For insurance purposes we need to declare whether we have scrim in the walls or not.
If it is obvious to see for yourself, we'd rather avoid the potentially unecessary cost of having a builder inspect.
The house was built in the 1940's.
The only place where the wallpaper is lifting, looks like plaster board underneath.
Inside the higher cupboards and wardrobes there is no finishing on the walls (e.g, wallpaper, plaster), and all I can see is wooden boards. No hesh or sack looking material.
What are some other ways that I could rule out, or discover, if there is Scrim?
owen106,
Mar 31, 2:18pm
Find out when scrim stopped being used as a building product.
machinehead,
Mar 31, 2:58pm
The answer(s) to that seems too varied.
. and I do not know the exact year that this house was built. All I know is that it was constructed in the 1940's.
The council (at least so far), cannot answer any specifics.
coolnzmum,
Mar 31, 3:01pm
You should be able to able to feel it though the paper. We could in place we brought.
pauldw,
Mar 31, 3:10pm
Our 40s house had plasterboard rather than sarking and scrim with tongue & groove lining in hot water cupboard. Your next question from the insurance co will be is there any old electrical wiring. 1940s is still in that period. That answer should come from an electrician on site.
oh_hunnihunni,
Mar 31, 4:18pm
You may be able to see it if you unscrew an electrical plug, but usually the tell tale is the slight stretching that can be spotted under some areas of older wallpaper. Perhaps lift a small piece if there is any under built ins?
lythande1,
Mar 31, 7:57pm
It is easy to tell whether walls have scrim and sarking as their basis: knocking on the wall produces the sound of the wood, and any wallpaper laid over the top has an uneven finish. In many instances, the scrim will come loose from the sarking, in which case the wallpaper will appear to float loose from the wall. It's unlikely as your house isn't old enough for it. You are asked because:
Mines got scrim over thin boards, covered with gibboard during the late 1960's. I guess to pull off a skirting board & see.
hound31,
Mar 31, 9:18pm
All you need is a good south easterly lol. I grew up in a house with scrim under the paper, a decent southerly shifted the paper in and out slightly, no need for flash ventilation systems in those days.
pauldw,
Apr 1, 6:41am
When was the house built?
lythande1,
Apr 1, 8:30am
And when was the house originally built? That is my point.
pauldw,
Apr 1, 9:15am
1940s would be well into plasterboard (not yet paper covered Gib) era. Original wiring would be a mix of timber and metal conduit for power and rubber for lighting. Water pipe would be galvanised which by 1980s would have been blocked with rust so prime target for Dux Qest replacement.
machinehead,
Aug 6, 2:17pm
The council have responded saying that it was built in 1937.
We were going to relocate the meters, from within the heart of the house, to outside. However, we were then told that this could trigger requirements for a re-wire. Upon inspection, the electrician says that only the Sub-Main is original (or outdated), so I think that saved us some money/time.
I've tried the knock test, but at the best of times I find it hard to differentiate, so that's of little use to me.
I'll have a look behind some wall sockets and light switches.
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