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The mission of the Historic Resources Committee (HRC) is to identify, understand, and preserve architectural heritage, both nationally and internationally. HRC is engaged in promoting the role of the historic architect within the profession through the development of information and knowledge among members, allied professional organizations, and the public.

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1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

  • 1.  1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-21-2020 11:49 AM
      |   view attached

    Hi Historic Resources Committee,
    We are renovating a 145 year old 5 story brick townhouse on Comm Ave in Boston's Back Bay. The shared party walls are solid 12" thick 3-wythe brick bearing walls. The rear facade facing the alley has a shallow brick curving bay from grade to the 4th story.

    As an elective partial seismic upgrade, our structural engineer has designed 4' long steel angles bolted horizontally to the interior face of the brick bay just below the floor joists, with steel strap tie-backs bolted to a few of the floor joists--essentially tying the floor diaphragm system to the brick wall. The floor joists span party wall to party wall, so they run parallel to the rear curving bay wall. 

    Upon drilling and bolting the steel angles, we discovered the curving brick wall is a cavity wall--12" thick but the center wythe is missing. There are brick header ties bridging the inner and outer wythes at around 32" o.c. Our structural engineer assumed the wall was solid and drilling and bolting would find ample solid masonry to anchor into. 

    We are now considering injecting grout into the cavity in working from bottom up in shallow layers in order to mitigate blow-out the brick wythes from too much grout. Sounds good but we are worried about this.

    We all assumed the curving brick bay wall was solid and functioned like any normal traditional masonry moisture reservoir wall system. But this cavity wall has us puzzled. It seems like it could function to retard liquid water drive through the outer wythe, but we see no evidence of weeps at the bottom. If we make the wall solid by injecting grout we may affect the way the wall handles water and could be deleterious. From our inspections it appears this wall seems to be handling rain/snow/ice/moisture in a satisfactory way. We see no mold in the cavity, but we are planning to repoint and rectify the flashing issues. 

    We endorse the partial seismic upgrade as a benefit, but are worried the grout injection could potentially create an unknown water intrusion problem. Has the Committee come across any similar cavity wall situations, and how were they dealt with? Any thoughts would be helpful.

    Thanks,
    Jeffrey Heyne AIA



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    Jeffrey Heyne AIA
    Boston MA
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 2.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-24-2020 05:24 PM
    Hi Jeffrey -
    I'd be hesitant, as you are, to start filling this wall with grout.  I don't have anything other than my gut to base that on, though.  Hopefully someone else on this list will have something more scientific to offer. 

    One thought - Have you thought about contacting someone from APT (the Association for Preservation Technology) or a masonry specialist?  Our local chapter of APT (here in Philadelphia) has lots of architect members, but also more specialists in materials conservation.  Boston must have some similar folks.  I'd maybe get someone from that perspective to weigh in.

    Good luck and please report back what is recommended - now I'm curious!

    Kathy Dowdell



    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 3.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-25-2020 10:27 AM
    Hi Kathy,
    Thank you very much for your recommendations. I will share with my GC, structural engineer, and mason, and let you know what we decide.

    --Jeffrey Heyne  AIA, Associate

    DELL MITCHELL. ARCHITECTS

    Architecture & Interior Design

    20 Newbury Street

    Boston, MA 02116

    617 266 0201

     

    www.dellmitchellarchitects.com



    ------------------------------
    Jeffrey Heyne AIA
    Boston MA
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 4.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-25-2020 05:53 PM

    Use a preservation engineer and CINTEC anchors

     

    John F

     

    John A. Fidler DipArch, MAarch, MAconservation, AAGradDiplconservation

                               RIBA, IHBC, Intl Assoc AIA, FRICS, FSA, FIIC, FAPT

     

    John Fidler Preservation Technology Inc

    Marina Towers North

    4640 Admiralty Way, Suite 500

    Marina Del Rey

    California 90292-6636

    USA

     

    Tel: 310-496-5730

    Cell: 310-498-4973

    Email: johnfidler@jf-pt.com

    www.linkedin.com/pub/john-fidler/13/921/794

     

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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 5.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-26-2020 11:31 AM
    Good Morning Jeffrey,
    Typical interpretation of SOI standards doesn't allow Portland cement based products to be applied in any way to historic masonry - at least that's how it is with Iowa SHPO. I assume the grout you're speaking of would be cement based. Perhaps it would be acceptable to fill the cavity with a more traditional lime based mortar/slurry, or a Type K mortar/slurry, but you'd probably want to test it on one area of the wall first, to see how the masonry reacts. I'm also not sure if this would satisfy your structural engineer.

    To be on the safe side, I would probably lean away from filling the cavity and find another way to meet seismic requirements, if possible.

    Best of luck,

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    Bethany Jordan, AIA, NCARB
    Preservation Architect
    www.MartinGardnerArch.com
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 6.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-24-2020 05:31 PM
    The first concern that I would have is that modern grouts are stronger than the older brick and mortar.

    ------------------------------
    Blaine Johnston AIA
    Architect
    Blaine O. Johnston, AIA
    Meridian ID
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 7.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-25-2020 10:28 AM
    Hi Blaine,
    Thanks for the "heads-up" on the grout strength. I'll share with out team and let you know what we decide.

