Rehabilitation of facades and their pathologies

The facade is one of the most important parts of a building, not only for aesthetic reasons but also for structural reasons and insulation against environmental conditions. Typically when talking about the façade of a building, it is understood that we are talking about the main façade, specifying for the rest of the facades their location to the main façade, for example, rear façade or side façade.

AESTHETIC REHABILITATION OF FACADES
Over time the facades suffer a progressive degradation, it is common to see areas with worn paint, or mortar facades with stains or blackened, flaky and cladding areas whose state has nothing to do with the original. In each case, it will be necessary to study the possibility of rehabilitating them or assessing whether it is worth changing the coating for some others that can offer an aesthetic improvement or more significant durability.

MOST COMMON PATHOLOGIES OF FACADES
When a client asks us to rehabilitate a facade, we usually find similar pathologies. We are going to list and describe them briefly and, in future articles, we will go into more detail on each of them.

STRUCTURAL CRACKS IN-FLOOR EDGES
They are cracks that usually appear in the areas of the balconies or cantilevers of the facades. They must be fixed as soon as possible because they affect the structure of the building and, also, concrete rubble can be dislodged onto the street, which is very dangerous for pedestrians. They are produced by the oxidation of the concrete reinforcement of the floor, either because water leaks from the balcony or because the front of the floor is not well protected.

CRACKS IN THE PRETIL OF THE DECK
These types of cracks are not as severe as those in the slab edges, but you must not lose sight of them and let them continue to advance because they can be dangerous. They are produced by the pushing of the roof slab on the parapet.

VERTICAL CRACKS
Sometimes we find vertical cracks that occur either because an expansion joint has not been executed or because it has been done incorrectly.

FISSURES IN THE COATINGS
These are minor cracks, which are usually caused by the movements of buildings, sometimes they can get worse if they are not repaired in time, leading to greater damage.

BROKEN APPLIANCE OR WITH RISK OF RELEASE
In buildings with cladding pieces, over time, movements of the building occur that can cause cracks in the cladding. It can also happen that the expansions and contractions cause the cladding to detach from the facade. When this happens, it will be necessary to replace them, to place extra fixings.

RUSTED RAILINGS
On many occasions, the balcony railings are entirely or partly made of iron. If the paint that protects them deteriorates, they begin to rust, and if the process is not stopped in time, the railing may no longer be a safe protection. It can also cause other secondary damages such as the breakage of the balcony flasks.

CONCLUSION
These are some of the most frequent pathologies of a facade. In future articles, we will see each of them in more detail, and we will analyze how to prevent them and how to repair them. If you need to repair the facade of your building, do not hesitate to contact us and we will prepare a free estimate without obligation.