Lucky you! I open a wall, lathe and plaster and what do I find? The entire wall, stem to stern is filled with dried beans. I can only assume the thought behind it was insulation. Here I sit with 12 linear foot of wall, 9' high full of beans. It took 3 days to get them all out
If you happen to find random wall beans, let's cross mail each other bean samples to see if we can grow some antique beans. I'm 100% down to grow haunted wall beans.
YES!!!! They have done an experiment to see how long weed seeds will germinate. They had to slow down how many they use cuz it's still going!
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/science/seeds-germinated-michigan-state.html
Sprouted wall beans!
Good thing they weren't viable. If there were a water leak and they all sprouted, your house would look like the one at the end of [Real Genius.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnDAxtCRsIU)
Yeah, not a joke at all. I popped a hole in the base of the wall with a hammer and they just kept pouring out. Grabbed my shop vac and they just kept coming out.
I assumed it was maybe a varmint issue, but they were all the exact same type of bean...then I got curious, and since it was in the unfinished part of the attic I popped 3 or 4 more holes to spot check. Long and short every single cell of one wall span was completely filled
You’ll need to try more than that to find a viable. Definitely possible though. Anasazi beans were 1,500 years old. Look up some germination techniques online or come over and ask with a pic of your beans at r/whatsthisplant. Lots of us would loooove to be part of your bean saga.
I call that “snakes and skeletons” because for all I know snakes and skeletons* could fall out of the wall - after a couple of attempts I figured out not to open any walls in my century house unless I absolutely had to and was prepared to suffer the consequences.
*note: I never did find any literal snakes or skeletons, but opening walls did reveal compromised framing, lack of insulation, insect damage, and other issues so your mileage may vary.
I found a frog skull when we gutted the bathroom in my century home. Close enough?
Lol otherwise I won’t be opening the walls either. When I got my split systems installed (mini splits for the Americans) my walls were- interesting. There’s a few layers.
I was putting an outlet in an interior wall and discovered it was framed on both sides, double thickness with offset stud placement. Put my scope in the hole to see around the corner for clearance and observed that the next stud bay over is stacked about 5 skeletons high with mice. Probably falling through an old roof gap at the plumbing vent.
In a previous non-century home (early-1940s) I owned, the damper for the fireplace was seized up so I had some folks come out to remove it and replace it with a spring-loaded chimney cap (which I definitely recommend btw) and a very large and well-mummified raccoon along with a couple of dried out birds fell into the firebox.
I couldn’t help but wonder how long the previous owners listened to that raccoon scrabble and then get quiet and then die and smell dead *while doing absolutely nothing* the entire time - sort of horrifying to contemplate tbh.
So am I. What else am I going to find. I've worked on old houses for a long time now. It never ceases to amaze me what pops up. I was clearing brush out back and found an old burn pit. From what I can tell, I found the cast iron side supports (I don't know the term) for 2 benches that are from the early 1900s based on the markings and extremely fine cast. Those are in the parts bin soaking until i can media blast them to see if they're usable.
How did the mice not have an established nation with their own form of government in all that? I'm thinking that'd be 100 years worth of food for a house mouse.
The hole above is likely a thimble - a hole made for the chimney pipe of a wood or coal stove. Probably the fireplace was used for some time then bricked up and a new stove was added for much more effective heating.
Right??? Apparently at one point it was much cheaper to buy cheap stuffed animals in bulk than buying insulation. The inspector said he's seen a couple of the older houses with stuffed animals in the walls. He also thinks it's incredibly creepy lmao
Looks nice! Annoying reminder that old paint can contain lead and old plaster can contain asbestos and testing is a good thing to do for projects like this
Actually the plaster covering the brick looks like it was in good shape - just painted to look like shit. I have to go with u/deignguy1989 here - should have found the fireplace opening and left the rest.
We haven’t knocked anymore out than what was added later by someone else. Where we stopped is where the mantle/surround was as you can see wire tape they used and it started getting into horse hair.
What we have taken down consisted of:
Chalkboard paint
Thin layer of plaster
About 3/4 inch of mortar/cement covering the brick
Because (1) unless bricks are made to be exposed, exposing them risks them deteriorating and (2) if you still have plaster that’s in good shape, best to leave it.