    --Jeffrey Heyne  AIA, Associate

    DELL MITCHELL. ARCHITECTS

    Architecture & Interior Design

    20 Newbury Street

    Boston, MA 02116

    617 266 0201

     

    www.dellmitchellarchitects.com



    ------------------------------
    Jeffrey Heyne AIA
    Boston MA
    ------------------------------

    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 8.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-25-2020 09:02 AM
    A number of years ago, I grouted a similar late 19th century cavity wall for a project in Boston's North End.  This was a late 19th century multistory commercial building originally built as a candy factory, and repurposed over time.  In the mid to late 19th century, this kind of wall assembly was common in New England, especially in multistory buildings, as a method to save weight and material.  

    In my project, the walls exhibited cracks and were not watertight.  Because there were no weep holes, and no practical means of draining the cavities with new weep holes, I opted for grouting with a fine grout mixture inserted through multiple ports in minimal lifts.  At this building, the wall did not have continuous cavities - like many examples of its era, the walls had multiple cavities that were discontinous.  The grouting had to be monitored carefully to prevent seepage, and the quantity limited to prevent blow out.  The project worked well.  The grout mixture must be fine, with curing and viscosity carefully selected.  This grout mixture was very different than the types used for grouting CMU.  I used a mixture with polymers.

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    Marsha Levy AIA
    Boca Raton FL
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 9.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-25-2020 12:34 PM
    I'd also mention that the product that I used was from Edison Chemical, and they have injection grouts of varying viscosity and strengths, including one intended for softer masonry.  Unlike your project, the walls in my project were a regular source of water penetration, and had cracks.  The brick had been damaged by an ill-conceived brick repair project in the early 1970's that had included abrasive "cleaning" and applying a clear waterproofing coating - a textbook case of what NOT to do.  The end result of the project from the 1970's was that the brick became more porous after abrasives were used, and absorbed more water quickly.  The grout strengthened the wall, and retarded the passage of moisture.

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    Marsha Levy AIA
    Boca Raton FL
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 10.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-26-2020 10:43 AM
    Hi Jeffrey,

    Jonathan Appell with Atlas Preservation might be a good resource to run your thoughts by - he works extensively with mortars and masonry in historic preservation work and is very cognizant of regional and site specific variations on materials and methods. Best of luck!

    https://atlaspreservation.com/

    Lauren Dillon

    ------------------------------
    Lauren Dillon
    Executive Designer
    Master of Plaster Finishing Systems, Inc.
    Columbia SC
    ------------------------------

    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 11.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 03-02-2020 11:57 AM
    Hi Jeffrey,

    I agree with a number of the previous comments that changing the dynamics of the wall by grouting the cavities could be problematic. The concern, as you pointed out in your original message, relates to the transmission of moisture. Grouting the cavity shut could lead to efflorescence on the exterior surface and possibly degradation of the brick under certain circumstances. Suggest considering other options for your seismic upgrade, possibly a structural frame system of some sort. Clearly, this would depend on whether or not the exterior wall or interior spaces are primary character defining features to the building, but if done in a sensitive way, it might work.

    I believe we went to college together. Good luck!      

    Sayre Hutchison, RA, AIA, NCARB
    Commercial Services Regional Asset Manager
    NPS Regional Office Serving Interior Regions 6, 7, & 8
    12795 W. Alameda Parkway
    Lakewood, CO 80228
    Phone: (303) 969-2157
    Fax: (303) 969-2786





    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 12.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 02-26-2020 07:36 PM
    I tend to agree with others that grouting a cavity of an assembly that has been exposed to the real world and inhaling & exhaling vapor for nearly 150 years is very problematic.  The unintended consequences are not worth the benefit of easy attachment for anchors.

    A couple of questions.....Headers are every 12th course, vertically?  Do they form continuous horizontal planes? or does the radial plan geometry allow the cavity spaces partially communicating vertically?  Are there header courses correspond at all with the bottom of joist elevations that you were wishing to work with for lateral stiffness?  

    Pete

    ------------------------------
    Peter Franks AIA
    The Franks Design Group, P.C.
    Glenwood IAPeter
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West


  • 13.  RE: 1876 brick cavity wall, Back Bay, Boston

    Posted 03-01-2020 02:41 PM
    If you are confident your structures engineer gave you a good solution for a 12" thick masonry wall to floor retrofit I would not try to work around it for an exterior single wythe, and cavity and interior wythe plus grout plus through bolts. Stop and read on before committing: 

    Few thoughts;
    Seismic retrofits are not one size fits all. The science behind seismic event survival involves predicting based on conventional building systems.  But yours is unique, as so many 19th c masonry walls are. 
    There is a way of testing the response to vibrations through instrumentation. You may be happy to learn how resilient your assembly is to predictive energy induced seismically. 
    Geotechnical engineers can set up the instruments and show you weaknesses and where you need to place corrective reinforcement.
    There is a harmonic to every given wall system when these lateral forces of equakes are applied. The idea of retrofits can cause dampening of the existing wall harmonic response to make it more sustainable or it can make much worse. This the need instrumented testing so you can fine tune where and how often to introduce retrofits. Each retrofit changes the mass by sectioning it differently.

    Check the work Melvyn Green did like LA City Hall.  I worked with Dr Ken King, geotechnical engineer, to test walls over  year's old.
    Other data needed can come from the mortar in situ, have you done mortar analysis of both wythes. Are bricks' wythes both face bricks or is there a difference therefore  a strength difference in compression and tension.

    Barry Sulam, RA

    Learning-PLACES!
    A 501(c)3 fiscal sponsored 
    Program of CN! 
    https://www.cascadianow.org/learning-places


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    Barry Sulam
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    2024 HRC Taliesin West