What Is A Bungaroosh Wall? How to Build a Bungaroosh Wall?
What Is A Bungaroosh Wall?
Bungaroosh is a composite building material used almost exclusively in the English seaside towns of Brighton and Hove. It is composed of miscellaneous materials such as broken bricks, cobblestones, pebbles, sand, and pieces of wood embedded in hydraulic lime.
Bungaroosh walls were popular during the 18th and 19th centuries but have since become known for their susceptibility to dampness and structural instability.
How to Build a Bungaroosh Wall?
Constructing a bungaroosh wall requires the use of lime render, brick, flint, and other stones. The materials are shuttered together to form a wall. Bungaroosh is a soft material that does not bind together well and often cracks appear.
To give the bungaroosh strength, builders originally inserted timber into the wall. This also provides a fixing for fixtures that need to be hung off the wall.
When repairing a bungaroosh wall, it is best to use bungaroosh itself as this calls for a specialist contractor who is able to replicate the product using the same materials and techniques as were used in its original construction.
When fitting things to a bungaroosh wall, accessing any substrate beneath it is recommended if possible. If not, epoxy can be used. It is also important to fill any holes with filler and put in wall plugs before attaching anything to the wall.
What Materials Are Needed For A Bungaroosh Wall?
The materials needed for a bungaroosh wall include lime, gravel, coarse sands, flints, brick snaps, fragments, and sometimes bits of wood. The walls are usually hidden behind stucco or mathematical tile façades.
Bungaroosh walls can become friable and collapse due to poor build quality materials or low lime content, particle erosion caused by salt-infused pebbles and sand from the sea, or other factors.
To repair a bungaroosh wall, lumber is placed into the wall for support, and fittings and accessories can be attached to it. Additionally, holes should be filled with filler, and wall plugs inserted.
How Do You Drill Into Bungaroosh?
To drill into Bungaroosh, you should first drill a hole and then place a vacuum nozzle up against the hole to get all the fallen bits out. After that, fill the hole with filler and put a wall plug in.
Once this has dried, you can attach the item with screws. This approach usually works, but if the item is heavy it may pull itself off the wall. In this case, using Gripfill may be appropriate.
How to Attach Items to Bungaroosh?
Attaching items to bungaroosh walls can be difficult due to the unpredictable nature of the material. Bungaroosh is a type of reinforced lime concrete made from lime, gravel, coarse sands, and flints, often with some brick snaps/fragments or other deck rubble added.
It is not possible to attach items directly to the wall as it does not have regular studs or noggins.
The best way to attach items to a bungaroosh wall is by using a backboard with fixings and glue, as this provides a solid surface for screws. It is also important to allow the bungaroosh to carbonate and dry for at least two weeks before re-rendering.
This will help ensure that the item remains securely attached. Additionally, it is important to note that despite its unpredictable nature, bungaroosh can be repaired if necessary.
What Are The Bungaroosh Uses And Applications?
Bungaroosh is a composite building material made from lime, gravel, coarse sand, flints, and sometimes brick fragments or other brick rubble.
It was used between the mid-18th and mid-19th centuries in Brighton & Hove in the UK and is characterized by its softness which allows it to be scraped away with a fingernail. Bungaroosh is also used in other English seaside towns such as Hove.
Bungaroosh has many uses and applications. It is commonly used for garden walls, window frames, door frames, and other structural elements of buildings. It can also be used for insulation purposes such as toothbrush insulation or vinyl banner insulation.
Bungaroosh is also known for its durability and sustainability; it was awarded a Sustainability Award by RIBA in 2014.