Crazy Paving Day.....

The last in the current series of Taster Days at Morden Hall Park proved to be popular, as members of the public learned about different types of flooring and other materials which are being used in the development of the Stable Yard. There were a series of talks, where experts spoke about subjects including the various types of pavers being laid, and the use of carpets made from Cumbrian sheep’s wool.

Robert Knott talks about the indoor “Star” pavers © NPTL/Caroline Pankhurst

Tom Walsh from Sustainable Merton (http://www.sustainablemerton.org/), which will have volunteers running drop-in advice sessions about sustainability in the new Living Green Centre, also spoke about the importance of the new project for the London Borough of Merton and its residents.

Moving outside, visitors were given a tour of the Stable Yard, and were then able to try their hand at laying two types of pavers. An expert from our builders, R Durtnell and Sons Ltd, demonstrated how the chocolate block style pavers (which were lifted from the Stable Yard and refurbished) are being relaid in a bed of sand and firmed down with a whacker plate.

Tom from Sustainable Merton lays some "Chocolate Block" pavers NPTL/Caroline Pankhurst

A Taster Day participant using the whacker plate on the “Chocolate Block” pavers © NPTL/Caroline Pankhurst

Star pavers will be used in the exhibition area. Hundreds of these have also been recycled, and are being supplemented by new, matching pavers supplied by Bulmer Bricks and being laid by A.T.Knott and Sons Ltd. Learning how to lay “Star” pavers © NPTL/Caroline Pankhurst

In the office areas, carpet will be supplied by Wools of Cumbria Carpets Ltd (http://www.wocc.co.uk/). These durable carpets are made from Cumbrian Swaledale and Herdwick wools, and the company helps upland farmers to maintain their flocks, so that they can keep the hills and fells in the traditional way that they have done for many years.

Also on show during the Taster Day were samples of the flooring that will be used in the café areas. The norament Luxor rubber floor covering is long-lasting and easy to clean and is manufactured by nora flooring systems UK Ltd. (http://www.nora.com/).

Although this was the last in the current series, we plan to hold a further Taster Day during the installation of our Archimedes Screw hydroelectric turbine - sign up to the blog to be alerted to the date for this. And if you'd like to volunteer in the new Living Green Centre, please email heartofthepark@nationaltrust.org.uk.

Come and lay the final paving blocks in the new Heart of the Park Courtyard!

Chocolate Block Pavers. NT/Jon Whitehead

On Saturday 13th August, people will have the chance to help complete the new courtyard in the Heart of the Park project at Morden Hall Park.

The last in the series of free “Taster Days” will have three experts telling people about the special “chocolate block” paving blocks being used in the renovated stableyard, as well as the special original “star” pavers being used in the exhibition space. People will then have a chance to lay the final paving blocks themselves and have a behind-the-scenes tour of the whole stableyard renovation project (seeing the solar panels, air source heat pump, cork insulation etc). A carpet expert from Cumbria will also be attending to talk about the carpets being used in the office space, and the rubber flooring to be used in the new café will also be on show.

The event runs from 10-12.30pm.

This will be the last chance to see the stableyard before it opens to the public on 5 November 2011, so is an opportunity not to be missed.

The event is free to attend but spaces are limited and booking is essential – please contact heartofthepark@nationaltrust.org.uk or 020 8545 6856 for further details and to book a place.

It's all happening....

Refurbished pavers being re-installed NPTL/Jon Whitehead

There has been a lot of progress on several fronts at Morden Hall Park over the last few weeks.
One of the principles of the stable yard renovation is that original materials should be re-used wherever possible.
Thousands of the original "chocolate-block" style pavers in the stable yard were removed to enable drainage works to take place and the installation of the huge rainwater harvesting tanks. Where possible, the pavers have been cleaned and re-laid to restore the original stable yard surface and maintain its historic appearance. Each paver is about the size of a house brick and in some cases several centimetres of concrete had to be chipped from the underside of each one. Some of the original pavers are also being re-used inside the new exhibition area.
Most of the original wooden window frames are being refurbished too and secondary glazing is being added to bring the insulation levels up to standard.

The new turning circle outside Morden Cottage NPTL/Jon Whitehead

Meanwhile, outside Morden Cottage, the area has been re-landscaped to restore the original turning-circle that Mr Hatfeild would have had when he lived there.
The tarmac surface has been reduced to make way for a grassy area.

Paddles being installed on the waterwheel NPTL/Jon Whitehead

Work has also been going on to replace most of the paddles on the waterwheel so that you can see what it would have looked like when it powered the Snuff Mills. The workings inside the mills are no longer there, so unfortunately the waterwheel won’t be turning again.

Green (and very soggy) Day Out

Here in the Heart of the Park office, we don't let the weather dampen our spirits, so when we saw the forecast for last weekend, we all dug out our wellies and waterproofs, because Sunday was our Green Day Out.

National Trust stand (c) NTPL/Victoria Lower

This is an annual festival at the Park, and one of our most popular events. Local green charities, businesses an other organisations all come and set up stalls at Morden Hall Park, providing information and fun ativities to encourage the local community to 'live greener' and inspire them to change the way that they live.

