Steel reinforced lime

I have been busy on the house preparing it for its new coat of lime putty render. One of these jobs has been to mesh over any major cracks in the sub-structure and where there are different materials exposed. This is because the movement in the house may crack the new render. Whilst this is not catastrophic for the render, it is always better to have an uncracked surface aesthetically.

So I have been using stainless steel EML (Expanded Metal Lath) AND stainless steel screws and washers. So I have been drilling into bricks, mortar and an occasional stone to ensure that the mesh is tight to the wall.

The high spots of the dubbing out had to be rubbed back (using a nasty looking studded float) so that the EML would sit quite flush to the wall.

The only major issue was that I was doing this on my own and the EML is really sharp, even on the main surface, so I have managed to cut my fingers quite a lot!

So the EML now covers the main wooden lintel at the front of the house, a thin brick pillar that was constructed to make the door opening narrower, the zone between an old extension where the bricks were not tied in very well, a wooden strip that runs horizontally along the first floor and the junction between a brick element of the house and an infilled concrete block area (an old door way).

So the wall is getting there for being ready for the render. Welsh Lime Works starting today!!