Ottawa homeowners can be very creative and frugal when looking for solutions to plumbing, wiring, insulation, and wall layouts when making an addition to an old house. People have perfected the art of covering up what was once part of a house before with something else. Often times these cover-up jobs work for a while – a few years maybe – but unseen issues can be percolating behind walls and additions to you home.
These issues can rear their ugly heads in the light of day if you start to renovate. Chances are, none of these issues are enough to stop a professional renovation team from doing their job, but it can be pretty shocking when they do come to light. Here are some common afflictions found in old houses when they are being renovated.
Mold
Maybe you never smelled anything, maybe there was no way to know, but often times, when knocking down an old wall, you can reveal years of mould buildup in the perfect, unreachable place for it to grow. This can be caused by old piping being improperly insulated, so condensation forms on the pipes and transfers to the interior of the wall as a perfect secret breeding ground for mould and other fungi. But don’t worry! Since it is likely you are knocking down the wall anyway, removing the mould shouldn’t be a problem for a crew of professionals.
Cutting Corners
You have no way of knowing the contractors who worked on the house decades ago – and you also have no way of knowing if they did a thorough job of building foundations and walls. You could find windows with the panes still inside in the centre of a freshly-opened brick wall, where the previous contractors simply built right over the window to add an addition to the house. When renovating your house this time around, you can make sure that you hire professionals to do a complete and thorough job of perfecting your home.
These sorts of surprises can be common enough in renovations, but they are nothing to get too worried about – especially if you have professional renovation services from Renco Home Improvements. Have a trusted group of professionals work on your home and keep it safe and functional for years to come.
