Pete recently did an interview on BBC Radio 4 - You and Yours - which investigated a case history of failed cavity wall insulation.
The bell tower of this beautiful Saxon church - with Norman additions - had a leaky roof and crumbling plasterwork. Together with a new set of bells, we have overhauled the roof and re-pointed and limewashed the interior of the tower. Later, we excavated the floor, and put down a limecrete floor, with underfloor heating and stone slabs.
This is a most unusual example of a stone building which still retains some of the original exterior hydraulic lime render which has protected the building for centuries. The scaffold was erected in July 2006 to allow essential repairs to the lead work and tiles of the tower roof.
The walls to the tower were damp and mouldy. They were scrubbed down, and outside the tower drainage was installed to carry away rainwater. Internally the walls were given 7 coats of limewash.
Tugford Church was in decline until a local businessman got together with some of the locals and devised a strategy for restoration which involved re-hanging and restoring the bells to enable bellringing to take place. There is now an enthusiastic bunch of bellringers at the Church, and they frequently play host to guest ringers from other areas. Part of this strategy involved re-laying the floor as an insulated and heated limecrete slab.
The massive steel frame on which the bells sit, is held in place by several tonnes of concrete poured as a ringbeam around the walls of the tower. Each bell is tuned by removing tiny amounts of swarf from the inside, until the exact tone is reached.