Astragals
Posted by Shaun Perry on Feb 15, 2010 in Building Surveying
No building element seems to offer such scope for bad design as the window. We are nowadays obsessed and confused by glazing bars (known as astragals in Scotland). Our ancestors did not even bother to draw them when they represented their buildings – they were a functional but visually undesirable necessity. Glazing bars were played down and painted a neutral colour so as to minimise their visual intrusion.
Dry Rot, Wet Rot and Woodworm
Posted by Shaun Perry on Feb 8, 2010 in Building Surveying
These are the common names of some of the main diseases that affect timbers in buildings. They all have one essential pre-condition – dampness. Dry rot and Wet Rot cannot survive without a regular supply of moisture. The beetle responsible for Woodworm does not like dry conditions and is virtually extinct from modern centrally heated […]