The Tower, Penrice Castle

  • The Tower, Penrice Castle

Project Description

‘The Tower’ sits within the grounds of the historic Penrice Castle, near Swansea and is a Grade II Listed Building in its own right.

Due to its Grade II Listing and the stringent Planning and Building Regulations the builders were required to repoint externally using lime putty and replaster internally with lime render.

Once completed, it was realised that the chosen lime products allowed severe water ingress into the property affecting the walls, ceilings and 1st floor timbers.

‘The Tower’ sits within the grounds of the historic Penrice Castle, near Swansea and is a Grade II Listed Building in its own right.

Penrice Castle was built by the de Penrice family who were originally given land at Penrice for their part in the Norman Conquest of Gower. The current owners are still direct descendants of the de Penrice family.

The Tower was built in the 1790’s as an extravagant Gothic folly to have the appearance of a ruined castle and was subsequently converted to a luxury holiday apartment. Due to its Grade II Listing and the stringent Planning and Building Regulations the builders were required to repoint externally using lime putty and replaster internally with lime render.

Once completed, it was realised that the chosen lime products allowed severe water ingress into the property affecting the walls, ceilings and 1st floor timbers.

The owners contacted Protectahome to undertake a specialist inspection of the affected areas and propose a remedial solution taking into account the historic and listed status of the building.

It was decided that the most suitable solution would be the installation of Newton System 508 mesh Cavity Drain Membrane to all walls. In addition, for added protection, all internal timbers were isolated from the external wall surfaces.

On completion, the membrane was rendered with lightweight renovating plaster ready for redecoration.

This application is fully reversible and was accepted by CADW and English Heritage as suitable for a building of this status.

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