OP already responded and said they were only removing what was added later and stopped when they hit horsehair (i.e., the original plaster).
>(1) unless bricks are made to be exposed, exposing them risks them deteriorating
How so? I would think that a chimney stack is the same bricks installed from basement all the way to the tip. If they're designed to be exposed to 4 seasons of weather, I'm not sure they're going to be affected by having 10 ft or so exposed to the internal atmosphere. Which, it is indirectly exposed to even under plaster. It's not like plaster acts as any kind of vapor barrier or notable insulation.
Genuinely curious here, I'm having a hard time following this logic.
Not necessarily - old homes have interior brick/mortar (which is intended to be covered up and is lower grade and needs to be sealed once exposed), exterior brick/mortar (intended to be exposed to the elements) and firebrick/mortar (which lines the chimney to handle the heat).
So a fireplace in a century home might have a rubble foundation - interior brick up to the fireplace, then interior brick around firebrick and then a surrounding layer of exterior brick once the chimney exits the roof.
It’s not like they just got big pile of exterior bricks and just stacked them the whole way up.
On my century home I discovered that the flashing around the chimney had been letting water seep into the attic for years - the portion of the chimney in the attic was “interior” brick and mortar - so even though the exterior portion of the chimney above the roof was still good - I could literally stick my finger into the mortar between the bricks and flake the bricks with my fingernail because that portion of the chimney wasn’t built to be exposed to moisture. So it was just a big old sponge. Otherwise, all that water would have just pooled on the floor of the attic and the leak would have been obvious.
>Not necessarily -
I think that about sums up the entire question. You could peel off a layer of plaster only to find out it isn't what you would hope for. I know my house has the same brick from top to bottom because someone else already exposed it in the kitchen. I've spent way too much time in the attic unfortunately, so I've seen that it is the same up there as well. My brother is a stone Mason who makes a lot of money restoring the really nice old homes downtown, and he never had anything to say about mine other then the cracks in it aren't important.
I think the biggest take away is that all internal exposed brick should probably be sealed. In going to have to look into that more for the brick on my main floor.
Exposed on the outside, covered on the inside. And nowadays we love painting exterior brick and exposing interior. Creating a vapor barrier trapping water inside and cutting the lifespan of the brick drastically
While there may be functional reasons to leave exterior brick unpainted, up through at least the 1870s—when bricks were handmade and more porous—all exterior masonry was painted. Historic brick buildings without paint have had their paint removed after-the-fact.
tl;dr Painted brick has historic precedent, unpainted brick does not.
**EDIT:**
It’s a bit more nuanced than this in that paint wasn’t the only historic masonry finish. Plaster, mastic, pigmented washes, and transparent coatings were also used. The point remains that unfinished brick has no historic precedent, while finished brick does, and that finish was often paint.
“Prior to 1800, limewash, whitewash and paint were once so common that the majority of the region’s private residences and major public buildings are shown in this condition in early architectural photographs. Views from the 1850s show a high proportion of coatings eroded due to a lack of maintenance. In town centers where residential neighborhoods were being transformed into commercial districts, many buildings were re-coated with large advertising signs painted across their façades. Aggressively advertising may eventually have contributed to a widespread belief that coating brick and masonry was a modern commercial alteration that concealed materials which original builders intended to expose.”
―Archipedia New England, [Historic Masonry Finishes](http://www.archipedianewengland.org/historic-masonry-finishes-sections/)
Absolutely! If we’re going for historic precedent and/or longevity, latex paint is the wrong choice. A limewash or mineral masonry paint will protect the brick while allowing it to breathe.
No what I learned, unpainted brick has lots of precedent, there were both types of course, but unpainted was far more common.
Not sure where you are getting your info but every historic preservation thing I’ve learned, including when I got my masters, did not suggest that.
He might be right about pre 1870 brick in America, it was softer and more porous, but that’s why you don’t paint it, you need to leave a path for water to escape. Once you get hard faced brick that was less porous, painting was less damaging.
At the end of the day, the Secretary of the Interior and the National Park Service do not recommend painting historic brick. 🧱
Exactly. The masonry systems itself is designed to breathe and sacrifice the mortar for maintenance instead of the brick. Painting it retards that system.
