Practical guides to understanding salt damp, repointing, heritage stone and more - written by people who work with it every day.
When it comes to heritage masonry, the scope of the work matters just as much as the craftsmanship. In this post, we explain why Authentic Stone specialises in full-facade restoration projects rather than small, isolated repairs, and how this approach leads to better long-term outcomes for both the building and its appearance.
Read article →For heritage homes and commercial buildings across South Australia, correctly assessing the masonry and choosing compatible restoration techniques is essential to preserving the structure, appearance and breathability of the facade.
Read article →Cumberland Park’s heritage includes cottages, villas, interwar bungalows, Tudor-style homes and significant institutional masonry dating from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Clay-rich soils, mature trees, uneven watering and poor drainage can contribute to cracking, salt damage, fretting stone and deterioration around walls and chimneys.
Read article →Kent Town’s heritage includes Victorian residences, workers’ cottages, churches, hotels, schools, former brewery buildings and early warehouses. Its varied clay, silt and sand-based ground conditions, combined with shallow groundwater, dense development and altered drainage, can contribute to salt damp, mortar erosion and localised cracking.
Read article →Goodwood’s heritage streetscapes feature Victorian cottages, villas and interwar bungalows, often built with sandstone, bluestone, brick and traditional masonry detailing. Clay-rich soils, mature trees, leaking drains and raised paving can contribute to cracking, mortar failure, rising damp and salt damage in older properties.
Read article →Aldinga’s heritage includes stone and brick cottages, churches, hotels and former shops connected to its early agricultural village history. Its mix of sandy and clay-rich soils, variable drainage and coastal exposure can contribute to cracking, rising damp, salt attack and weathering in older masonry.
Read article →Port Willunga’s heritage includes stone cottages, former harbour buildings and other masonry structures connected to its nineteenth-century trading history. Coastal salt, wind-driven rain and variable sandy or clay soils can contribute to stone fretting, mortar loss, dampness and ground movement.
Read article →Willunga’s heritage includes early stone cottages, hotels, churches, civic buildings and railway-era structures, with local stone and slate defining much of the town’s character. Clay-rich subsoils, hillside runoff and variable drainage can contribute to seasonal movement, waterlogging, mortar deterioration and cracking in older masonry.
Read article →McLaren Vale’s heritage includes stone cottages, farmhouses, barns, mills, wineries and early commercial buildings connected to the district’s agricultural and winemaking history. Its varied sandy, limestone-influenced and clay-rich soils can contribute to ground movement, poor drainage, rising damp and salt deterioration in older masonry.
Read article →Echunga’s heritage includes early stone cottages, churches, hotels, shops and farm buildings dating from the district’s nineteenth-century settlement and goldfields era. Its sloping terrain, mature vegetation and damp Hills climate can contribute to moisture retention, salt damage, mortar erosion and cracking in older masonry.
Read article →Daw Park’s heritage includes early masonry buildings, interwar bungalows, solid-brick homes and early postwar residences. Common issues include cracking, dampness, mortar erosion and chimney deterioration caused by clay soils, mature trees, poor drainage and unsuitable past repairs.
Read article →Kingswood occupies a transitional position between Adelaide’s inner plains and the foothills. Historic geological records indicate that groundwater depth and underlying soil profiles can vary through the Unley–Kingswood–Fullarton corridor.
Read article →Mile End is known for its tightly held streets of cottages, bluestone and sandstone villas, return-verandah homes and early-20th-century residences. In older buildings, movement may appear as stepped cracking, separated quoins, displaced chimney masonry or opened mortar joints.
Read article →Torrensville’s built heritage reflects its development as an early western suburb close to the city and the River Torrens. It sits within Adelaide’s western outwash plains, where historic waterways deposited varying layers of clay, silt, sand and gravel.
Read article →Parkside contains some of Adelaide’s most recognisable inner-suburban heritage housing, including Victorian and turn-of-the-century cottages, attached cottages, symmetrical and asymmetrical villas, sandstone-fronted homes, interwar bungalows and Tudor-influenced residences.
Read article →Many Unley properties were constructed with shallow masonry footings and flexible lime mortar systems.
Read article →Brighton’s heritage buildings include early cottages, late-19th-century houses, Federation and interwar residences, churches, schools, shops and civic buildings.
Read article →Glenelg’s coastal position creates particular challenges for exposed masonry. Salt-laden air, wind-driven rain and moisture held within porous stone can contribute to fretting, mortar loss, surface erosion and corrosion of embedded metalwork.
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