Baumit completed the exterior renovation of a 12th century church with its high-performance façade render system. St Marys Church is a Grade I listed building that has endured several lifetimes’ wear and tear, leading to its façade needing deserved refurbishment. The repairs were funded by a National Lottery Grant and were carried out by contractors Decretech Decorators.
“Baumit’s façade render system was selected for the refurbishment after a member of the church had seen houses renovated with the same material. There was a visible difference between the properties coated with the Baumit system – they looked brand new, the others didn’t,” said Lee Clifford, managing director at Decretech.
The initial repairs undertaken involved power-cleaning the building’s existing lime-wash façade across its 800m2 surface and preparing the substrate by applying Baumit FungoFluid. The fluid is solvent-free, therefore it provides the perfect solution for treating surfaces with fungal or algae growth. A coat of Baumit PremiumPrimer, which is a pre-treatment application for mineral-based and paste-form decorative plasters, followed.
The next step was applying the Baumit RK39 hydraulic lime render all-purpose plaster, followed by a second coat of Baumit PremiumPrimer and two layers of Baumit NanoporTop, which supplied a white self-cleaning render finish. Unlike any other self-cleaning products, Nanopor systems require nothing more than sunlight, humidity and wind to provide a uniform, dirt-free surface.
The façade’s renovation was completed in three weeks to the satisfaction of all those involved with the church. Lee Clifford said: “Baumit’s façade render system is the most superior system I’ve used – it was a joy to apply. Its cost-effectiveness far outweighs any initial costs. It’s the difference between renovating a building’s exterior every 10 or 15 years, rather than every five years, which has to be more practical for the occupier and better for the environment.”
St Marys Church is now ready to endure the many years to come.