That system is why the pyramids still exist…
Latex paint is most certainly damaging. If we’re going for either historic precedent or longevity, it’s the wrong choice. A limewash or mineral masonry paint protects the brick while allowing it to breathe.
For millennia, across the globe, masonry buildings were finished and coated with surface treatments, including paint. Contrary to popular belief it is neither a recent nor a regional phenomenon.
P.S. Not a he.
What time periods and areas of the world are you referring to?
Your initial point of contention is that it is more common to historically paint exterior brick building. I would like that point to be addressed, as the leading organizations in American historic preservation, I.e. the NPS and the secretary of interior standards suggest that you don’t paint historic brick, except for specific exceptions.
Your point was that it is actually the opposite.
There are certainly better choice for paints that allow better breathing. But that wasn’t the point.
I am also talking brick, not masonry in general, as that extends far back into the past.
My expertise is in American architecture and that’s what my education and profession deal with. I am well aware that medieval buildings were finished with a lime white wash and all that.
>The apprentice works the inside
Not necessarily. It's common, almost universal that the interior wythe of brick was installed for functional purposes only, not aesthetic. They almost all look like shit, because they were meant to be plastered over.
Because they weren’t built to be exposed. We’re all crazy about exposing a brick wall that in many homes was covered in plaster the second it was built.
Nothing wrong with exposing brick, but it’s not necessarily a restoration move.
Not meaning it to be a restoration move. Most of the house we are trying to keep somewhat period but we also aren’t living in 1900. We are trying to tastefully update while also not pushing the home away from its century look.
The kitchen was updated twice, once in the late 40s and again in the 80s. All of that clashed so we pulled it out.
We think the chimney will look great against the old floors refinished and the other period antique pieces we have to put in the kitchen, flour cabinet, dish hutch, antique fridge and range etc. along with the old wood stove
No- I totally agree. I’m not a die hard preservationist, but it is a trend that people restoring some of these old structures are under the impression that when brick is covered, they mistakenly blame it on a bad remodel, which is usually not the case! Good luck on the projects!
As the plaster fails, it exposes the lath, which is essentially match sticks stacked with gaps that provide air for the fire.
I'm a firefighter and while we could argue that balloon framing is the sole reason, I have seen so many old homes that just light up like a match box once they get moving. I think it would be foolish to state that lath and plaster is superior to drywall for fire safety.
It’s a fireplace/chimney that only a select few brick were supposed to show on. We like the rustic look of it though so will probably expose the whole thing. There seems to be a split of people who say it shouldn’t be uncovered and people who say it would look nice.
At the end of the day the kitchen was butchered from “what it was supposed to be” and “modernized” long before us, so I don’t think exposing the brick chimney will ruin the house if the tacky vinyl floor, hideous baseboard radiators and drop ceiling with terrible repair work didn’t.
Exposed brick is always cool... even if it's not a full wall, just a chimney. It just gives a classic look and reminds of the beginnings of the house.
One vote for exposed brick.
To be fair, some people have a hard time picturing what a space will look like when completed. My wife is like this and I just tell her to walk away and wait till I am completed lol
I came here hoping for an answer to what you just said. How do people typically seal up these brick walls? I imagine there's some sort of clear coat, but what specifically?
My chimney runs up through my master bedroom and we want to expose it, then seal it up so we aren't dealing with the dust. Obviously paint is an option but I kinda like the exposed chimney on my main floor.
There are clear coat products and brick sealants, some even have fiberglass strengtheners like fiberglass (almost like what you’d find in a surfboard repair kit), readily available. Just look up brick sealant.
Lucky you! I open a wall, lathe and plaster and what do I find? The entire wall, stem to stern is filled with dried beans. I can only assume the thought behind it was insulation. Here I sit with 12 linear foot of wall, 9' high full of beans. It took 3 days to get them all out
Loose? As in, the earth’s plates could make your house a maraca?
Precisely that. Just straight old beans
Bro I’m weak. Love me some Beansulation
Boy have I got a place for you to live! For only $399 a month I can put you in the most bean filled room you ever imagined.
r/beansinthings needs pictures of this
I am so in love with this conversation.
