Terms like “nail sickness” are evocative. Whenever a slate slips off a roof, there is a suspicion that the roof is suffering from this mysterious affliction that brought along by old age. We see our own health decline in old age and assume that buildings do the same.

Whatever the size or complexity of the property, there are somethings that you really must invest in and top of the list has to be leadwork. Lead flashings and ridges are your primary defence against the rain and once the begin to fail, the rest of the building will quickly follow.

What does a NET-Zero retrofit look like.? 

Net Zero and Retrofit are the new buzz-words that are dominating all branches of government and industry. Net Zero is all about trying to eliminate the Carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. Currently, the energy that heats our homes and the electricity that we use to run our appliances comes mostly from burning fossil fuels. To tackle climate change, we need to reduce the amount of energy we need and then make sure that what we do need comes from a source that doesn't involve fossil fuels.

Stone erosion and deterioration is widespread in Scotland. Lithomex is a lime based restoration mortar often used as a cheap repair and as an alternative to stone replacement. "Cheap" is the principal attraction for many but it may be a false economy.

With the scaffolding gone it is a delight to see the beautiful harling and new windows at this historic property in the Highlands. You might never know that we had been there and had carried out significant repairs.

A pair of x-ray eyes would be ideal for a building survey. It would reveal all sorts of strange and wonderful things. I always enjoy the opening up of building fabric, its the first step to making your building happy again !