Advice please - tack room refurb.

[Red-1]

Hi, I am in the middle of sorting out my tack room. It is an old brick construction, with a lined tile roof.

When Jay was retired we did not really go in there for a year or so, and although we have tidied round, it seems that the 1 year of neglect has had consequences. This week we have emptied the whole thing out, and I have some questions...

The walls have rising damp with the inner plaster spalling off. We got a rising damp person out, but they said our walls were not suitable for injection. Not sure why not - but I was not there when he was... So, we have brushed off any loose areas and waterproofed with masonary paint the outside, and sealed with a seal primer the inside, but I am not now sure what to do with the inner to have a usable surface? There seems little point in putting paint straight on.

Spiders. I am talking lots of spiders! Walls crawling with them. Everything is sticky with the webs. I have hoovered the walls 3 times, but still there are lots of spiders. Is there some chemical treatment that will work? I am talking over run with spiders, not just a few.

The walls to the apex are incomplete, as in they are jagged where the half bricks are missing to the eves. The stables are on one side and the hay store the other. Mice, we have evidence of mice and rats too, although we only had rats for a short time after a hay delivery. I am scrubbing everything, have thrown stuff out and have ordered galvanised bins and a wardrobe made of metal. I am thinking to seal off the tack room from the hay store, do you think that skirting board to fit up to the eaves would be OK? Otherwise I may have to buy/get/make part bricks and use cement to finish the walls to the eaves. I am planning to feed haylage from now on, as when we have haylage and bagged bedding we don't have vermin! I think the hay man inadvertently delivers them in bales.

The room is currently empty, so any suggestions welcome to have the tack room nice again are welcome.

 

[DD]

galvanised bins and storage is the way forward. do you have a yard cat? since stray moved in with us we have had very little vermin about the place. plastic boxes with lids are ok for some things but not food stuffs and I include saddle soap in this mice eat it. and sometimes they will chew into rugs etc to make nests. if things are regulally used theres rarely a problem best to get rid of unused things.

 

[Red-1]

Thank you. I did have 2 galvanised bins for all rugs not in use, and a big galvanised bin for all feed stuffs, the new one is to be for all other stuff such as travel boots, brushing boots, numnahs, etc etc etc. I have bought some plastic boxes for frequent use stuff too.

To be fair, the mouse/rat problem does seem related to hay, so I hope using haylage will also help.

I have also just bought some home treatment for damp, a kit complete with drill bit to inject a damp proof course. Reading between the lines with OH, when we had a company that did injectable damp proofing come and look, the rendering o the back wall was cracked. We have since rectified that, so hopefully if we do a damp proof course with this silicon cream treatment it will dry out over the rest of summer, and either at the end of summer, or next summer we can seal it and paint it up again.

Just the eves to think about still. Plus, I think I will cement all the little gaps in the brickwork, homes for spiders!

 

[DD]

when people have cellars tanked they are made waterproof. there was/is a product called Medusa which was like a sort of concrete which could be plastered onto walls to make them water tight. maybe speaking to a builder /plasterer could help you find a suitable product which could be put on the walls like waterproof rendering. what do people line swimming pools with? maybe that product would help. https://www.permagard.co.uk/permaseal-tanking-25kg-bucket something like this

 

[Red-1]

Thank you, I will have a look at that, once we have done the damp course and allowed it to dry out.

My wonderful OH has de-spidered the hay room and bedding store with a hoover, and I am thinking about applying expanding foam for the uneven eaves between the 3 rooms. It would not keep mice out, but I don't think we currently have any (and are unlikely to import more if I switch to wrapped haylage) and it would stop the spiders having free range. I do wonder if it would backfire re ventilation though, at present apart from the walls the tack room is a healthy fresh, no mustiness.

We have just come back in, after hoovering the walls for the 4th time today we seem to be on top of the spider situation finally.

The outside is now in good condition, so hopefully we will sort t all out. This was a few days ago...

 

[fattylumpkin]

Lovely! A dream of mine is to someday have a stable block just like yours Red-1!

 

[turnbuckle]

Poor old spiders. Bet you have more flies now!

If you're sure the damp is rising, chemical courses aren't the most effective. A mechanical one isn't a huge task for a decent builder.

 

[Red-1]

Lovely! A dream of mine is to someday have a stable block just like yours Red-1!

Thank you, it is lovely, it does keep some maintenance, so far it has had a new roof, rewire, woodworm treatment, new lighting, alarm system, rendering repair, re-paint... now it seems a chemical treatment for damp.

Poor old spiders. Bet you have more flies now!

If you're sure the damp is rising, chemical courses aren't the most effective. A mechanical one isn't a huge task for a decent builder.

Thank you, we are not sure where it is from, as it is worse on the back wall (which is exposed), but we have now repaired the render and re-painted. I do think some of it is rising though, as it is worse at the bottom, and the internal walls have some at the bottom too. I have ordered the chemical stuff now as a DIY solution (and only £75), as it will be easy enough (she says, ha ha) now it is empty. If that does not work then we will have to have a re-think.

I have never really bothered with spiders before, but this time they have got to me with their sheer numbers... think....

[video=youtube;dNAk6oIKAjI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNAk6oIKAjI[/video]

If they come back I have ordered some spray, and this will be me!

There are always fly papers!

 

[Cahill]

i really like my collection of filing cabinets for storage

 

[Red-1]

i really like my collection of filing cabinets for storage

Ah, that is one had not thought of, thank you

 

[Red-1]

Almost done.

The damp proof course is working already, it is amazing that already the walls are changing colour as they dry out. The eves are sealed with foam, the whole place de-spidered, and this is now the rat resistant storage for stuff that is not in metal bins...

CCTV also went up today, I have the field, stables, arena and yard covered. The only thing still to be completed is the tin wardrobe/locker, which was self-assembly with a piece missing. They are sending a replacement out, then it will all be done.

Thank you for suggestions! I have eaten more spiders' webs than I care to think of, and had brick work in my eyes. My hands are distinctly rougher than when we started.

The garage is next!