When it comes to owning a period property or heritage building, one of the biggest single issues that compromises the fabric of that building is damp. In simple terms, damp can be a cold-blooded killer to any building, let alone a period property.

Many of the projects that we undertake here at Leyden start with an enquiry that’s in some way linked to a damp issue in the property. One of the first questions we get asked by these prospective clients is ‘does lime render stop damp?’ and it’s important that we’re completely clear with this answer. Lime render will undoubtedly ‘help’ a with damp issue but if you really want a full and complete solution, then you’ll need to find the root cause of the problem and in some instances that could be a fairly simplistic issue.   

Let’s take a faulty guttering system that leaks water every time it rains. That water isn’t being directed away properly into a soak away or sewage system and instead it starts to damage the building, creating cracks and allowing water to penetrate. This in turn creates a damp issue that gradually gets worse over time and as it gets worse, the damage to the building can increase dramatically.

In a situation with faulty guttering, before any serious work is undertaken the actual guttering issue needs to be fixed and the damaged sections repaired. Once this has been done, then our team at Leyden can do what we do best and finish the exterior in lime render. 

Lime is well known as being a breathable material that allows moisture to leave the building and that’s exactly what’s required with projects such as this. But if you really want to be precise, it’s more about permeability that lets moisture ingress and egress rather than actual breathability.

The combination of fixing the root cause and finishing the project using a lime render (with its breathable/permeable qualities), will ultimately solve the issue, but these two things must be done together if you want to retain the integrity of the building for the future. Damp is one of those issues that will seriously compromise the property and ignoring it is not an option. 

At Leyden we’re experts in lime renders as well as hand-crafted pointing, lime plasters and decorative features. Craftsmanship is everything to us and we’re proud of the fact that we’re grounded in our obsession with traditional materials and their ability to help preserve heritage properties. 

If you’d like to know more about how render could help your heritage property with an increasing damp issue, then get in contact with us at Leyden on hello@leydensw.co.uk, we are after-all, serious about craftsmanship.

Matt & Hannah