‘Works in Progress’ – Historic Architecture on the Isle of Man

Work in Progress – The Isle of Man has wonderful historic architecture that often utilised natural sandstone for embellishments and architectural features. Sadly, many features are now lost having suffered catastrophic damage caused by use of incorrect cementicious mortar jointing materials in maintenance and renovation of these buildings over many years.

Such features include portico’s, plaques, string courses, pediments, window surrounds, columns and pliasters to name a few – many of which we simply walk past everyday and not really notice.

Here at Lightfast Ltd., we have been working to help save and preserve these wonderful features – here are a couple of “Works in Progress” featuring KEIM Restauro system.

The Keim Restauro system provides a complete range of products for the cleaning, consolidation, repair and preservation of natural stone. Due to the specialised nature of these products, and the highly sensitive areas of their application, advice must be sought from Keim Mineral Paints.

Restoring damaged natural stone requires appropriate materials and methods in order to retain and protect stone and to reproduce its original appearance.

Natural stone restoration encompasses a range of different measures and processes which may have a preservative, restorative and/or preventive action.

•Stone consolidation
•Stone reinstatement
•Stone replacement
•Stone cleaning
•Water repellent finish
•Coatings

Stone consolidation is a restorative stone preservation measure. The aim of successful stone consolidation is to recreate the original strength of the material.

Stone replacement mortars are used for reconstructing stone. The Keim Restauro range of dry bagged, mineral-based restoration mortars are ideal for repairing damage to natural stone surfaces.

Protection from water or moisture is among the classic stone preservation methods. On impregnation, water repellents penetrate into the surface of the building material, so imparting water repellency. The Keim Restauro range offers various options for providing a water repellent finish on natural stone surfaces with the aim of reducing absorption of water and pollutants:

The low-pigment products from the Keim Restauro range provide ideal unique solutions. Due to its water repellency, Keim Restauro-Lasur, a sol/silicate based, low-pigment coating for natural stone, protects natural stone by reducing the absorption of water and pollutants. Depending upon the level of dilution with Keim Restauro-Fixativ, Keim Restauro-Lasur produces a low-pigment finish enabling individual natural stone colouring and unobtrusive colour matching of repairs.

Keim Universal Render Application Video

Keim Ecosil-ME is Allergy Friendly

Keim Ecosil-ME very pleased to have received the Allergy Friendly Product Certificate – ideal for painting all internal walls and ceilings…. Paint a bit of fresh air and improve indoor air quality.

Building Conservation (Isle of Man), Masonry Cleaning & Paint Removal

We are pleased to announce our acquisition of the Restorative Techniques Thermatech & Thermavac super-heated water cleaning and recovery system.

Masonry Cleaning & Paint Removal > Key Points:

• Developed for use on historic buildings (Approved by English Heritage)
• Can be used for cleaning masonry, monuments, sculptures and the like
• Can be used to remove old lime wash from historic structures
• Can be used to remove old paint coatings from building facades and other surfaces
• Can be used both internally and externally
• Reduced mess as most debris is recovered within the Thermavac vacuum chamber

ConsultancyProject supportOther Services

In addition to providing day to day technical support on our systems, Building Conservation (Isle of Man) can be engaged to produce on-site trials and reports. These are used to establish appropriate methodology, specification and exemplar panels.

Consultancy often extends to site meetings both before and during the works, to help mediate and manage the expectations of client, architect, conservation officer and contractor.

Working primarily with registered building masonry, we advise on the surface treatment of modern buildings, sculpture and monuments of stone, brick, terracotta, concrete, bronze and other metals.

We are committed to providing our clients with detailed, expert support in the specification and use of our products and services. When clients are considering which product or technique to use, we can perform on-site trials, providing technical reports and recommendations to aid decision making.

Please contact us for technical information on our cleaning systems, charge out rates, for project advice and project specific cost information. Please do not hesitate to contact us directly on 461662.

• Repair and maintenance of historic buildings
• Building Limes specialists – Lime mortars, renders, lime concretes, lime washes
• Natural Stone repair and consolidation
• Traditional Masonry, Carpentry, Roofing, Plastering (including Venetian and Marmorino etc.)
  offered by The Venetian Plaster Company

Redecoration Cycles & Building Maintenance

Maintenance and decoration of a property portfolio can be a substantial and, all too frequent, business cost. Selecting and investing in the right materials, however, can extend the period of time required between works and avoid repeat labour and scaffolding costs.
Keim Mineral Paints are the ideal products for exterior property redecoration as they have proven longevity and durable performance. Please click on the comparison chart below showing Keim mineral paints and both high and low quality alternatives.

