One of the most overlooked areas of property preservation has been the bricks and mortar. Although there have been specialist renders applied to outside walls this has usually been in response to visible damage such as crumbling mortar or frost damaged brickwork. Renders can also cause condensation problems as internal moisture struggles to escape.

It is taken for granted by many people that the walls will stand the tests of time and won’t need any protection from the elements.

• On average around 650’000 tons of rain, some of it containing acid, falls on the UK every year.
• Mixing with the sulphates in the wall it can cause the mortar to expand over 200%.
• Old metal wall ties that support cavity walls can start to rust, causing structural defects,
  as anything that rusts doubles in size.
• Frozen rainwater trapped inside the substrate expands – breaking up the mortar allowing more water to penetrate.
• Moss and lichen can grow on the perpetually moist surface causing damage and giving an unsightly appearance.
• Wet walls conduct two to three times as much heat through them as opposed to dry ones –
  at a time when energy bills are rising.