Case Studies
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Langport
Even though it was only obvious 1 windowsill was rotten & needed replacing upon estimating, at the front of this stunning historic house, it soon became apparent – upon commencement of this restoration project – that all 5 sills were extremely rotten (from the underside) thanks to a tenacious type of beetle or wood-borer. 7 weeks later the job was complete which Richard & Amanda found extremely satisfying to carry out.
Stathe
The sash windows in this pretty cottage were in desperate need of restoration and it became apparent that they had been maintained, for many years, with the use of filler; there was also a lot of excess paint & putty around each pane of glass. The photographs will show just how much rot was removed, mainly from the sills & base of boxes but also some of the rails & glazing bars. It’s sometimes difficult for potential clients to appreciate that such rotten timber windows can be restored but with the knowledge, expertise & patience Richard & Amanda have the majority of windows, in this condition, can be returned to their former glory.
Tall Turret
Almost every sash window, lower box, windowsill & door in this historic, Listed & extremely tall house in Hinton-St-George required conservation and, therefore, a lot of replacement with new hardwood due to extensive rot. Whilst carrying out our work we leave as much of the original sound timber & glass as possible, only replacing what we absolutely have to thereby keeping as much of the character intact as possible. Having also released a number of ‘stuck’ sashes, adjusted numerous sets of weights to ensure a smooth operation, replaced worn sash cords, rusted pulleys & catches then applied our 4-coat paint system Richard & Amanda’s craftsmanship gave these beautiful, original windows a new lease of life and, provided regular maintenance is carried out, they will last indefinitely.
Curved Tower
This fascinating project was a first for us with 3.2m high curved sash windows. We worked on these 6 sets of beautiful & large sash windows, internally & externally, for almost 3 months off scaffolding and what a pleasure. Most of the sills were rotten, along with the lower boxes, many of the lower & side rails and a number of glazing bars also. Two of the sashes were re-built completely with specialist glass sourced from Liverpool. It has to be said that the rooftops of Langport were a pleasing sight from such a high platform.
Quantock Hills
Both sets of ground floor sash windows were in desperate need of conservation, in this large characterful house located in the beautiful Quantock Hills, and here’s one of them undergoing much needed skill & craftsmanship. This old timber window had some of the worst rot we’ve ever seen particularly in the lower boxes, lower rails & sills; both sets also required complete re-puttying & weight adjustments in order to bring them back to their former glory.
Leaded Lights
This was one of two difficult to access crittall leaded light windows both requiring extensive conservation, along with the rotten timber frames & sills having been seriously neglected for many years by previous owners. The leaded lights had become extremely weak & vulnerable so once these were removed from their crittall frames they were delivered carefully to a local specialist in Martock for restoration. Whilst this was being carried out the crittall frames were prepared & primed with Red Oxide, in order to prevent rusting, prior to painting. The rotten timber frames & sills were also removed and replaced with hardwood for longevity & sustainability. Once the leaded lights were returned, looking absolutely stunning & so much stronger, they were inserted back into their frames. Then after interior & exterior decoration of the crittall & timber windows & frames they looked just like original & well maintained windows despite having had so much conservation work carried out
Doctor’s Surgery
The owners of this extremely elegant & spacious house had been restoring it over many years, so Richard & Amanda felt privileged to be asked to carry out their conservation work on the original windows & French doors. Due to the quality of the original wood, despite their neglected appearance both sets of French doors required repairs although these were minimal. However, although there didn’t appear to be too much visible rot in the sills the serious state of the timber became much more apparent once they started to look a little closer. Rot can often be well hidden so it’s not that surprising when they come across a situation like this. After a lot of preparation, puttying, priming & decoration the doors were like new with their character retained.
Arched Sashes
This beautiful set of arched sashes in this historic house were in desperate need of restoration, very tall and on a slight slope hence the need for scaffolding. We could see numerous parts of both sashes had been patched-up over the years, including the addition of a cement windowsill. This was a first for us and a pleasure to remove and replace with Sapele hardwood. The base of both boxes
were rotten, requiring replacement, along with rebuilding the lower sash and replacement of the top sash’s lower rail. The previous two restoration projects we carried out on this house were large walk-through sash windows (for access to the garden) in the lounge & dining room.
