Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Mar 05, 2011 5:55 pm We have been looking at buying a home in an older suburb and have found that the only ones in our price range tend to be weatherboard or other non-brick materials (fibro??). Does anybody know what the downsides are of non-brick materials? Do they have poorer insulating properties? Any advice or a link would be most appreciated. Thanks CandS Re: Old weatherboard homes 2Mar 05, 2011 8:22 pm Weatherboard houses get as hot as hell in summer and cold as ice in winter, they didn't use wall insulation back then, and probably no ceiling insulation either unless previous owners have installed it. They require regular painting and are prone to rot if not maintained. I have renovated 2 weatherboard houses, the first things I did were ceiling insulation, ducted heating and cooling. If a weatherboard home is all you can afford then I suggest that's what you buy, it's better to get into the market now with a weatherboard home than not at all, the longer you wait the harder it will be. Living in my Burbank terrace at Aurora Re: Old weatherboard homes 4Mar 06, 2011 8:27 am CandS We have been looking at buying a home in an older suburb and have found that the only ones in our price range tend to be weatherboard or other non-brick materials (fibro??). Does anybody know what the downsides are of non-brick materials? Do they have poorer insulating properties? Any advice or a link would be most appreciated. Thanks CandS We have a 90 year old weatherboard house and I grew up in a 50s style weatherboard Our house was last painted in the 80/90s and doesn't need repainting but painting would freshen it though nor has it rotted because it has a full wrap around verandah which protects it. I don't know where you live but here in Melbourne it does react with the weather in the heat it takes a couple of days to heat up but when the change comes through it's easy to cool down as we have large double hung windows and lots of doors and a metal roof. We have central heating and it's easy to heat it in the winter (also fireplaces) My parents home had the 'weather' side rot out so it was replaced with fibro and it's still in excellent condition. The house is full of hardwood through out including kitchen cupboards and rock solid, it did require restumping a number of years ago and the roof resealed as it is concrete. Downside with older homes is the fibrous plaster - it's a pain to get right. You can easily change the look of the house with repainting with up to date colours to freshen it up but it all depends on the style of the weatherboard and what would suit it. In the same street there are lots of cream brick homes and I think they would be harder to modernise unless you render Regardless of all of that buying what you can afford gets you ahead eventually you have to start somewhere Re: Old weatherboard homes 5Mar 06, 2011 10:58 am I would think that if you wanted a radical renovation at some point in the future you could easily replace weatherboards, install wall insulation from the outside and even new windows. It seems to me weatherboard homes have alot more versatility and ease of extension/renovation than brick home. Even things like moving windows and external doors would be possible where as with a brick home that is too difficult to be feasable. I haven't renovated a WB myself but my next home will probably be one as the suburb I'm interested in is mainly WB. Re: Old weatherboard homes 6Mar 06, 2011 1:57 pm Mozzie I would think that if you wanted a radical renovation at some point in the future you could easily replace weatherboards, install wall insulation from the outside and even new windows. It seems to me weatherboard homes have alot more versatility and ease of extension/renovation than brick home. Even things like moving windows and external doors would be possible where as with a brick home that is too difficult to be feasable. I haven't renovated a WB myself but my next home will probably be one as the suburb I'm interested in is mainly WB. Speaking of replacing windows, we are doing exactly that today, whip off weatherboards, build frame, install window Takes a bit longer to actually do than type though Re: Old weatherboard homes 7Mar 07, 2011 7:32 pm It's a style you either love or you don't. You don't generally buy a weatherboard house because it's practical. There is a certain amount of maintenance that comes with the charm. I live in a weatherboard cottage, my dream home was always a period weatherboard house with a white picket fence. In my suburb, there is a mix of weatherboard and brick houses, and the weatherboard houses seem to sell for considerably more. 2 5901 1 19708 Is it possible to render an old corrugated iron shed.I have heard that it can be done if it is covered with chicken wire first.Not sure of the ratio of the render mix and… 0 4889 |