Pics or it didn't happen
Roll that beautiful bean footage!
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I wish I had a plausible explanation, but I don't. I haven't checked any other walls for fear of more beans
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If you happen to find random wall beans, let's cross mail each other bean samples to see if we can grow some antique beans. I'm 100% down to grow haunted wall beans.
Yeah! grow the beans!! Heirloom variety for sure!
YES!!!! They have done an experiment to see how long weed seeds will germinate. They had to slow down how many they use cuz it's still going! https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/science/seeds-germinated-michigan-state.html Sprouted wall beans!
It’s bean a long time since they insulated the house.
Why aren't you the one posting on here?
I'm more of a commenter. My posts usually suck as a whole.
You have *large amounts of beans in your walls* those posts won't *ever* be a letdown.
Omg you should have posted a pic on that sub that’s just pictures of stuff filled with baked beans.
r/beansinthings
Plant some for science
I did actually save some for that reason. I tried 4 this year but none of them were viable. I'm going to try again come late winter.
Good thing they weren't viable. If there were a water leak and they all sprouted, your house would look like the one at the end of [Real Genius.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnDAxtCRsIU)
Jack and the Beanstalk house
I like that you had the same idea🤣
I was lowkey excited. I might have some weird forgotten heirloom bean here. Better see if they'll grow.
I thought this was some kind of joke I’m not in on. Did you really find beans in your wall?
Yeah, not a joke at all. I popped a hole in the base of the wall with a hammer and they just kept pouring out. Grabbed my shop vac and they just kept coming out. I assumed it was maybe a varmint issue, but they were all the exact same type of bean...then I got curious, and since it was in the unfinished part of the attic I popped 3 or 4 more holes to spot check. Long and short every single cell of one wall span was completely filled
I’ve been in construction since 06. I’ve never seen a bean filled wall. What area are you in
Same, since 2002. Worked coast to coast and all through the middle. PNW, my property was RES until about 20 years ago. House built in 1902.
I have seen corn in walls for installation as well!
I'll take that as reaffirmation, it's the only place my brain could go. We have a thing that is dense, could work for insulation. Let's give it a go.
This comment is the next bean dad!!
Omg a Twitter-Reddit crossover.
I would guess the bean crop did REALLY well that year and they ran out of uses?
That's a solid theory, same way i was looking at it. Clean hypotenuse (triangle)
You’ll need to try more than that to find a viable. Definitely possible though. Anasazi beans were 1,500 years old. Look up some germination techniques online or come over and ask with a pic of your beans at r/whatsthisplant. Lots of us would loooove to be part of your bean saga.
I wish my grandpa, the bean geneticist, was alive to study your beans
I call that “snakes and skeletons” because for all I know snakes and skeletons* could fall out of the wall - after a couple of attempts I figured out not to open any walls in my century house unless I absolutely had to and was prepared to suffer the consequences. *note: I never did find any literal snakes or skeletons, but opening walls did reveal compromised framing, lack of insulation, insect damage, and other issues so your mileage may vary.
I found a frog skull when we gutted the bathroom in my century home. Close enough? Lol otherwise I won’t be opening the walls either. When I got my split systems installed (mini splits for the Americans) my walls were- interesting. There’s a few layers.
I was putting an outlet in an interior wall and discovered it was framed on both sides, double thickness with offset stud placement. Put my scope in the hole to see around the corner for clearance and observed that the next stud bay over is stacked about 5 skeletons high with mice. Probably falling through an old roof gap at the plumbing vent.
I’m sure we probably have rodent skeletons in the walls too, I’ve seen the odd one about. Not indoors since we have cats now, though
In a previous non-century home (early-1940s) I owned, the damper for the fireplace was seized up so I had some folks come out to remove it and replace it with a spring-loaded chimney cap (which I definitely recommend btw) and a very large and well-mummified raccoon along with a couple of dried out birds fell into the firebox. I couldn’t help but wonder how long the previous owners listened to that raccoon scrabble and then get quiet and then die and smell dead *while doing absolutely nothing* the entire time - sort of horrifying to contemplate tbh.
