Kirkby Lonsdale · Door Restoration
The stone-built houses lining Main Street, Mitchelgate and Market Street in Kirkby Lonsdale tend to have one feature in common: a proper period front door. Panelled, often with leaded fanlights, hung from cast-iron butts that have been opening and closing for a century or more. They reward restoration — and they almost never need replacing.
Decades of paint hide a lot of detail. We strip carefully — heat and scraper for the bulk, hand sanding for the mouldings — taking the door back to clean timber without scorching the grain or rounding the arrises off the panels.
The bottom of a front door takes more weather than any other part of the house. Where the lower rail or stiles have softened we cut out the damaged section, scarf in matching seasoned timber, and re-form the original moulding by hand.
We plane the door to swing cleanly, replace any worn hinges with matching butts, and either refurbish or carefully replace the original knob, knocker and letterplate. The fit and the closing action matter as much as the finish.
A primer for tannin-rich timber, two coats of high-build undercoat sanded flat between coats, and a finish in flexible exterior eggshell. The colour is yours to choose — but the system is designed to take a Yorkshire-Dales winter without flinching.
From this project
Frequently asked
Yes — we can match almost any historic palette and will obtain conservation-area sign-off on the chosen colour before we start.
Often in the same visit — it's usually the most cost-effective time to bring them up to the same standard as the front.
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A Final Thought
Honest advice, careful preparation and beautiful results across Cumbria and Lancashire.
