DEMOLISHING A 1970's FEATURE, WHATS THE POINT OF IT!?

Duration: 17:52 1464 transcript words EN summary

Video summary

The video documents the demolition and renovation of a house built in the 1970s, revealing significant structural quirks that challenge modern construction standards. The narrator begins by removing old cladding and discovering that the exterior wall is a solid concrete structure rather than a traditional cavity wall, necessitating the cutting of a new cavity from below ground level. This process involves installing a lintel and grinding away the bottom section to create space for insulation and proper drainage, highlighting the labor-intensive nature of retrofitting older properties. The team also encounters unexpected complications, such as missing steel deliveries and forecasted thunderstorms, which force them to adjust their schedule and work around potential weather delays. A major focus of the renovation is addressing the building's poor original construction methods, particularly the lack of proper ties between wall sections. Upon inspection, the narrator finds that the walls are held together merely by tiny tacks and cut nails, a common but flawed practice from the 1970s and 80s that offers little structural integrity. To rectify this, they plan to install a robust system of cavity ties, including screw ties and standard cavity ties, to strengthen the connection between walls and prevent cracking when render is applied later. Additionally, the team discovers evidence of termite damage, further emphasizing the need for careful repair and sealing of gaps before proceeding with insulation and finishing works. As the demolition progresses, the narrator deals with the messy reality of breaking out solid brickwork and managing damp courses, ensuring that the new cavity sits correctly below the damp proof course to prevent moisture issues. The interior side of the cavity is left rough for now, as it will eventually be plastered over once the external work is complete. Despite the physical toll of cutting through tough concrete and dealing with debris, the team remains optimistic about transforming the outdated structure into a more resilient home. The project also includes personal anecdotes from the narrator's childhood, recalling rainy days at school sports events, which adds a human touch to the otherwise technical and demanding construction process. Ultimately, the video serves as a cautionary tale about the hidden challenges of renovating mid-century homes, where solid walls and inadequate tying systems require creative solutions and significant effort to modernize. The narrator emphasizes the importance of not skipping steps like installing lintels or adding sufficient ties, even if it means deviating from original designs that may have been structurally unsound. With materials arriving soon and weather conditions improving, the team is ready to move forward with filling gaps, sealing the cavity, and preparing the house for its next phase of renovation, turning a potentially disastrous 1970s build into a safe and comfortable living space.

