Exterior Wall Repair – Norwich City Centre

The work requested

City centre buildings often have diverse maintenance requirements when they are part of a complex. From their front façade the building appears to be an independent structure. Then when you get to look behind the curtain and see the rear of the property, often there’s been changes and additions.

In this case, our clients historic three storey building was linked at the rear in a typical city centre complex, the property below had carried out some internal structural changes which caused movement above, and subsequently large cracks appeared on our clients’ rear wall.

There were several cracks within the wall and most notably a large crack on the corner of the structure which ran almost the full height of the elevation. The cracks identified were in both the render and the brickwork beneath.

Following an on-site meeting with a structural engineer, a plan of works was agreed with the client and the neighbours.

How we Approached the work

An agreement was made with the neighbouring business as we needed to remove waste, carry tools and materials through their secure car park.

The render around the cracks was then hacked off, the cracks were exposed and then stitched.

We used the Helifix stitching system. HeliBars are helical stainless steel reinforcing bars and HeliBond is a cementitious grout used to bond the HeliBars within the masonry. Together, they create a strong, flexible, and non-disruptive repair solution for cracks in brickwork and stonework.

For the Helifix system to be fitted, we cleared mortar, and cut slots 500mm either side of the cracks, then thoroughly cleaned and primed the slots. This same process was applied to the crack on the corner of the building as the HeliBars are designed to be bent around corners where required.

The Helibars are anchored into position with the use of the Helibond grout, this combination of Helifix products is designed to accommodate building movement and minimise the risk of future cracking. Once the stitching was completed, the area was prepared for the K-Rend to be applied.

We chose K-Rend to complete this final finish as its water repellent surface leaves a drier finish which is more resistant to algae growth, leaving it looking newer for longer. Even with its water repellent properties, the K-Rend is breathable, so a great choice for our newly repaired walls. The finished result is strong, flexible and looks great, it’s just a shame more people can’t see it!

The Challenges of this transformation

Undertaking this project in an operational care home presented a few challenges for the team, these included:

• Installing scaffolding in such a tight area and on a neighbours flat roof (a full survey and photos were documented prior to the work commencing)
  
• General access during the works
  
• Parking in the centre of Norwich
  

Key features of this project:

• Quality Products – Using strong, durable stitching products to deliver a safe and solid repair.
• Durable Finish – Using a render that looks great and is both water repellent and breathable with lower maintenance requirements in this hard-to-reach space.