The bright white masonry paint and glossed black timber frame can be seen clearly here. These modern finishes have no place on traditional buildings. They inhibit natural breathability and retain the moisture that enters through cracks that inevitably develop in all plasticised paints.
The higher moisture levels encourage both fungal and insect attack, the resulting damage requiring new timber members, carefully fashioned to match the originals. The picture on the left shows a new transom fitted to the frame of Castle Gates House