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10 course to block. Four ties. >> Well, it came out easy. >> This is coming off a lot easier than I thought it would. >> We had a bit of um as as you went to hit >> Right, Tuesday the 30th of June 2026. Yeah, end of June today. Can't believe it. >> So, we we going holiday We going holiday as of tomorrow we going holiday this month. >> Here we go. That was off. >> In less than 2 weeks. >> Yeah. >> So This is coming off a lot easier than I thought it would. >> We had a bit of a uh complication cuz we were meant to be somewhere else today. But um the steel's not been delivered. And the customer messaged last night saying it's not been delivered. And so they're not ready for us. >> they they're not ready to be They said any day but tomorrow. Actually today. Yeah, it's forecast thunderstorms later, so. >> So, we're just doing a bit of demolition. Oh, this is getting blocked. It's getting blocked up, isn't it? >> See, we've got to take all this off obviously, which isn't which isn't that really easy. It's coming off. And it doesn't leak. >> Look at the nails if if you can find them. There's barely any. I think I think it's just I don't think there is any actually. I think it's just a decent done. >> Oh, no, there tacks. >> Ah. >> Tiny tacks. Unbelievable. And this tool the picture rail and then the buttons behind. Buttons are looking a bit It was actually quite good, Nick. Everything's bone dry. But it's as I showed you yesterday, it's a solid wall. So, we're bringing it out and making it cavity wall. So, we have to cut this concrete out of the bottom. Go just below ground, put a lintel in, and angle grind. Hopefully the the wall will not actually. We'll see. We're going to get some fiber lights and bring everything forward. Give it a little bit of weight up. And then reduce that window. Take the top bit off that window. That was ridiculous. Just Yeah, that's These are nails. That's what's holding that side panel in. Just tacks. Wow. You don't get much simpler than that. Certainly found out it's 70s built, though. Found out it's a 70s built. So, there's 70s for you. Wow. Yeah, it was by the whole build. It's termites as well. That's quite shocking. Well, there you go. That's more of a termite. Ow. That was just nailed. Cut nails. They were all the rage in the 80s and 70s. Still do now. There's a tie wire sticking out. Hopefully, those tie wires Hopefully those tie wires stick out far enough just to use them. There's another cotter pin. We have just got a load of cable ties, the uh long ones. From Joseph Pars. There's another cotter pin here. We've got a cotter pin over here. >> I got to hope and pray for a ladder for that one. >> Yeah. Well, that didn't take long. Right, I'm going to get me a latte and then [music] go to time lapse. >> [music] [music] >> It's pretty loose, but that's what you expect from pit them like that anyway. But hopefully once these top three are out, the rest will just pop off then. >> [music] [music] >> Well, it came out easy. Just got the bricks to take out now, which probably need the drill for cuz they're actually quite tough in. But, yeah, once they're out, hopefully there's a bit of wall underneath that we can build off of. And then, once all this stuff arrives and we're back here, we can get it started. And we'll obviously fill up all this as well cuz we fill them anyway. Um could all do with a bit of filling before we slap insulation in. And there's a few tires which could possibly be used but we've got ours anyway. So yeah, lovely stuff. I'll go get the drill and all this crap's being moved into the garage for now. So I'll get that done. And I'll catch you in a >> [music] [music] >> Not much wrong in that. That's a long way in that. Um experience tells me Well, told me that I was going to put a lintel in. But then experience said you shouldn't even put a lintel in because there's no way they're going to put this detail in in the foundation. So Get down a little bit. And there's our reveal wall. Just a matter of popping all the bricks out, bringing everything forward, tooling it in. Job's a good 'un. Now we can crack on. Try not to miss out on putting lintels in down here anyway. That's our lintel at the So I'm going to carry on breaking all this out. And I'll actually just start to fill all these big massive holes in just to seal it all up. >> We um didn't have any sand. Thankfully customer had a bit of um that blue circle mortar. We had a bit of sand, so I mixed that in with that to give it a bit more texture. >> It's madman though, isn't it? It's horrible stuff. >> Oh, yeah. >> Just like Mark Hep's mix. Whatever Don't know what sand he uses, but it's awful stuff. You just tell by looking at it. He manages though. Right, let's crack on. >> [music] [music] >> That was a slog. Cutting that bloody cavity out. It's solid up to the little bricks there. It's not likely to be like that. It's only just two below damp. So, I've got it down three below damp now. So, that's all And it's drying out as well. It was quite wet. But, it's below damp, so it generally is. There you go. So, that's it basically. Three course of brick, damp course, and get on with the blocks. As you can see, the inside of the cavity is never pretty. And the other side gets plastered, obviously. These are just the um couple of the joists from the landing, cuz you've got the You've got a half landing here. It goes up. That's the landing window. So, um don't know what to do now, cuz it's Our stuff's not coming till Wednesday, and it's forecast thunderstorms. But, I'd like to get this little bit of brick working done before we go. Um It's a tough one, that. Um I think I'll have to take that half out, actually. Because um that's damp course. That's damp course there. Yeah, so brick work goes up to there. Yeah, one, two, three. Yeah, I'll sort that out now, and then um take it from there. >> Say that again. >> [music] >> I forgot to mention 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10. 10 courses of block. Four ties. Two up there on course eight. One course two. And one on course four. That's it. Basically. We'll be We'll be getting a lot more ties in than that. We've got some cavity ties and we've got some screw ties as well. So it's going to strengthen all up. Probably any movement then when the uh render goes across it so it won't be any cracking. And I think that's it. We're just going to tie it now cuz it's getting up ready for this thunderstorm that's due. >> I hope I hope the kids sports day is going to be over when that thunderstorm hits. I wouldn't want to be doing me track and >> Mom's gone away now to go and see Daisy's. So I said oh the weather's not that bad really. >> I'll never forget once I was doing we were doing I think it was football or something PE. And it was chucking it down. We were there my hands freezing and I remember them being bright red, cold. And buddy teacher's there full full full tracky outfit hands in pockets. Come on. Can't let you go in. No no. Did the whole lesson outside. >> You don't do that nowadays. >> And then if another another one we were we were doing a cricket in the rain. Told you this story. And then as as as you went to hit right out of his hand right onto one of me other colleagues' faces. His eyes, his nose, his mouth, and his ears were all bleeding. He got proper clouded by that thing. Looked like buddy Indiana Jones when they start melting. >> When you had to go out to go to school. Not anymore. >> [music] [music] >> Mhm.