19th Century Chapel Gets Cast Iron Makeover

Leading rainwater specialist, Yeoman Rainguard has used its manufacturing skills to produce bespoke Cast Iron downpipes for a 19th century Chapel in the grounds of St James’s Hospital, Leeds.

The successfully restored building is just one of a range of remarkable buildings and structures in Leeds that are listed. The chapel was built in Byzantine style by Leeds architects, Messrs, Perkin and Backhouse and is thought to date back approximately 150 years to 1858.

John McCabe, an estates officer at St James’s Hospital said: “The original downpipes were in poor condition and needed to be replaced. I contacted Harrison Thompson as the company has done various work for us before and we were confident they could do the job well.”

Following a site survey, Yeoman Rainguard used a sample of the original pipe to replicate new Cast Iron pipes and Fleur de Lys clips.

“We are pleased with the results and the Yeoman Rainguard pipes blend in with the traditional materials and design of the chapel,” said John.

Phil Christopher of Yeoman Rainguard said: “Detailed site surveys are part and parcel of our everyday service. This would also include best fitting the appropriate product to the project at hand. Cast Iron was the obvious in this instance, due to its listing.”

With over half a million individual listed buildings in the country as a whole, Yeoman Rainguard’s traditional cast iron rainwater range is proving to be a popular choice to replace and replicate original systems.