As you can see the number of the decorations in the last column can quickly increase over the years and the repeated need to pay labour and scaffolding is likely to be the greatest proportion of the overall cost implications. By using Keim Mineral Paints the costs of the long term maintenance and decoration can be significantly reduced.
There are many examples of large, buildings in the UK, which would cost significant amounts of money to regularly redecorate, but for the use of Keim Mineral Paints which have allowed much longer periods between redecoration.
Examples include:
Liverpool Dental College – Extremely large, concrete building – decorated in 1986 using Keim Mineral Paints – didn’t require further decoration until 2014 (redecorated using Keim)
Greater London House, aka Black Cat Building – Large building of Egyptian Revival architecture – decorated in 1998 using Keim Mineral Paints – currently out to tender for redecoration (again using Keim)
Blair Castle – Large Scottish Castle – originally decorated in 1990 – re-decorated using Keim Mineral Paints in 2013
Royal Opera House – originally decorated using Keim Mineral Paints in 1998 – some small areas redecorated, again using Keim in 2006 but not required a complete redecoration yet
Inland Revenue Building, Nottingham – decorated in 1993, hasn’t required any further treatment or decoration
Royal Pavilion Brighton – decorated in Keim in 1993 – hasn’t required any further decoration yet.
As you can see with an anticipated longevity of in excess of 15-20 years the materials are a worthwhile investment and idea for the long term, decorative and protective finish for buildings. If you would be interested in considering Keim Mineral Paints for the maintenance of your property portfolio then please do not hesitate to contact me – Lightfast Limited; Isle of Man Agency for Keim Mineral Paints

The Keim Mineral Paint solution

Keim Mineral paints are an ideal solution for all of the challenges and considerations listed previously.

Keim Mineral Paints are:

• Extremely long life and durable, sustainable materials
• Environmentally friendly – made from natural materials
• Suitable for unpainted and previously painted surfaces
• Available in a wide range of colours
• Resistant to mould and fungal growth
• Highly breathable
• Water-based
• VOC and solvent free
• Highly light reflective
• Incombustible
• Odourless

Mineral paints, unlike conventional acrylic paints, form a permanent crystalline bond with the underlying substrate and ensures that moisture vapour continues to pass through the substrate unimpeded, with no risk of blistering and cracking of the paint finish. This ensures that Keim Mineral Paints provide an extremely long term decorative solution which works in harmony with buildings.

 

 

Paint More Than Colour

Keim Mineral Paints – Ecological, Economical, Sustainable

Typical Problems

Typical problems that are common when decorating your house include:

• Existing paint coatings in poor condition
• Cracks in the underlying coatings or substrate
• Damaged surfaces in need of repair
• Algae growth and fungal growth
• Salt efflorescence
• Failure of conventional paints to adhere properly to the surface

An important consideration when deciding upon what materials to use is the impact that they have on our environment, in addition to the aesthetic appearance and colour choice.

 

 

Paint More Than Colour

Keim Mineral Paints – Ecological, Economical, Sustainable

Homes and Houses

Keim Mineral Paints understand that redecorating your home is an important investment and that the material choice is as important as choosing the right decorator. It is important to choose materials which will perform well for long periods of time to avoid the need for frequent costly redecorations.

Conventional acrylic masonry paints merely coat the surface and create a film around the substrate. This film forming coating does not allow moisture vapour to breathe through it, which can result in the formation of blisters, which may lead to cracking and flaking paint. This not only looks unsightly but, if moisture vapour is unable to pass through the surface, this can lead to elevated moisture levels within the substrate eventually leading to friability and damage.

Conventional acrylic based paints also suffer from the effects of UV degradation. This initially results in a loss of colour and then eventually embrittlement of the paint, causing cracking and failure.

By choosing a coating such as a mineral paint, which allows moisture vapour to breathe through, walls are able to dry out, avoiding damaged paint and damp walls. Mineral paints are UV stable as they are made using natural earth oxide pigments.

 

Paint More Than Colour

Keim Mineral Paints – Ecological, Economical, Sustainable