Category Archives: Lime pointing

Christmas message for 2013 and Happy New Year to all!

12/12/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

It is now Christmas 2013 and we wish to express our thanks to everyone who has been involved in what has been a truly amazing year. Before we depart for the Christmas and New Year celebrations we wanted to reflect a little on the year past. 2013 has been Inspire Conservation’s fifth year and the best yet! It has been the busiest and includes some of the most interesting of our projects. We are .

Hertfordshire DOFF Cleaning and Monument Conservation

22/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Abbots Langley war memorial has been cleaned by Inspire Conservation with the DOFF super heated water system and repointed with lime mortar ready for the winter months and the second phase of work, which will take place in the new year. The monument was heavily colonised by algal growths and the lettering was barely legible, but since the cleaning it is clear that the names can now be read. The second phase of .

DOFF Cleaning Stone Monuments

21/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Hertford Heath is a village in Hertfordshire who at the beginning of 2013 called upon Michael Sheppard to assess their war memorial and compile a specification of work to restore it. The programme included cleaning with the DOFF super heated water system, lime mortar grouting, pointing and consolidation and general repairs to the surrounding base. The PCC managed to raise the funds necessary to complete the works and so at the latter stages of .

DOFF Cleaning Stone Monuments

21/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Inspire Conservation use various cleaning methods for their projects depending on the individual factors and parameters set out to each environment. In this war memorial cleaning project we used the DOFF steam cleaner which was used at approximately 100 degrees Celsius and a low pressure setting to gently remove the algal and lichen growths. There was repointing of the stone in lime mortar also with our own brand of lime mortar, Ionic lime. .

Conservation services in the UK

15/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

We thought we would have a bit of fun and plot some of the projects that Michael Sheppard and Inspire Conservation have completed projects over the last eight years and it turns out that it covers quite a distance…

Winners of an Oxford Preservation Trust Award 2013!

13/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

We are proud to announce that Inspire Conservation have won an Oxford Preservation Trust award for our work at Magdalen College, Oxford last year. We were encouraged by the local authority conservation officer to submit our project which was short listed from various projects that were put forward. Out of the 16 nominated projects in the building conservation category we were one of only three projects to receive an award for our outstanding contribution .

English Heritage Conservation Bulletin on WW1

12/11/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Have a look at the English Heritage conservation bulletin which focuses on the centennial of the first world war and all things war memorial related. A good read and one that it obviously very current. Enjoy! http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications/conservation-bulletin-71

Wittersham war memorial cleaning and conservation

28/10/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Inspire Conservation clean and conserve numerous war memorials nationwide and this example proves how far we work for these important structures. We realise the importance of these monuments to the local communities and will go the extra mile to ensure that they are sensitively and effective conserved, especially in time for Armistice day. Our offices in Buckinghamshire and Lincolnshire help us serve the whole of the UK for our monument and statue conservation .

Britain’s Empty Homes BBC1 with Michael Sheppard and Baptist chapel conversion

28/10/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Inspire Conservations very own Michael Sheppard has been part of the Britain’s Empty Homes programme on BBC1 today showing his family home and soon to be Lincoln office as an example of a full redevelopment of an empty building. The show can be seen in the clip below: http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b03gltdq/ Chapel House is a former Baptist chapel which has stood empty for a number of years and is adjoined to another house which will .

Statue conservation and cleaning in Harrogate, Yorkshire

28/10/2013Michael Sheppard Leave a comment

Inspire Conservation have completed a project for another local authority, this time in Yorkshire. We were instructed to clean and consolidate the marble statues that were donated to the town and have been recently situated in the town centre. The statue has been a topic of debate with the locals as some love it and others have their reservations, but I’m sure you agree that there is a massive improvement following the repairs .