House construction

[Tim]

Hi all,

 

i have recently undertaken some some reporting and new brickwork on my property and when opening up the walls I was greeted by what seemed to be a black board with a mesh/concrete behind it? The walls on the house are incredibly thick and I wondered what sort of construction was used to build the house? I thought it would of been the usual cavity construction but I’m thinking it could be timber framed etc? Internal walls are all masonry with a brick outer leaf. 

[TerryE]

What did your surveyor say about the settlement crack running up from the join of bricks 2/3 at the bottom LH of your pic all of the way up to your verge at the top RH by the looks of it?  Is there equivalent settlement on the inner skin? 

 

As to the inner profile and make up, have you had a look at the original Planning / B Control docs?  Failing that, then a quick exploration core should give you a good idea.

[Brickie]

Could it be the hole you’ve opened up for s at a floor level & you’ve got concrete plank floor?

[Tim]

The hairline crack was put down to when new windows were installed and/or minor temperature changes. I’ve repainted the hairline crack - the windows have iron lintels and the hairline cracks stem from them, so I’m presuming the lintels contract and expand in heat. I can’t seem to find the original planning documents etc, which is annoying. The floors aren’t concrete, they are simply wooden joists with floorboards laid on top. I wonder if the house is of a timber construction and brick outer leaf? As aforementioned, the walls are around 2 feet thick and I thought the black board could of been weather board?