. So, we re-plastered and repainted them.
Repairing the Holes from the Roof Chimney
One problem in renovating this old house was a hole created when we removed the roof chimney. Due to a lack of matching tiles, we covered the hole temporarily with a lead roof flash. But this wasn’t a permanent solution.
The chimney hole through the roof and ceiling caused damage that needed repair. This hole might damage the roof’s wooden frame and affect the interior ceiling. We visited a famous Sydney store that sells old tiles. But we couldn’t find any as the roof tiles were too old. Thanks to Roof Tiles Recyclers. They told us Recycling Roof Tiles in Doyalson had matching tiles. We drove 100 kilometers to Doyalson and bought 20 tiles. Then we carefully repaired the hole and decorative cornice for a smooth finish.
Suppliers of second-hand roof tiles:
- Roof Tile Recylers Address: 20 Stoddart Rd, Prospect NSW 2148
- Recycling Roof Tiles 100 kilometers away from Sydney. Address: 6 David St, Doyalson NSW 2262
Dealing with the Cracks on the Outdoor Brick Wall
Another issue was the cracks on the outdoor brick wall. Judging from the walls, we supposed that there was once a wall with a door here. However, most of the wall had been demolished, leaving only the wooden frame on one side of the door and the bricks connected to the main wall. This not only looked unsightly but also posed a potential safety hazard. We promptly removed the remaining bricks and wooden posts and meticulously repaired this corner, restoring the integrity of the wall.
Suppliers of the matching bricks:
- The matching bricks were bought from Punchbowl “Outdoor & General” yard
Improving the Indoor Low-Sloped Roof
Inside the house, near the backyard, a section of a low-sloped roof had been added. This is one quite popular issue for many old house with extra sunny room. We observed that the insulation was fixed by a wire mesh, which was highly unsatisfactory. The ceiling height of this house was less than 2.4 meters. To handle this, we built a three-step flat drop ceiling to maximize the ceiling height to the greatest extent possible. This approach not only transformed the appearance but also altered the environment, converting it from a shed-like state into a genuinely habitable one by offering better insulation and ventilation.
Properly Renovate House Kitchen and Laundry wall
Based on the fact that the wall had been broken through, we also took the initiative to properly finish the new wall opening knocked down between the kitchen and the laundry. To align with the original environment, the kitchen side was finished with gyprock interior, giving it a modern and clean look, while the laundry room side was completed with rendering interior, adding a touch of texture and durability and enabling it to better match the surroundings.
Renovate House Most Bedroom Walls
However, the most significant problem, and maybe the most common issue of renovate old house, we faced was the condition of the walls in the main rooms. They had been entirely smoothed over with soft plaster, such as CSR topping components. This resulted in a situation where the base of the wall under the paint was extremely soft. With just a slight scrape with a shovel, the paint and plaster would come off in large pieces, as could be seen on the floor. There was no other alternative but to re-plaster the entire wall and repaint it. Unfortunately, even after our efforts, there is still a possibility that in the future, when scraping the wall with a shovel, the wall covering could come off in large chunks again. It is a fundamental issue that is essentially impossible to completely fix.
This also clearly reflects the fact that if daily maintenance is not carried out appropriately, it might have a negative impact on subsequent maintenance efforts and outcomes.
Renovating an old house is a challenging task, and this case was no exception. Despite our best efforts to address the various problems, some issues may still persist. Proper maintenance and regular inspections can help prevent such issues from worsening over time and ensure the longevity of the house. We sincerely thank the homeowner for the great assistance and patience throughout the renovation process.