Single skin construction

Lro

I have made an offer on a bungalow and subsequently discovered I it is older than I thought, 1930s probably but no construction date available. I have also discovered it is single skin construction. A wall was built to envelop it but there is no paperwork as to what the construction actually is. According to the survey the walls vary from 12" - 18" thick and the general condition is good but with a caveat that the internal construction was not able to be examined.


The bungalow looks in good condition and there is no damp but my concern is whether there will be problems for any prospective buyers getting a mortgage in the future and in which case should I walk away.
Any advice or experience in this area would be very welcome.


Thank you

Davesnave

Even in the 1930s, many houses were built with a single skin. This doesn't mean they have walls one brick thick, it just means the walls are solid with no cavity to arrest damp penetration and help a little with insulation..

That would be like virtually all the houses built before about 1920 then! The Victorian and most Edwardian terraces one sees in major towns and cities are single skin.


Do people have trouble getting mortgages for those properties? No.


Are you intending to buy with a mortgage? It's not clear. If you are, your surveyor's report will go to the lender who will either approve the purchase or not, but what tey do will be a good indication of others' responses too.


There are bungalows built in a manner that is called 'non-standard construction,' and lenders don't like those, I would imagine if your surveyor suspected this, they would have told you, point blank. You are paraphrasing, but if the survey says the general condition is 'good,' I'd have no great concerns.

FreeBear

Davesnave wrote: »

Even in the 1930s, many houses were built with a single skin. This doesn't mean they have walls one brick thick, it just means the walls are solid with no cavity to arrest damp penetration and help a little with insulation..

It would be better to describe it as "solid wall construction", which would typically be around 9" thick (230mm). Single skin construction would be 4" or 100mm thick.

Cavity wall construction started to appear during the Victorian era but didn't really take off until the 1920s. Even so, solid wall construction was still in use for a number of properties in the 1920s & 1930s. Sometimes, cavity wall for the lower half, and the remainder, solid wall construction to the roof line.

lincroft1710

Solid wall construction continued to be used until at least the 1940s as my late parents' house, built in 1946 did not have cavity walls. Re OP's bungalow, if walls are 18" thick in parts, then I would certainly want to know what was lurking behind the outer walls.

Davesnave

FreeBear wrote: »

It would be better to describe it as "solid wall construction",

You're right. Being of a 'certain age,' the correct term didn't come to me readily before lunch.


Now, after lunch, there'd be absolutely no chance!:rotfl:

stuart45

You can get solid wall construction on houses built later than the 40's as well. I've worked on houses in the 70's where the top half was 6 inch thermalite and tile hung. There have been a few built in recent years with solid AAC blockwork.

FreeBear

stuart45 wrote: »

You can get solid wall construction on houses built later than the 40's as well. I've worked on houses in the 70's where the top half was 6 inch thermalite and tile hung. There have been a few built in recent years with solid AAC blockwork.

Indeed there are a number of construction methods that could be considered "solid wall construction".

Insulated Concrete Forms - Lego style polystyrene or wood fibre "bricks" that are stacked up then filled with concrete. The exposed insulated surfaces are then rendered or plastered to suit.

Straw bale construction - Bales of straw stacked & pegged together then coated with a generous layer of lime render/plaster (or sometimes, clay).

As long as you can achieve the required u value of thermal performance, just about any wall construction method could be used.

Tom99

I would want a bit more info about " A wall was built to envelop it", what does that mean? And why are some walls 18" thick?