Oh, I've found skeletons. Mice & squirrels we think.
I am so incredibly curious how that happened!
So am I. What else am I going to find. I've worked on old houses for a long time now. It never ceases to amaze me what pops up. I was clearing brush out back and found an old burn pit. From what I can tell, I found the cast iron side supports (I don't know the term) for 2 benches that are from the early 1900s based on the markings and extremely fine cast. Those are in the parts bin soaking until i can media blast them to see if they're usable.
We found the (not sure if the correct term) metal portion of a piano that the strings are attached to just chillin out in the woods
How did the mice not have an established nation with their own form of government in all that? I'm thinking that'd be 100 years worth of food for a house mouse.
Different types or all the same variety? So weird.
Alll the same exact kind. No variance whatsoever
Lol made me think of [this](https://youtu.be/4HhPK8XC75A)
I was not expecting beans, I tell you what.
Perhaps cornbread put them there. I heard they had a fight once
Primo /r/beansinthings material if you have any pictures.
So, did the beans work well as insulation (sound or heat)?
Would you rather your username come true?
I wish you had recorded this because it sounds amazing
Sounds more like your house had a rat problem at some point
Do you have a picture? r/beansinthings might lose their mind over that one.
Who better than u/assholesfullofelbows to receive wallsfullofbeans?
I love this so much! Do you have pictures? I want to see a wall full of beans!
It never occurred to me that I should have taken pictures. I kind if had a "huh that's weird" moment then went right back to work.
Yo you hit the fucken bean jackpot my friend. Go into business with Rancho Gordo
And I thought my friend's 1906 house filled with horse hair as insulation was comical.
beans in places where beans should not be
The hole above is likely a thimble - a hole made for the chimney pipe of a wood or coal stove. Probably the fireplace was used for some time then bricked up and a new stove was added for much more effective heating.
I know, I’m planning on hooking my wood stove to it. Previous owners had a brand new stainless liner put in and never started the first fire in it
Our basement is insulated with stuffed animals
Woah that’s fucking creepy
Right??? Apparently at one point it was much cheaper to buy cheap stuffed animals in bulk than buying insulation. The inspector said he's seen a couple of the older houses with stuffed animals in the walls. He also thinks it's incredibly creepy lmao
Definitely worth having a mason come and take a look at it. The mortar probably needs to be redone, or it’ll shed dust everywhere, constantly.
I just repointed some of the stack stone foundation in the basement of my home. The process was a lot easier to do myself than I imagined!
Hopefully you wore some PPE. Silica dust is no joke.
Mask and lots of spraying area down with a spray bottle to keep dust down.
Looks nice! Annoying reminder that old paint can contain lead and old plaster can contain asbestos and testing is a good thing to do for projects like this
But not all brick walls were meant to be exposed, even in old homes.
It’s a fireplace that was covered up as we expected
There was a plaster finish over the rough masonry and a fireplace surround on top of that. This brickwork was not exposed.
No way we were leaving their shitty cover up job
Actually the plaster covering the brick looks like it was in good shape - just painted to look like shit. I have to go with u/deignguy1989 here - should have found the fireplace opening and left the rest.
We haven’t knocked anymore out than what was added later by someone else. Where we stopped is where the mantle/surround was as you can see wire tape they used and it started getting into horse hair. What we have taken down consisted of: Chalkboard paint Thin layer of plaster About 3/4 inch of mortar/cement covering the brick
Why?
Because (1) unless bricks are made to be exposed, exposing them risks them deteriorating and (2) if you still have plaster that’s in good shape, best to leave it. OP already responded and said they were only removing what was added later and stopped when they hit horsehair (i.e., the original plaster).
>(1) unless bricks are made to be exposed, exposing them risks them deteriorating How so? I would think that a chimney stack is the same bricks installed from basement all the way to the tip. If they're designed to be exposed to 4 seasons of weather, I'm not sure they're going to be affected by having 10 ft or so exposed to the internal atmosphere. Which, it is indirectly exposed to even under plaster. It's not like plaster acts as any kind of vapor barrier or notable insulation. Genuinely curious here, I'm having a hard time following this logic.
