Restoration brings Glebe's heritage building back to life

MEDIA RELEASE 27 January 2009

Restoration brings Glebe's heritage building back to life
A Sydney-made innovation called Cocoon, which removes salt from masonry, is helping to restore and preserve one of Glebe's historic 19th century Victorian buildings on Glebe Point Road.

The house at number 20 is one of Glebe's oldest buildings. The villa was built around 1860 and was originally called Montrose. In 1920, a square structure and glasshouse were added to the front of the house by Dr Theodore Potts to serve as a waiting room and laboratory.

This front building has now been removed and work is underway to restore the original Montrose building to its former glory which will serve as a doctor's surgery.

Like many heritage buildings, the villa has suffered from rising damp and subsequent salt contamination. To treat this problem and prevent further damage caused by the salt, a product called Cocoon, developed by Revesby-based company Westox, is being used.

"It's really important to keep local history alive by preserving our heritage buildings," said Cocoon inventor and managing director of Westox, Barrie Cooper.

"At Westox we've developed products and processes to treat and preserve buildings using methods that are sympathetic to the original materials and construction of the building," he added.

Cocoon works by drawing the salt out of the masonry it is applied to. Cocoon is applied in a 10mm thick layer and slowly releases water into the masonry to place the build up of salts in the wall into solution. As the Cocoon dries the water containing the salt is drawn into it. The Cocoon is then removed taking the salt with it.

Westox is Australia's leading supplier and manufacturer of heritage restoration products and Cocoon is the brainchild of Barrie cooper who spent the early part of his career as a plasterer. Mr. Cooper recognised the need for a product to remove salt from masonry and developed the product initially to treat salt contamination at Fort Denison on Sydney Harbour.

Westox works closely with heritage architects and consultants to preserve buildings in Australia and around the world. Its list of restoration projects is vast. Cocoon has been used to restore 15th century Venetian buildings as well as numerous Australian heritage buildings including Australia's oldest surviving European building Elizabeth Farm made from hand made bricks and Sydney sandstone (c 1794).

Westox manufactures over 70 innovative products including surface coatings, aesthetic protection products and renovation products. The underlying philosophy behind the product range is that heritage buildings and structures should be restored in an authentic way to ensure they are preserved for future generations.

Westox can be contacted on 02 9774 4100, 1300westox or www.westox.com.

Released for Westox by Dennis Rutzou Public Relations (www.drpr.com.au)
For further information please call Joanna Gitsham or Nicola Rutzou on (02) 9413 4244.

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