Old Materials, New Climate: Traditional Building Materials in a Changing World

Old Materials, New Climate: Traditional Building Materials in a Changing World is an accessible guidebook to understanding historic materials – how they were traditionally made, how they survived the test of time, and how changes in climate are now impacting materials in new ways. Protecting historic buildings from a rapidly changing and unpredictable climate requires an understanding of how climate affects weather and how weather affects the durability of the most widely used traditional materials – wood, adobe, brick, lime, concrete, metal, and paint. This resource examines how gradual and dramatic changes in climate threaten to accelerate normal weathering and presents strategies to safeguard historic materials for future generations. Illustrated case studies explore how weather is affecting materials in specific historic buildings in climate zones in the United States and across the globe. Drawing on the work of experts in conservation, biology, chemistry, and environmental impacts, this book is an invaluable resource for any student, preservationist, architect, or contractor interested in expanding their knowledge of materials and why they perform as they do.