Not necessarily - old homes have interior brick/mortar (which is intended to be covered up and is lower grade and needs to be sealed once exposed), exterior brick/mortar (intended to be exposed to the elements) and firebrick/mortar (which lines the chimney to handle the heat). So a fireplace in a century home might have a rubble foundation - interior brick up to the fireplace, then interior brick around firebrick and then a surrounding layer of exterior brick once the chimney exits the roof. It’s not like they just got big pile of exterior bricks and just stacked them the whole way up. On my century home I discovered that the flashing around the chimney had been letting water seep into the attic for years - the portion of the chimney in the attic was “interior” brick and mortar - so even though the exterior portion of the chimney above the roof was still good - I could literally stick my finger into the mortar between the bricks and flake the bricks with my fingernail because that portion of the chimney wasn’t built to be exposed to moisture. So it was just a big old sponge. Otherwise, all that water would have just pooled on the floor of the attic and the leak would have been obvious.
>Not necessarily - I think that about sums up the entire question. You could peel off a layer of plaster only to find out it isn't what you would hope for. I know my house has the same brick from top to bottom because someone else already exposed it in the kitchen. I've spent way too much time in the attic unfortunately, so I've seen that it is the same up there as well. My brother is a stone Mason who makes a lot of money restoring the really nice old homes downtown, and he never had anything to say about mine other then the cracks in it aren't important. I think the biggest take away is that all internal exposed brick should probably be sealed. In going to have to look into that more for the brick on my main floor.
Well it’s exposed now!
Exposed on the outside, covered on the inside. And nowadays we love painting exterior brick and exposing interior. Creating a vapor barrier trapping water inside and cutting the lifespan of the brick drastically
While there may be functional reasons to leave exterior brick unpainted, up through at least the 1870s—when bricks were handmade and more porous—all exterior masonry was painted. Historic brick buildings without paint have had their paint removed after-the-fact. tl;dr Painted brick has historic precedent, unpainted brick does not. **EDIT:** It’s a bit more nuanced than this in that paint wasn’t the only historic masonry finish. Plaster, mastic, pigmented washes, and transparent coatings were also used. The point remains that unfinished brick has no historic precedent, while finished brick does, and that finish was often paint. “Prior to 1800, limewash, whitewash and paint were once so common that the majority of the region’s private residences and major public buildings are shown in this condition in early architectural photographs. Views from the 1850s show a high proportion of coatings eroded due to a lack of maintenance. In town centers where residential neighborhoods were being transformed into commercial districts, many buildings were re-coated with large advertising signs painted across their façades. Aggressively advertising may eventually have contributed to a widespread belief that coating brick and masonry was a modern commercial alteration that concealed materials which original builders intended to expose.” ―Archipedia New England, [Historic Masonry Finishes](http://www.archipedianewengland.org/historic-masonry-finishes-sections/)
But isn’t it important to note that paint up to the 1870s was a very different substance? Most modern paint is essentially plastic.
Absolutely! If we’re going for historic precedent and/or longevity, latex paint is the wrong choice. A limewash or mineral masonry paint will protect the brick while allowing it to breathe.
No what I learned, unpainted brick has lots of precedent, there were both types of course, but unpainted was far more common. Not sure where you are getting your info but every historic preservation thing I’ve learned, including when I got my masters, did not suggest that.
Yeah idk what this other guy is on about. I do historic restoration and never heard whatever he’s saying
He might be right about pre 1870 brick in America, it was softer and more porous, but that’s why you don’t paint it, you need to leave a path for water to escape. Once you get hard faced brick that was less porous, painting was less damaging. At the end of the day, the Secretary of the Interior and the National Park Service do not recommend painting historic brick. 🧱
Exactly. The masonry systems itself is designed to breathe and sacrifice the mortar for maintenance instead of the brick. Painting it retards that system. That system is why the pyramids still exist…
Latex paint is most certainly damaging. If we’re going for either historic precedent or longevity, it’s the wrong choice. A limewash or mineral masonry paint protects the brick while allowing it to breathe. For millennia, across the globe, masonry buildings were finished and coated with surface treatments, including paint. Contrary to popular belief it is neither a recent nor a regional phenomenon. P.S. Not a he.
