Hello Dear Reader,
It's been an emotional week. The house sale almost fell through and then was resurrected with a little persuasion by all parties. Mundic raised its ugly head!
Here's what wikipedia says about mundic:
"Mundic block problem
The Cornish word mundic is now used to describe a cause of deterioration in concrete due to the decomposition of mineral constituents within the aggregate. A typical source of such aggregates is metalliferous mine waste. Current professional guidance notes describe all of Cornwall and an area within 15 km of Tavistock as being areas where routine testing for mundic is required. The notes go on to state that testing should be confined to buildings which contain concrete elements (blocks or insitu) and that were built in or prior to 1950. However, the notes contain advice that testing may be required where there are visual or other signs of mundic decay. Testing leads to a classification of A, A/B, B and C. A is sound, A/B is sound (but may require re-inspection at a later date) and C is unsound. Classifications B & C mean that a property may be un-mortgagable.[4]
Typically a house is routinely screened if constructed between 1900 and 1950 from concrete block."
The house was originally smaller and didn't have a bathroom. The kitchen and bathroom extension was added in the 1950's and the mortgage company wanted a concrete screening report completed before they would take the mortgage application any further. Lots of houses in Cornwall are not of mortgageable quality, even though they've stood for almost 100 years without falling down! If you are a cash buyer and want a cheap house, buy one with a bit of it (no one would advise all of it) built with mundic blocks. However, the house has been surveyed by an expert and there is no mundic in any of the blocks in the extension! Hoo-flippin'-ray!
So, this week has been a difficult one as we've waited for seven days for the slowest laboratory in the world to test the drilled samples and tell us what we already knew. How did we know the tenement didn't have mundic? The man next door is the son of the man who built it! Hey, it's Cornwall, everyone knows who built everything and is usually related in someway to most of the people in the town they live in!
We will be in by the end of the month and a whole new life will begin!
Over to you Dear Reader, I hope you share the journey with me. I will still live under my means as I aim to pay off the mortgage (I'm borrowing about half the value of the house) in as short as time as possible. I'm aiming to have a wood shed, wood heating, a vegetable patch and have more time to get out and about and enjoy the county I love so much.
Until tomorrow,
Love Froogs xxxxxxxxxxx
