Restoring damaged sections of Athgarvan House's walls using lime-mortar

Athgarvan House, Rosetown is located amidst idyllic surroundings in the Co. Kildare region. Situated on a steep rise overlooking the River Liffey, it is a brisk walk both from the town of Newbridge and the Curragh. We were contracted by Clonlough Construction Ltd. with patching damaged sections of the old house’s walls using NHL 5 lime-mortar so that they would seamlessly blend with the original walls whilst also updating the structural strength and reliability of the house.

Situated on a steep rise overlooking the River Liffey Surrounded by two hectares (five acres) of landscaped grounds and gardens, the house is encircled by specimen trees and a long stone wall. The old high road to Newbridge which passes Athgarvan House was once used to serve the village and neighbouring mass house, though the latter was taken down in 1852. Yet still today the old walls and gateways can be found nearby on the Athgarvan Road and the adjacent Cutlery Road.We began the project, as always, by covering up and protecting any old, valuable aspect of the interior at risk of being damaged during our restoration work. This included any ceiling or wall covings as well as the house’s grand windows. Beginning the project, the first problem we encountered was that virtually all of the patches we were tasked with restoring were uneven- with many still retaining old plaster- and therefore, without being addressed directly, would leave the house with terribly incongruent and uneven walls.

We therefore began by painstakingly removing any old plaster still remaining on these patches and levelling the walls out by fixing any interior cracks and holes with wire mesh and bonding. Once this structural issue had been fixed, we began by mixing and applying a scud-coat of NHL 3.5 Lime, thereby providing a fundamental base for subsequent coats. We thus left this coat for 7-14 days to cure. Subsequently, we mixed and applied the scratch-coat (2 buckets of NHL 3.5 Lime, 1 bucket of water including fibres and 1 bucket of plastering sand mixed) before leaving for a further 2-3 weeks to cure. As in all of our conservation projects, we took great care to isolate each coat application and allow time for each coat to cure sufficiently; for in dealing with such old, delicate walls it would be easy to inflict permanent damage upon them were this process rushed.As in this project we were tasked with restoring patches rather than entire walls, it was especially vital to ensure that all materials used (NHL 3.5 + 5 Lime, plastering sand and natural fibres) consisted solely of natural properties and matched as closely as possible the material composition of the original walls; as failure to do this could have resulted in visible incongruency between the original walls and our restored patches. More so than any previous job, we had to be absolutely accurate with materials and measurements on this project. During the project, this often entailed measuring each coat and planning the final thickness of each patch. Finally, we mixed and applied a final float-coat of NHL 5 Lime, straightening it out to co-align with the surrounding walls. In applying the final-coat, as MD I paid particular attention to the final texture of the walls; as in the course of the pre-project planning and consultations I had learnt that country houses and manors of this kind often had slightly rough wall finishes.Therefore, I ensured that my team and I were careful whilst applying final-coats to preserve this small but important cultural detail. Furthermore, all materials used in this job were also highly ‘breathable’- another essential principle we took care to adhere to when selecting materials for this restorative work. Prior to starting our work, I had also consulted with our conservation operatives to ensure that these chosen materials were strictly appropriate for this job.Additionally, on this project more than any previous jobs, we had to pay especial attention to the thickness of each coat we applied, as without careful attention our patches could easily become thicker or thinner than the original walls.Reflecting on our work, my team and I navigated the inherently difficult task of restoring wall patches using lime-mortar to faithfully match the existing original walls of this historic house very successfully. The client, Clonlough Construction Ltd. and Newform Group were all satisfied with the final result, which will hopefully help counteract the steadily increasing loss of architectural and environmental heritage in this picturesque area.The pictures above demonstrate the stages of the project: Patching up old restoration works using NHL 5 lime mortarScratch’ coat mix: • 1 bucket of water including fibres• 2 buckets of NHL 3.5 lime •1 bucket of plastering sand

Get in touch today

Get A Solution For All Plastering ServicesGet in touch

Share this post

FacebookTwitterLinkedInEmail