Structural rehabilitation of a farmhouse

Structural restoration of an old farmhouse in the Bonany area, Petra; Mallorca.

Inland, there are beautiful examples of traditional Mallorcan construction: centuries-old houses built with earth, clay, lime and stone.

Traditionally, these houses were built with materials found in the surrounding area: local soil, stones from the ground, lime produced in a nearby kiln, achieving total integration and blending in with the landscape.

Recovering and maintaining the typology of these houses is essential. In the construction of the country house, stone was used to give consistency to the wall and it was agglomerated with earth and clay to form a single body. They used local stone, of all types and sizes; therefore it was irregular and was not worked, that is, it was not carved. When it came to assembling the wall, they were not fitted together to be visible, since finally the exterior wall was given a layer of lime or earth mortar that protected the house from the elements, from the heat and the cold. It is really interesting to get to know the interior of the island of Mallorca and discover these small houses “camouflaged” in the landscape as if they were part of it. Some of them are in ruins, but this should not discourage us since there are techniques, materials and know-how that allow them to be restored and recovered.

This house, located in the centre of Mallorca, is a good example of restoration and consolidation. It was in an almost ruinous state; the roofs and floors had fallen; the rain had caused cracks and disintegration in the walls.

The first phase consisted of consolidating and reinforcing the walls, completely redoing the roof using materials and techniques that respect the original construction. Originally it was a farmer's house and was used as a home during the time of year when field work required more attention. The walls were in poor condition, with large cracks due to the entry of water.

 

The roof was redone with traditional wooden beams and old recovered Arabic tiles, although to improve the thermal efficiency of the house we also used a ventilated roof.

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