Owning an historic property with an old stone foundation can be an interesting experience. Those with a strong will and a sound pocketbook can be true caretakers of a piece of history. The foundation of that history is the easy, bold and powerful field stone foundation wall.
Older buildings with a stone foundation will probably have the original stone facing obvious on the exterior and interior of the building. However it was common to use a coating of plaster to the inside foundation wall in the basement area, as a strategy of waterproofing so the stone would possibly not be obvious from inside of the building.
Most of the original plaster would have worn off by today but if you are fortunate, you just may run across an old stone foundation still in pristine condition but this would be the exception.
Usually after 30 - fifty years the foundation would have shifted cause cracks to appear in the foundation wall and it wasn't odd to apply a 2nd to the foundation with a masonry cement stucco. If the second layer is cement stucco than it might indicate that the second coating was applied after the early 1900's, when mass produced cement stucco became available.
Regardless if plaster or stucco was applied to the walls, they are going to look lumpy as the individual stones shapes will show beneath the plaster or stucco.
What to search for -A lot of these older stone foundations were never well looked after and can challenge a building owner with problems ranging from water leakage, mortar turning into sand, loose stones and bulging walls. Anything beyond these few upkeep issues might be considered 'in failure' and may need an engineer's inspection.
Stone foundation walls that leak - It wasn't atypical for these old stone foundation walls to leak. When they were originally built a hole was simply dug to the dimensions of the building and a trench dug where the walls were to be placed. Enormous field stones would be placed in the trench and became the bed stones of the foundation wall.
Drain tile were not in use round the foundations of older building so static pressure would've been a problem from the beginning depending or the soil type and topography. A quality builder would have trenched to sunlight from the low corner of the building site to take water away from the foundation, if the site authorized. The ditch would be partly filled with rubble stones before covering but this simply drainage methodology would be an exception and not the rule.
Most of the older homes were constructed high off the ground to keep moisture to a minimum. The basement area for these homes where never intended to be used as living space so a tiny moisture would have been common and of no concern.
Stone foundation wall issues - Decades of water infiltration will cause decay to the stone foundation walls. The result can be bulged walls from unnecessary static pressure or settlement of the foundation, deteriorated mortar joints from unnecessary moister or loose stones and missing mortar joints from easy aging and movement.
Bulged walls - This problem presents the biggest hurdle for a building owner depending on the degree and severity of the prominent problem and the location in the foundation wall. Generally though, a little of the foundation wall can be removed and rebuilt but proper shoring must be in place to support the building load before you proceed. This shouldn't be out of the range of a seasoned mason contractor and you need to seek their advice.
Loose stones and missing mortar - this stuff are straightforward to remedy. Loose stones should be taken out and re-set with fresh mortar. Care should be taken not to undermine any critical support areas inside the foundation. If you suspect an area of loose stone is carrying a beam load or other loads then consult a professional for advice.
Holes and missing joints can be stuffed with mortar or tuck-pointed to help tighten the foundation walls. Any brand of masons mix available at the local box store should be adequate.
After you have finished the repairs mentioned above you may want to apply another layer of cement stucco. This could help to smooth out defects, close small holes, 'stiffen' the walls surface and hopefully provide some defense against water leaks.
Check the foundation yearly and make any obligatory repairs immediately. By taking immediate action and implementing the repairs endorsed above you'll be one step nearer to keeping that old, stone foundation in shape.
Older buildings with a stone foundation will probably have the original stone facing obvious on the exterior and interior of the building. However it was common to use a coating of plaster to the inside foundation wall in the basement area, as a strategy of waterproofing so the stone would possibly not be obvious from inside of the building.
Most of the original plaster would have worn off by today but if you are fortunate, you just may run across an old stone foundation still in pristine condition but this would be the exception.
Usually after 30 - fifty years the foundation would have shifted cause cracks to appear in the foundation wall and it wasn't odd to apply a 2nd to the foundation with a masonry cement stucco. If the second layer is cement stucco than it might indicate that the second coating was applied after the early 1900's, when mass produced cement stucco became available.
Regardless if plaster or stucco was applied to the walls, they are going to look lumpy as the individual stones shapes will show beneath the plaster or stucco.
What to search for -A lot of these older stone foundations were never well looked after and can challenge a building owner with problems ranging from water leakage, mortar turning into sand, loose stones and bulging walls. Anything beyond these few upkeep issues might be considered 'in failure' and may need an engineer's inspection.
Stone foundation walls that leak - It wasn't atypical for these old stone foundation walls to leak. When they were originally built a hole was simply dug to the dimensions of the building and a trench dug where the walls were to be placed. Enormous field stones would be placed in the trench and became the bed stones of the foundation wall.
Drain tile were not in use round the foundations of older building so static pressure would've been a problem from the beginning depending or the soil type and topography. A quality builder would have trenched to sunlight from the low corner of the building site to take water away from the foundation, if the site authorized. The ditch would be partly filled with rubble stones before covering but this simply drainage methodology would be an exception and not the rule.
Most of the older homes were constructed high off the ground to keep moisture to a minimum. The basement area for these homes where never intended to be used as living space so a tiny moisture would have been common and of no concern.
Stone foundation wall issues - Decades of water infiltration will cause decay to the stone foundation walls. The result can be bulged walls from unnecessary static pressure or settlement of the foundation, deteriorated mortar joints from unnecessary moister or loose stones and missing mortar joints from easy aging and movement.
Bulged walls - This problem presents the biggest hurdle for a building owner depending on the degree and severity of the prominent problem and the location in the foundation wall. Generally though, a little of the foundation wall can be removed and rebuilt but proper shoring must be in place to support the building load before you proceed. This shouldn't be out of the range of a seasoned mason contractor and you need to seek their advice.
Loose stones and missing mortar - this stuff are straightforward to remedy. Loose stones should be taken out and re-set with fresh mortar. Care should be taken not to undermine any critical support areas inside the foundation. If you suspect an area of loose stone is carrying a beam load or other loads then consult a professional for advice.
Holes and missing joints can be stuffed with mortar or tuck-pointed to help tighten the foundation walls. Any brand of masons mix available at the local box store should be adequate.
After you have finished the repairs mentioned above you may want to apply another layer of cement stucco. This could help to smooth out defects, close small holes, 'stiffen' the walls surface and hopefully provide some defense against water leaks.
Check the foundation yearly and make any obligatory repairs immediately. By taking immediate action and implementing the repairs endorsed above you'll be one step nearer to keeping that old, stone foundation in shape.
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