Owning an old stone foundation can be an interesting experience. Those with a powerful will and a sound pocketbook can be true caretakers of a chunk of history. The foundation of that history is the easy, bold and robust field stone foundation wall.
Older buildings with a stone foundation will generally have the original stone facing plain on the exterior and interior of the building. However it was common to apply a coating of plaster to the inside foundation wall in the basement area, as a technique of waterproofing so the stone might not be obvious from within the building.
Most of the first plaster would have worn off by today but if you are lucky, you just may run across an old stone foundation still in spotless condition but this would be the exception.
Usually after thirty - fifty years the foundation would have shifted cause cracks to appear in the foundation wall and it wasn't unusual to use a 2nd to the foundation with a masonry cement stucco. If the second layer is cement stucco than it would indicate the 2nd coating must have been applied after the early 1900's, when mass produced cement stucco became available.
Regardless if plaster or stucco was applied to the walls, they're going to look lumpy as the individual stones shapes will show beneath the plaster or stucco.
What to go looking for -A lot of these older stone foundations were never well cared for 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 maintenance issues might be considered 'in failure' and may need an engineer's inspection.
Stone foundation walls that leak - It wasn't rare 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 around the foundations of older building so static pressure would've been a difficulty from the start relying or the soil type and topography. A high 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 partially 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 made high off the ground to keep moisture as low as possible. The basement area for these houses where never planned to be used as living space so a little moisture would be been common and of no concern.
Stone foundation wall problems - Decades of water infiltration will cause deterioration to the stone foundation walls. The result can be bulged walls from excessive static pressure or settlement of the foundation, deteriorated mortar joints from OTT 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 seriousness of the prominent problem and the location in the foundation wall. Generally though, a portion 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 should not be out of the range of a seasoned mason contractor and you must seek their advice.
Loose stones and missing mortar - these things are simple 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 believe 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 filled 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 will help to smooth out imperfections, close tiny holes, 'stiffen' the walls surface and hopefully provide some protection against water leaks.
Check the foundation yearly and make any obligatory repairs straight away. By taking immediate action and implementing the repairs recommended above you will be one step closer to keeping that old, stone foundation in shape.
Older buildings with a stone foundation will generally have the original stone facing plain on the exterior and interior of the building. However it was common to apply a coating of plaster to the inside foundation wall in the basement area, as a technique of waterproofing so the stone might not be obvious from within the building.
Most of the first plaster would have worn off by today but if you are lucky, you just may run across an old stone foundation still in spotless condition but this would be the exception.
Usually after thirty - fifty years the foundation would have shifted cause cracks to appear in the foundation wall and it wasn't unusual to use a 2nd to the foundation with a masonry cement stucco. If the second layer is cement stucco than it would indicate the 2nd coating must have been applied after the early 1900's, when mass produced cement stucco became available.
Regardless if plaster or stucco was applied to the walls, they're going to look lumpy as the individual stones shapes will show beneath the plaster or stucco.
What to go looking for -A lot of these older stone foundations were never well cared for 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 maintenance issues might be considered 'in failure' and may need an engineer's inspection.
Stone foundation walls that leak - It wasn't rare 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 around the foundations of older building so static pressure would've been a difficulty from the start relying or the soil type and topography. A high 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 partially 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 made high off the ground to keep moisture as low as possible. The basement area for these houses where never planned to be used as living space so a little moisture would be been common and of no concern.
Stone foundation wall problems - Decades of water infiltration will cause deterioration to the stone foundation walls. The result can be bulged walls from excessive static pressure or settlement of the foundation, deteriorated mortar joints from OTT 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 seriousness of the prominent problem and the location in the foundation wall. Generally though, a portion 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 should not be out of the range of a seasoned mason contractor and you must seek their advice.
Loose stones and missing mortar - these things are simple 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 believe 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 filled 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 will help to smooth out imperfections, close tiny holes, 'stiffen' the walls surface and hopefully provide some protection against water leaks.
Check the foundation yearly and make any obligatory repairs straight away. By taking immediate action and implementing the repairs recommended above you will be one step closer to keeping that old, stone foundation in shape.
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