Guttering solutions from Marley Alutec help save Aqueduct Cottage in Derbyshire

Guttering solutions from Marley Alutec have been installed as part of a refurbishment project at Aqueduct Cottage in Derbyshire. The volunteer-led project specified the company’s solutions to ensure a long-lasting, durable installation on the historic building without the need to bring in any external tradespeople.

Sitting alongside the banks of the Cromford Canal in rural Derbyshire, Aqueduct Cottage is a grade II listed building which was built in 1802. Following years of neglect, the cottage had fallen into disrepair. However, since 2016, a group of volunteers called the ‘Friends of Aqueduct Cottage’ have worked alongside the Derbyshire Historic Building Trust and the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust to restore the building to its former glory.

The specification

Working together with the project team, the company supplied a range of its Traditional Half Round 125mm Guttering and Tudor 76mm Downpipe system to the cottage, in its popular Heritage Black finish. The textured surface is able to accurately replicate the look of traditional cast iron gutters and downpipes.

Marley Alutec’s Heritage Black solutions are regularly specified across restoration projects, including a location that the builder at Aqueduct Cottage had previously been involved with. Whilst visually identical to cast iron, Marley Alutec’s high-performing systems are manufactured entirely from marine-grade aluminium. As such, the solutions only require minimal maintenance over their 50+ year functional life expectancy. 

What’s more, the engineered material helps to ensure the company’s solutions are considerably lighter and easy to install. For the project team at Aqueduct Cottage this allowed the restoration of the gutter and downpipe systems to happen in a straightforward manner. Thanks to the systems’ easy to follow installation methods, the team of volunteers was able to handle the process entirely by themselves.

‘Thrilled’

Ron Common, a Derbyshire Wildlife Trust volunteer, comments: “We were thrilled with the role Marley Alutec played on this project. The company’s products came recommended to us by our builder who had worked on a similar restoration project in the past. Straight away, it was clear the solutions were going to enable us to update the cottage, whilst still maintaining its classic, historic look.”

Following a conversation with the project team, Marley Alutec volunteered to supply the products used at Aqueduct Cottage free of charge. The decision was taken on grounds of the important historical role the cottage plays within the local area and the non-for-profit nature of those overseeing the restoration process. Similarly, the company’s team made themselves available to assist with any technical queries throughout the build.

‘Very generous’

Ron adds: “We’re an organisation made up of volunteers, which is something Marley Alutec immediately recognised. The company was very generous in supplying us its products with no charge, as well as helping to assist with a number of important technical questions. We were beyond delighted with the support we received throughout the build and would like to thank the company again for all of its help.”

The historic cottage was originally built as a lengthsman’s and lock-keeper’s accommodation by Peter Nightingale, the great-uncle of Florence Nightingale. The site remained occupied for over 160 years until around 1970, when the last known occupant left. Following this, the site became inhabited but still served as a place of shelter for walkers on the nearby canal. In 2012, the cottage was gifted to its current owners the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust.

Work at Aqueduct Cottage is now nearly completed and once opened to the public, it is expected to receive thousands of visitors per year, thanks to its beautiful location within the Lower Derwent Valley, which is also within the UNESCO Derwent Valley Mills world heritage site. 

Speaking on the company’s involvement in the project, Marley Alutec’s local Area Sales Manager says: “We’re delighted to have played a role in this historic building restoration. Aqueduct Cottage is a magnificent site and should be a source of inspiration to those who live local to it. Thanks to the work of the project team, this is now once again the case and it is something worth celebrating.”