The lovely ladies at Thames Water, smiling through the rain (c) NTPL/Lucy Alfred

We also ran special, behind the scenes tours of the stable yard to give our visitors the opportunity to find out all about our fantastic Heart of the Park sustainable renovation project.

Community Projects Manager, Zoë Adams, entertaining the crowds with the
wonders of cork insultion. NTPL/Lucy Alfred

We might have been unlucky with the weather, but our staff, volunteers and stallholders all battled through the showers to put on a great event for the visitors who braved the conditions. Even though it was wet, we had more stallholders this year than ever before. With live music and morris dancing to entertain the crowds, the event is loads of fun.

The sun came out for the Greensleeves Morris Men... (c) NTPL/Lucy Alfred

...but it didn't for local band Skyline Sketch (c) NTPL/Lucy Alfred

Thank you to everyone who came along to support us - next year we'll be booking sunshine!

Winter warmth from the ground up: underfloor heating

Underfloor heating pipes installed in clay plates NPTL/Caroline Pankhurst

Hot water will be generated in the Stable Yard in a variety of ways: by Photovoltaic-Thermal (PV-T) panels, an air source heat pump and a wood burning stove. It will be stored in large hot water tanks or “thermal stores”. These will feed the domestic hot water supply and the underfloor heating system.

One of the thermal store hot water tanks NTPL/Jon Whitehead

A network of polyethylene underfloor heating pipes has been installed throughout the stable buildings. These are arranged in heating zones, each controlled by its own thermostat. The pipes will run directly under the flooring, providing an even heat distribution, unlike the localised “spot” heating which is produced by traditional radiators.
In order to improve the efficiency of the heating system even further, the pipes are laid in Lithotherm clay plates, which can be seen in the top picture as the orangey-brown filling between the lighter-coloured pipes.
The grooves in the Lithotherm plates are open at the top, increasing the radiating surface towards the floor covering by approximately 60%.The increased upward flow of heat produces a well-balanced floor temperature, ensuring that the heat entering the room is maximised and the heat lost towards the ground is minimised. This is also helped by installing the clay plates on a layer of high-efficiency insulation. We want to squeeze every bit of heat out of our sustainably-produced hot water!

Renovating the waterwheel

The Waterwheel at Morden Hall Park NTPL/Jon Whitehead

The Snuff Mill at Morden Hall Park was one of the numerous mills which could once be found along the River Wandle. It was through the production of snuff, which was once highly fashionable, that the mills at Morden Hall Park became prominent.

There are only four mills with waterwheels remaining, and the cast iron waterwheel attached to the Snuff Mill is all that remains of the milling machinery since milling ceased in 1922.

NTPL/Robert Jameson

On Saturday 25th June we held one in a series of free taster days at which visitors were able to learn more about the waterwheel in the park, meet waterwheel renovation experts and get dirty scrubbing and painting part of the wheel.

In the next few weeks work will begin to conserve the waterwheel and replace its buckets. Later in the year a hydroelectric turbine will be installed behind the waterwheel. The turbine – an Archimedean screw – will be visible as a new modern “wheel” harnessing the power of the water and will provide reliable, renewable electricity to the renovated Stable Yard buildings.

There is one taster day left in the free series: Flooring and materials on Saturday 13 August.
For more information and to book a place please contact Caroline Pankhurst, Project Coordinator at National Trust, Morden Hall Park on 020 8545 6856 or heartofthepark@nationaltrust.org.uk.

Sliding Doors

The heart-stopping moment when a door was launched into the air. NTPL/Lucy Alfred

Like the plot of their cinematic namesake, the tale of our bespoke, triple glazed, sliding doors by Vitrosca has not been straightforward. Although, after two dramatic and failed attempts they have now been installed in the exhibition space of the stable yard.

Two weeks ago we excitedly rushed out to watch them being installed, only to discover that the suction pads used to install them weren’t working on the first machine and the second one was the wrong design for the job. Our hearts were in our mouths when they removed the suction pads on the second attempt as the whole door wobbled from end to end like one of Rolf Harris’s “wobble boards”! The door escaped damage free because, as we were later assured, it can withstand harder wear than that.

This week the ‘third time lucky’ mantra came into full force as the seven doors were painstakingly and expertly manoeuvred by the team who lifted, twisted and inched the doors into place. There were some heart stopping moments such as when the crane lifted two of the doors several metres into the air, but as the experts seemed pretty relaxed we swallowed our panic and busied ourselves with taking photos of the process!

Coming all the way from Portugal the doors are fairly unique in the UK as triple glazing is much more popular in mainland Europe. The energy efficient panels are filled with viscous argon gas which separates the three panes in each sliding door. Argon is used rather than air as it is a much denser gas, making it a poor conductor of heat, meaning greater insulation. During the winter the doors will form as airtight a seal as possible, keeping heat inside the exhibition space, while allowing a comfortable stream of air in the summer months when they can be slid open.

All we have to do now is decide upon the design of the transfers that will go onto the doors, to remind wildlife (and people!) that they are in fact solid glass doors and not open spaces!