The first of a series of paint removal trials have begun at the Royal Hospital Chelsea’s Soane Stable Block. The trials are intended to inform our approach to the removal of decades worth of acrylic-based masonry paint. The current paint is not ‘breathable’ and as such is trapping moisture in the wall and causing damage to the early 19th-century brickwork.

The two sample patches shown in the images were prepared using Peel Away 1 and Peel Away 7, poultice based paint strippers, and have revealed (in places) an early lime-wash finish.

Our thanks to Jamie Fairchild at Restorative Techniques