The Malthouse, Rye

The Malthouse sits on the edge of the Rye citadel and had been painted repeatedly since the 1950s — first with lime wash, later with masonry paint, most recently with a grey-beige acrylic. By 2022 the paint was failing in sheets, revealing glimpses of the original flint face beneath.

Stripping was done with poultices — layers of paper coated in a gentle alkaline paste, applied for 48 hours at a time, then peeled with the softened paint. The process took seven weeks across the east and south elevations. Once clean, the flint-knapped face was pointed in lime putty and finished in three coats of off-white lime wash over a primer of milk-of-lime. The finish ages beautifully: by 2024 it had already mellowed to a softer tone that the first coat cannot produce.

The original cast-iron rainwater goods — hoppers, downpipes, brackets — were retained throughout. Four sections required repair (a welded split in one hopper, three replacement brackets cast to match). Everything else is original Victorian iron.