A grade 1 listed barn on the North Yorkshire Moors has been restored for use as a wedding venue – with help from the Actis Hybrid insulation system.
Danby Castle, a 13th century hunting lodge, has been operated as a successful wedding venue by Esk Valley Weddings for the past seven years, with the indoor element of the functions taking place until recently in a marquee in the castle grounds. Booming business inspired organisers to relocate the main event area into a barn on the site – a particular challenge, as not only did it require extensive renovation but it was also a grade 1 listed building.
Owners, Dawnay Estates, appointed Ivy Construction of Whitby, who in turn brought in AS Roofing of Scarborough to carry out the work. Burton Roofing Merchants of York were then selected to supply the materials. The project was particularly sensitive as in addition to its grade 1 listed status it was also within the grounds of an ancient monument.
Mark Purvis of Burton Roofing Merchants explained: “As the Danby Castle barn is a listed building it was vital that all materials and processes applied throughout the renovation were sympathetic to the heritage of this historical site. “We selected Actis Boost R Hybrid as it’s a breather membrane which is combined with an excellent thermal performance. Work on the refurbishment was to be carried out during the winter months so its suitability to all BS5534 wind zones meant work could take place regardless of the weather conditions.
North Yorkshire Building Control were fully supportive of the development and, working closely with client and contractor, managed to prevent what could have been a time consuming exercise satisfying extensive constraints applied to the building.
Sean Lorains of AS Roofing added: “Actis Boost R Hybrid has unrivalled water vapour diffusion properties, so prevents any risk of condensation. It also acts as a barrier against air leakage and thermal convection, which means it’s also a very carbon sensitive choice. The renovation of the roof had to be completed by a very strict time schedule because weddings had been booked!
“Our business ethos is to provide a quality product while remaining competitive so when I heard about Actis insulation this was an obvious solution to offer. The client’s directive was to reduce ongoing maintenance while improving the building’s thermal performance. We discovered a huge time saving as laying Boost R Hybrid was significantly quicker than cutting rigid foil board to fit in between the rafters. Another bonus was it was easy to cut and less messy.
“Boost R Hybrid is proving popular for three key reasons – its thermal efficiency, its cost effectiveness – largely due to reduced labour costs – and the fact that it can be installed without any need to disturb the rooms below – a key consideration when reroofing an existing property. The Actis range has certainly become part of our 2016 product portfolio.”
Actis UK and Ireland director Matthew King added: “It’s easy to install. In an existing building it’s a case of removing the tiles, laying it over the timber rafters and stapling it in place. You don’t need any special cutting tools, no eye or respiratory protection and there’s hardly any wastage, as you just lay it on from the roll and overlap the layers. It’s also very quick to load and fit. Because it’s thin it doesn’t take up much room to transport, and it’s light and easy to carry up and down ladders and scaffolding. So the combination of the speed of application and lack of wastage (never mind the added thermal performance) makes it very cost effective.”
