acroprops and silver linings

The new look for living rooms this year is the acroprop.  Stylish don’t you think?  Goes so well with the combination of two hideous wallpapers, and a lot of grime.  This is part of one of my goals for this year: to make living room more pleasant, which rapidly changed into ‘make supporting wall safe’

We were lucky to be able to borrow six acroprops and with the help of my Dad (thanks Dad), put them up, so now the panic is off.  Now trying to sort out a brickie to put up a block wall for us.  Yes, please don’t shout at me for being un-green…. The greener option would be a stud wall, and with the sheer amount of damp our house suffers, not to mention the death watch beetle, I am reluctant to put in a solution that will only be temporary.  Please don’t shout at me for ‘hurting’ an older property either, as this had gone beyond saving…  We excavated at the foot of the wall, a little and found the upright beams had all rotted through at the bottom, as you can see in the picture.  Seriously, what was keeping this supporting wall up was the thickness of the lime plaster, the door frame and mostly: habit.

So anyway - to put up a block wall, will mean putting in a footing at the bottom, and if that is going in, we needed to take up floor coverings first.

We pulled up the carpet in the hall, then the underlay, and under that we found some truly awful lino. We peeled that up and found fake wooden tiles, also lino (- so lino on lino - anyone any idea why there was so much damp  problems ?), under that leveling compound (which is a laugh as everything is on a slope), and under that.. the silver lining.. actually a slate flagstone floor the whole length of the hallway.  It’s really well laid, the gaps between flagstones tight, there are no cracks, its in great condition, looks lovely. Of course it was put down long before the concept of a damp proof membrane, but I think now it can breath is will stay dry (already drier now the lino is gone!), its slightly worn down in the middle, from the treading of long ago feet.. which I just think is great.. So nice to start a job on this house (and all jobs lead to another) , and make a discovery that was actually good! I cannot believe how lucky we are. (or why anyone would prefer lino!)