We have an offer in on a property in Gloucestershire. Apparently it is constructed of Mudstone. we are finding it difficult to finbd out much information on the suitability of Mudstone as a construction material for a 2 storey property. How can we check if the construction is still sound nearly 200 years after construction? The building seems to have been rendered on cement render and plastered on Gypsum plaster.. is this a fatal combination for Mudstone?
- Thread starter adennis
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I would be very surprised if it genuinely was Mercia mudstone as it’s not really a stone that you tend to build things with, generally it’s something you have to mitigate against when doing foundations as it moves around and expands/contracts a lot with groundwater levels.
Even Historic England don’t have a record of it as a construction stone used in Gloucestershire - link to spreadsheet: https://historicengland.org.uk/cont...ing-stones-england/bse-excel-gloucestershire/
It’s more likely to be one of the types of stone listed there.
The other way of looking at it is whatever stone it is constructed from has survived 200 years so should be pretty solid
One more vaguely relevant anecdote - when buying a house once the vendor was adamant that it was ironstone, which surprised me given we were in Somerset and the nearest ironstone to be found is Oxfordshire. Sure enough on inspection it turned out to be White Lias quarried locally
Even Historic England don’t have a record of it as a construction stone used in Gloucestershire - link to spreadsheet: https://historicengland.org.uk/cont...ing-stones-england/bse-excel-gloucestershire/
It’s more likely to be one of the types of stone listed there.
The other way of looking at it is whatever stone it is constructed from has survived 200 years so should be pretty solid
One more vaguely relevant anecdote - when buying a house once the vendor was adamant that it was ironstone, which surprised me given we were in Somerset and the nearest ironstone to be found is Oxfordshire. Sure enough on inspection it turned out to be White Lias quarried locally
They do mention Arden Sandstone which is within the Mercia Mudstone group.
"The Arden Sandstone Formation is a relatively thick sandstone unit
occurring within the Mercia Mudstone Group. It runs from Newnham in a
sinuous outcrop northwards up the west side of the River Severn towards
Tewkesbury. It consists of varicoloured green/blue, brown, buff and purple
sandstones, with beds of conglomerate occurring locally. It is commonly
used not far from its outcrop, mostly as coursed rubble but also occasionally
as ashlar, usually mixed with Lias Group calcareous mudstones. It can
commonly be mistaken for Lias limestone. The Arden Sandstone is identified
by quartz pebble content and lenticular holes caused by the weathering out
of softer clay clast inclusions."
The holes mentioned are clearly visible on the church in the PDF, I can see that somebody might be tempted to render over those holes.
"The Arden Sandstone Formation is a relatively thick sandstone unit
occurring within the Mercia Mudstone Group. It runs from Newnham in a
sinuous outcrop northwards up the west side of the River Severn towards
Tewkesbury. It consists of varicoloured green/blue, brown, buff and purple
sandstones, with beds of conglomerate occurring locally. It is commonly
used not far from its outcrop, mostly as coursed rubble but also occasionally
as ashlar, usually mixed with Lias Group calcareous mudstones. It can
commonly be mistaken for Lias limestone. The Arden Sandstone is identified
by quartz pebble content and lenticular holes caused by the weathering out
of softer clay clast inclusions."
The holes mentioned are clearly visible on the church in the PDF, I can see that somebody might be tempted to render over those holes.
Cubist
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This one was niggling me as it triggered a vague memory. I was drug up in North Staffordshire and as many will know it was home to a strong ceramics industry and bricks were also manufactured there. Mudstone was frequently used as a raw material in the production of both and, I've now found courtesy of the Geological Society, would often be used in the manufacture of cement and 'raw' in construction.
Stevers
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Within 'mudstone' beds there are likely to beds of harder conglomerate that would serve as a building material, and that is probably what is meant.
My 'garage' is dug into a slope and started life only large enough for some sort of dogcart or gig. When it was lengthened to take the then owners Ford Pop, the bedrock was reached. When I had to dig that out a bit more to remove a redundant drain, it turned out to be mudstone with viable pieces of stone within it. Some of these pieces were sound (and attractive) enough to line the back of a slightly rough basement fireplace opening.
My 'garage' is dug into a slope and started life only large enough for some sort of dogcart or gig. When it was lengthened to take the then owners Ford Pop, the bedrock was reached. When I had to dig that out a bit more to remove a redundant drain, it turned out to be mudstone with viable pieces of stone within it. Some of these pieces were sound (and attractive) enough to line the back of a slightly rough basement fireplace opening.
Thank you, much appreciated. We are now checking with the vendor as why he thinks it is mudstone. I had a chat with a local heritage surveyor with 30 years' experience and he has never dealt with any mudstone properties either, so a bit of a mystery so far.I would be very surprised if it genuinely was Mercia mudstone as it’s not really a stone that you tend to build things with, generally it’s something you have to mitigate against when doing foundations as it moves around and expands/contracts a lot with groundwater levels.
Even Historic England don’t have a record of it as a construction stone used in Gloucestershire - link to spreadsheet: https://historicengland.org.uk/cont...ing-stones-england/bse-excel-gloucestershire/
It’s more likely to be one of the types of stone listed there.
The other way of looking at it is whatever stone it is constructed from has survived 200 years so should be pretty solid
One more vaguely relevant anecdote - when buying a house once the vendor was adamant that it was ironstone, which surprised me given we were in Somerset and the nearest ironstone to be found is Oxfordshire. Sure enough on inspection it turned out to be White Lias quarried locally
Thank you
