Cambridge News
Cambridge News featuring Chetwynd Court restored to former glory after a 3-week facelift.
An iconic King’s College building has been restored to its former glory thanks to an unusual cleaning technique.
By Cambridge News
“London company Thomann-Hanry® took three weeks to clean the stonework of grade II listed Chetwynd Court, without the use of scaffolding, water or chemicals. They used a cleaning technique called façade gommage®, which involves spraying powerful jets of fine powder at the stone.
As well as stone cleaning, craftsmen also carried out renovation and replacement work on all masonry, timber and fixtures.
Chetwynd Court was designed by George Gilbert Scott and built between 1869 and 1870.
A spokesman for Thomann-Hanry® said: “A significant drawback of traditional cleaning methods is that they require buildings to be shrouded in scaffolding for months on end, inconveniencing occupants, staff and visitors alike and, in the case of university buildings, disrupting student life. And as these techniques use chemicals, detergents and water, contaminants can migrate further into the stonework, exacerbating the problem.”
The company have also cleaned and restored Cambridge’s King’s College grade I listed Gibbs’ Building. The second-oldest building in the college, it dates back to the 1720s and was named after its architect William Gibbs, who also designed St Martin-in-the-Fields in London and Oxford’s Radcliffe Camera.