Concrete poured next to limestone foundation?
Hi there, I have a Milwaukee cream brick home built in the 1850s. An interior corner in our bathroom was gutted to fix some rot on studs and to reinforce some floor joists under the closet.
The foundation is limestone (rough below the ground but cut above ground). On the interior wall of the above ground limestone there were bricks placed along with wood. The wood was rotted and the lime mortar was deteriorated enough that I just pulled everything out with my hands.
My question is, now that I’ve packed the voids with type n mortar, can I build a form and fill the bigger space with concrete rather than rebuilding it all with brick? Would the cement being harder cause damage to the limestone blocks? The cement would only be on one side of the limestone, not filling crevices or cracks.
Thanks for any suggestions.
-Stephen
Replies
Do you have pictures?
There should be a photo on the original post, but I can take a few more pictures tomorrow. I tried doing a markup on my phone, but the file sizes are to big to upload here.
I'm the photo in the original post you can see some bricks on the far right side. They are sitting on a wooden 2x4 and this would have continued around the interior corner, filling in the void and bringing it just above for level (I think, but it fills the void in any case).
I've asked a few acquaintances who have been restoring their old homes in the area and they suggested that as long as the foundation is sound and all gaps are filled with softer mortar (they suggested type n), then an additional interior "wall" or back fill of concrete shouldn't be an issue. I was concerned about the hardness of the concrete or it causing problems with the limestone blocks not being able to breathe.
can you share some more pics