Ch.2: So where ARE we?

That is, before thinking how to de-ruin a rather bio-degradable house, one should ask what problems actually exist?

In the last post we saw the house around which this project is centred; we have a basic grasp of its locality, cultural and historical context, materials in its composition and some vague idea of an architectural mixture of styles.

Beyond looking at such a sorry little house and muttering “thou shall not fall”, though, what should one do to ensure survival and, why not, joyful continued existence beneath the firmament?

Well, the key word here would be restoration. Restoration in a more museum-appropriate context, rather than the good old “1 sack cement, sand, 2 shovels” work-around-the-house shopping list. We know the basic materials and that they are generally easy to find – clay, straw, wooden beams and boards, recycled roof tiles, lime and mortar, so the next question is...where do we need to use them?

Here we ought to evaluate existing degradations; water infiltrations and the absence of any form of foundations underground are the main culprits in this case. 

Fig.1: examples of frequently met deteriorations in traditional Transylvanian Saxon houses; from Hulsemann, p. 13.

So, let us begin with a top-down evaluation:

Roof

An interesting mixture of modern and archaic features. Rather difficult to estimate its age, but most likely interwar. Roughly worked beams form a 90° angle-based cross-gabled roof, where the secondary roof protrudes according to the porch’s porch (do bear with me). Whether the structure was produced for the “LEU” tiles currently covering it – produced during the Communist period based on an 1890’s model – is difficult to say; however, the dense and uniform layer of smoke residues and tars which is found on the wooden elements but not on the tiles indicates strongly towards the existence of a previous external shell. At some point in this earlier phase, there was likely no chimney running through the roof: rather, the smoke stack would have opened at the attic floor’s level. Evacuating the smoke into the attic, beside the disadvantage of risking a fire, had several advantages:

- It coated the wooden structure in a bug/fungal and slightly fire resistant layer;

- It eliminated the necessity of a separate smoking area for curing meats;

- It partly heated the attic, increasing the thermal efficiency of the stove in the living and cooking areas.

Problems so far:

The demolishing of the old chimney by the previous owner has left for several months a 50x60sq. cm opening in the roof through which sufficient rain has fallen for some of the clay masonry below to decompose; since its patching, no further damage has been observed.

At the two ends – both gabled – some missing/broken tiles have also been replaced. Also at the gables are missing wooden planks (4?), so as to line the ends of the roof.

Fig.2: exposed wooden walls where the clay has washed off.

Walls

Surprisingly, perhaps, these are doing rather well. The basic wall structure is composed of small (cca.12-15cm Ø) logs with minimal overlap at the joints (cca.5cm outward). The masonry is a simple mixture of clay (yellow soil), straw, small amounts of sand and possibly horse dung – no additional supporting structure has been identified (as is typical at least inside houses – diagonally placed, thin wooden rods covering the entire wall, for better adherence and more level surfaces). Beneath the current combination of latte/light-blue/pink, all previous layers are different shades of light blue, with a sometimes ochre, sometimes dark grey belt just above the stone bed/foundation.

Fig.3: different layers of older paint, most of them alternating between shades of light blue.

Fig.4: a small portion of the old ochre and black/dark grey paints of the foundation.

Due to the nature of these materials, the lack of major issues with the roof and the less-than-severe damages to the foundation, the walls are in good shape and had well-enough elasticity to tolerate any shifting. The brunt of this movement was taken by the masonry, which has extensive damage.

Porch

Here lies the grand issue! With some rocks from the over-ground foundation slipping away, the weight of the roof remained only on the longitudinal beam, via the porch pillars (mock columns: adobe-clad wood). Due to this, the beam broke, with the bases of the second and third pillars shifting outwards some 20cm. Obviously, this is not only the main issue of the house, but also the element requiring immediate solving – as further shifts will only be out of question when this is solved, thus delaying any masonry work or rebuilding the chimney. Besides, with the 2 pillars having insufficient support, the roof is also under stress.

Fig.4: The snapped foundation beam beneath the porch wall.

Foundation

When there is no basement, such houses most usually have their foundation above the ground – if there is anything below, it is in the case of houses built in steep areas, where more anchoring is required. Otherwise, depth is not significant; instead, a bed of rocks is built over the ground. And, of great importance, they ought to sit well together, as cementing is minimal. By avoiding to use mortars in the construction of these beds, upward movement of water via capillarity is no longer a threat. If anything, Hulsemann recommends using plain clay instead of any sort of cement.

As such, it is unsurprising that in the case of houses that were uninhabited for longer periods of time, the lack of upkeep led to some of these stones being pushed out of the bed.

Here we have two such event; one rather extensive area between the second and third pillars of the porch, and one more localised one, at the northern corner of the façade, where the end of the northern longitudinal foundation beam shifted slightly, but not enough to lead to it cracking or to shift the wall to any visible extent.

Fig.5: the shifted north-estern corner of the house.

Bibliography

Jan Hulsemann. Casa țărănească săsească din Transilvania. Ghid pentru restaurarea caselor vechi. Translated by Eugen Vaida& Mihai Lazar. Simetria: Sibiu. 2014.

Bogdan Sorinca