Old House Project - Windows

At the end of 2023, minor revisions to the consent for the Old House Project (OHP) were approved by Maidstone Council. This cleared the way for the remainder of work to proceed in 2024. Still left to complete are an opening and ancillary structures at the east end, new services including solar panels and a heat pump, internal works including insulation and secondary glazing, and landscaping and boundary work to fulfil a planning condition. The last phase of repair to the exterior, at the end of 2023, involved the installation of windows.

When St Andrew’s Chapel was first built in the 15th century, glazed windows were expensive and unusual. We can never know exactly what the building’s windows looked like originally, since the chapel’s full-height east window was infilled in the 19th century and its squints are now no more than empty openings with indents where ferramenta once stood. Nonetheless a sense of the medieval still remains in the west side first floor window of the priest’s lodging. This retains its wrought iron bars, though like the squints, the opening may have been shuttered rather than glazed when constructed. The ground floor south stone-mullioned drip moulded window to the timber-framed bay is of 15th century form, but its stonework is, we believe, re-used from nearby Boxley Abbey, as the window now forms an infill under which the jetty once sat. –.

Most existing windows to the chapel date from the late 19th century, though they have a 17th century appearance with ovolo moulded mullions. There are fragmentary remains of their original 19th century diamond-pattern leaded lights. This fancy glazing was perhaps intended to heighten the building’s picturesque qualities. The Boxley Abbey estate, of which the OHP then formed a part, changed hands in 1890. This seems certain to have been the catalyst for a change of fenestration, as part of a refit of cottages on the estate. Firm evidence for the 1890s re-windowing emerged during recent works when a date of 1892 was found crudely inscribed on a lintel.

When we acquired the house in 2018, we found its windows in a very sorry state. Some were missing, while others were vandalised with glass broken. An attempt had been made by the previous owner at repair, with single panes of float glass inserted and held in place by silicone sealant. A few of the diamond-paned leaded lights survived and the oak mullioned windows of the 1890s were generally in reasonable shape. We carried out emergency protective work using timber or wire mesh, but in some less vulnerable areas glass was replaced for us by Kent-based glazier Robert Croudace.

Robert has now returned to assist with the permanent repair, kindly using the opportunity to demonstrate the glazing repairs needed at our OHP window courses and last summer’s Boxley Working Party. The 2023 Scholars and Fellows also spent a week at Robert’s studio and were able to repair several casements that now adorn the building. For Robert, the building’s recovery has mirrored his own, since he was involved in a very serious road accident in the period following his original involvement with the house. The OHP has formed part of his return to work and his expertise has proved invaluable to the project and the SPAB’s educational objectives.

Robert has worked with craftspeople from main contractor Owlsworth IJP, including Jim Whitbread and Paul Sellwood, as well as architect Mal Fryer, to achieve the window repairs. Much thought was given in advance to the approach to be taken. The initial plan was to use simple, modern float glass for all windows, as an honest repair. In the end, the case for championing traditional glazing craft skills won the argument and the 1890s treatment has been followed, re-using the surviving old glass wherever possible. After timber repair, the gap between the 1890s oak window frames and the surrounding masonry has been filled with a traditional burnt sand mastic, made from kiln dried silver sand and linseed oil.

A significant amount of new glass was needed to complete the job. For this, after consideration of all options, we decided to use mouth-blown glass from Lamberts factory in Bavaria. Lamberts are one of very few firms in Europe now producing mouth-blown window glass in any quantity. Sadly, there is no equivalent in the UK. Lamberts’ glass has a character and beauty resulting from surface imperfections and undulations. Within its leaded lattice, Robert’s work has allowed Lamberts’ glorious glass to glint and ripple in the sunlight. The glass and leadwork has had to be templated to accommodate the variations of the iron casements in which the glass is housed. In some cases, these casements were made 10mm or more out of square to allow for settlement in their stone surrounds. Lead cames for the new work follow the section of those surviving from the 1890s. Robert constructs the leadwork lattice in methodical fashion, building it up in T-shaped sections that add strength to the panel. The glass and leadwork panel is then attached to the iron saddle bars of the casement with precisely twisted and positioned copper wire, soldered in place. Each window will be subtly marked to distinguish old glass from new and to acknowledge Robert’s work of 2023.

With each reinstated window the house has taken a step closer to revival. The glass has not only brought closure to the external phase of work but has lent a new brilliance to its exterior and given the building back its eyes.

First published in SPAB members-only magazine. Become a member to see the latest SPAB Magazine and get access to digital back issues.