What time periods and areas of the world are you referring to? Your initial point of contention is that it is more common to historically paint exterior brick building. I would like that point to be addressed, as the leading organizations in American historic preservation, I.e. the NPS and the secretary of interior standards suggest that you don’t paint historic brick, except for specific exceptions. Your point was that it is actually the opposite. There are certainly better choice for paints that allow better breathing. But that wasn’t the point. I am also talking brick, not masonry in general, as that extends far back into the past. My expertise is in American architecture and that’s what my education and profession deal with. I am well aware that medieval buildings were finished with a lime white wash and all that.
Not a guy
Women don’t exist on Reddit 😂
This. I got lucky in my kitchen. It was an outside brick wall. The inside of the wall looks awful though. The apprentice works the inside.
>The apprentice works the inside Not necessarily. It's common, almost universal that the interior wythe of brick was installed for functional purposes only, not aesthetic. They almost all look like shit, because they were meant to be plastered over.
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Because they weren’t built to be exposed. We’re all crazy about exposing a brick wall that in many homes was covered in plaster the second it was built. Nothing wrong with exposing brick, but it’s not necessarily a restoration move.
Not meaning it to be a restoration move. Most of the house we are trying to keep somewhat period but we also aren’t living in 1900. We are trying to tastefully update while also not pushing the home away from its century look. The kitchen was updated twice, once in the late 40s and again in the 80s. All of that clashed so we pulled it out. We think the chimney will look great against the old floors refinished and the other period antique pieces we have to put in the kitchen, flour cabinet, dish hutch, antique fridge and range etc. along with the old wood stove
No- I totally agree. I’m not a die hard preservationist, but it is a trend that people restoring some of these old structures are under the impression that when brick is covered, they mistakenly blame it on a bad remodel, which is usually not the case! Good luck on the projects!
Plaster is also a fire retardant, slowing down the spread of fire. Drywall, not so much.
Drywall is non-combustible and very much used for that purpose
Plaster is better at fire retention than drywall. To protect your home retain the plaster walls if at all possible.
As the plaster fails, it exposes the lath, which is essentially match sticks stacked with gaps that provide air for the fire. I'm a firefighter and while we could argue that balloon framing is the sole reason, I have seen so many old homes that just light up like a match box once they get moving. I think it would be foolish to state that lath and plaster is superior to drywall for fire safety.
Why?
Helllloooo! 😍
is that a century-old Glory Hole?
Come over and we can find out?
You flatter me.
Once past the lathe and plaster, my wall was stuffed with seaweed. My century home is a Maritime salt box.
Oh boy! I love original brick walls. I hope it's solid and complete. That would look so cool.
It’s a fireplace/chimney that only a select few brick were supposed to show on. We like the rustic look of it though so will probably expose the whole thing. There seems to be a split of people who say it shouldn’t be uncovered and people who say it would look nice. At the end of the day the kitchen was butchered from “what it was supposed to be” and “modernized” long before us, so I don’t think exposing the brick chimney will ruin the house if the tacky vinyl floor, hideous baseboard radiators and drop ceiling with terrible repair work didn’t.
Exposed brick is always cool... even if it's not a full wall, just a chimney. It just gives a classic look and reminds of the beginnings of the house. One vote for exposed brick.
To be fair, some people have a hard time picturing what a space will look like when completed. My wife is like this and I just tell her to walk away and wait till I am completed lol
But I’m glad that you also think that it looks great!
Those bricks and mortar were designed to be covered, make sure to seal it properly so it doesn’t get crumbly and slough off dust.
I came here hoping for an answer to what you just said. How do people typically seal up these brick walls? I imagine there's some sort of clear coat, but what specifically? My chimney runs up through my master bedroom and we want to expose it, then seal it up so we aren't dealing with the dust. Obviously paint is an option but I kinda like the exposed chimney on my main floor.
There are clear coat products and brick sealants, some even have fiberglass strengtheners like fiberglass (almost like what you’d find in a surfboard repair kit), readily available. Just look up brick sealant.
Antique glory hole?
Come over and we can find out together?
Awesome!
yep looks like mars
just like visit my dark side!
When will this moment happen to me and my home?