Work this week, to reinstate the render on the front of no. 2 Bunyan's Mead, gave us all a rare glimpse into how wattle and daub infill actually is constructed - willow is interwoven over and between upright timbers, tightly fitted between the beams of the timber frame. Sadly, this work also uncovered major structural damage - the long horizontal beam, supporting the western ends of the floor joists, is rotten. This rot has occurred because, during the Council's 1974 restoration, instead of filling in gaps with timber, they used an epoxy filler. The problem with that is that timber moves, expands and contracts, but epoxy resins do not. Consequently,cracks open up between the resin and the timber, allowing water ingress, which leads to rot. (By the way, the recent repairs to the timber frame of Moot Hall have been done properly, with new oak having been spliced in. How many villagers have even noticed that this work gas been carried out?) For the time being, to make the front wall of no. 2 weatherproof again, the contractor has replaced the lime render. But at some point soon, he reckons that the whole of the front of the upstairs will need to be removed and replaced. The cost could be as much as £100k! Nos 1, 3, 5 and 6 were all owned by a different landlord but are in a similar condition, having rotten beams, caused by the use of epoxy filler. That landlord died last year and a bank is currently evicting all the tenants. No. 1 has been up for sale for a few months but it seems unlikely that any private buyer will be willing to take on a building in such poor condition, or that any bank would grant a mortgage on it. Any local builder fancy the challenge of buying and restoring all four cottages properly?
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AuthorClive Arnold Archives
January 2024
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