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Interior and Exterior Breathable Paints for Traditional Houses
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Celtic Sustainables
Unit 9
Parc Teifi
Cardigan
SA43 1EW
Using the wrong paint for old buildings will not only cost you time and money but may also cause long term damage to the building. These days damp is a common problem for traditional houses, but it needent be this way; breathable paints are a far better alternative to damp proofing paints.
Modern damp proofing products create a barrier to water penetration, in the short term this may appear to work well. In the long term this will compound the problem as buildings naturally move thermally and structurally. The movement eventually cracks the damp proofing barrier and allows water in and keeps the water captive which causes blistering.
So why are breathable paints better?
Breathable, or microporous, paints were widely used until the 19th Century, which makes them ideal for traditional historical houses.
Breathable paints will allow free movement of water vapour through the buildings structure. It may not solve all your damp problems, but it will help, and will not cause long term damage to your property.
Paints can work in two ways, they can soak into the wall and bond to it, or they can create a skin or film which will stick to the wall. Breathable paints such as Earthborn clay paints for interior walls, and Earthborn silicate masonry exterior paint bond with the wall and soak into the surface.
So how can you tell what is a good breathable paint? Paints have a Sd value which is a measure of Water Vapour Permeability. Earthborn Silicate Masonry for example has a Sd value of 0.06m, for severe damp houses the recommended Sd value is 0.05m or more.
Why are breathable paints particularly good for traditional houses?
Breathable and will allow moisture to escape, and some such as Earthborn Claypaint will also absorb moisture. This paint has excellent coverage and will cover old lime plastered walls well. You may think you are limited by choice of colour by choosing to work with Claypaint. This isn't true, there is a huge range of colours to choose from.
Claypaints and other eco-paints are suitable for mixing with earth pigments such as Earthborn Pigments - these are perfect to mix your own colour with a natural paint. Pigments are also perfect if you want something unique and different in your home, you can experiment with different effects such as mixing them with a wall glaze for a translucent colour wash finish.
So how much more will it cost me to use breathable paints?
Breathable paint may cost you more in the short term, in the long term you will not need to redecorate as often and the building structure will not be damaged by moisture.
As Claypaint is so thick the coverage is excellent which means fewer coats need to be applied - you'll only need 1-2 coats over light colours. Claypaint and similar eco paints are also safe to use and don't require ventilation when drying.