DIYable to plasterboard porch?

greensalad

We are fairly newbie DIYers but already learning a lot and one of the upcoming projects we have is to sort out our porch.

It is a 60cm deep porch, originally open (as evidenced by other houses on the road) but ours has been doored over with a door+side light configuration. So the inside front door is a completely clear glass UPVC door + side light that opens inwards, and the outer door is a UPVC 90s addition with side light too, that opens outwards. Inside the porch there has been laminate flooring laid and cheap shiplap put up and painted with emulsion. It looks a bit terrible tbh. 

We're planning to purchase two new front doors with sidelights, one for in and one for out, but I was wondering if it is feasible to put plasterboard up ourselves and re-tile the floor instead of laminate? It's such a small area it feels like something we could do ourselves. Obviously we would have the new doors put in by the supplying company but the aim would be to get the shiplap and laminate stripped first so we have an unfinished porch to fit out. 

Any gotchas? Any obvious problems? I was kind of hoping a bit of plasterboard with some sort of damp protection up on the walls, maybe some sort of self-levelling compound on the flooring to help even out the brick underneath, and some skirting and thin coving up top would do the trick.

Bendy_House

Could you provide some photos, please?
What is the porch's wall construction?
I guess there's no way to have the outside door also opening inwards, is there (much better)?
In short, yes, you can do this.

Bendy_House

A few things to bear in mind before you even start. This porch is not heated, and is unlikely to be? In which case is should be constantly ventilated with trickle vents (eg on the window, and possibly door too) in order to keep it fresh and free from condensation. Every time you open your inner door, a a large gulp of warm moist air will flow out and hit the cold surfaces in the porch. In colder weather you will likely see the outer door and window mist up almost instantly as a result, and the only two ways to prevent this is to either make the porch effectively 'internal' - Ie add a radiator (not worth it) or to keep treating it as 'external' (like an outside shed...) And ventilate it instead. It'll be colder, but dry.
To know what work is needed will require you to first strip off what's there. 

FreeBear

Bendy_House said: In colder weather you will likely see the outer door and window mist up almost instantly as a result, and the only two ways to prevent this is to either make the porch effectively 'internal' - Ie add a radiator (not worth it) or to keep treating it as 'external' (like an outside shed...) And ventilate it instead. It'll be colder, but dry.

I have a porch that is (probably) similar to the OP. A single skin brick construction boxing in an area that formed the side of a bay. As soon as the sun hits the DG windows, it gets nice & warm in there even when there is frost or snow outside. At night, the temperature will plummet.. Have never experienced condensation or damp out there despite a complete lack of ventilation.

Whilst I could put a radiator out there, the walls would either need to be rebuilt with cavity or masses of insulation added. Really not worth the effort. The floor & ceiling/roof would also need extra insulation, which is just not going to happen.

OP - If this porch is single skin brick (~100mm thick), then you don't really want to be putting plasterboard straight on to the walls. Any penetrating damp will turn the PB to mush after a few years as it doesn't cope very well with damp. The paper facing will also be a nice breeding ground for mold - Whilst you could build up a studwork frame and incorporate a vapour control membrane to limit ingress of moisture, it would bump up the cost considerably.

I'd suggest using a pure lime plaster on to the bare brick - If the brick has been painted, a bonding coat (DG-27 or Blue Grit) may be required. Lime plaster is quite easy to work with and very forgiving and you can get away with thin coats. If you want colour, pigments can be mixed in with the plaster to save having to paint afterwards - If you do paint, use a clay or lime based paint and not some modern vinyl..

As for the floor - Check where the DPC is on the main house - If the porch floor is below the DPC, then there probably won't be any damp membrane in the floor. In which case, watch the depth of any self leveling compound.

stuart45

When I built my daughters porch in single skin brickwork, I just left the inner walls as face brickwork. Allows the walls to breathe and no painting required. Outside was rendered.

greensalad

No chance of making the front door open inwards too. It's too narrow a space. We like the idea of having a wooden door on the inside and a glass door on the front. Others in the road have done that too.

Here's from the inside. No room for a radiator. It hasn't ever steamed up though, seems to be fine. It's pretty chilly but I'm not bothered about that, definitely no point putting in a radiator:



Shiplap walls, pretty shoddy:



DPC seems to be in line with the step:



Laminate:



Other house on close that has an open porch. I suspect this is exactly what ours is like underneath. They even have the same red painted step:



I am happy to consider this space "outside" so plasterboard sounds like it's not the way to go. I'll speak to the company making the doors to find out about trickle vents. I was thinking of going with Solidoor. 

I would prefer to have a smooth finish rather than just painted brick, so I think plastering the walls sounds like a great idea. Hopefully won't be too expensive as it's such a small area. And then self-levelling compound and attempting the tiling myself? I may try to find a really low profile skirting and architrave too just to pop down inside the door frame as I think that would help it look nicely finished. Possibly skirting with a cabling rebate to hide the earth cable that runs through from the box to our gas meter.

FreeBear

The last picture helps considerably. Penetrating damp is unlikely to be an issue except around the exterior door/window frame. A thin coat of fine render would be suitable. Weber and Tarmac both do it in 25Kg bags (Wickes or B&Q respectively), and one will be more than enough.

stuart45

You might find there could be some damp next to the frame if a vertical DPC isn't in the wall next to the frame. It doesn't always happen, depends if the wall takes driving rain. 

greensalad

FreeBear said:

The last picture helps considerably. Penetrating damp is unlikely to be an issue except around the exterior door/window frame. A thin coat of fine render would be suitable. Weber and Tarmac both do it in 25Kg bags (Wickes or B&Q respectively), and one will be more than enough.

What would be the neatest way to put that up, so it doesn't affect the look of the outside brickwork? Just try and keep it to a thin strip and a similar colour to the brick?I'm guessing it's just to seal around the frame? Possibly something I could ask whoever does the plastering skim to do (unless I consider trying to learn that skill too, seeing as it's a small area and outside-ish).

FreeBear

I was suggesting using a render on all the exposed brickwork in the porch area once the wood paneling has been removed. As has been previously pointed out, the space may be prone to damp (either condensation or penetrating damp around the door frame). Gypsum plaster, including plasterboard, doesn't cope well with damp. A cement (or lime) based render would be ideal, and it doesn't need the super fine finish that one would expect throughout the rest of the house.

stuart45

Moisture can soak through the brickwork which is why vertical DPC's are put into the jambs in situations like this.