Harefield Limeworks, Rickmansworth. October 2007

[LiamCH]

While cycling along the Grand Union Canal towpath I came across this building. It has been abandoned for a long time and has has much of the brickwork removed. Part of the site is still used, and has electricity, but while minimal construction has taken place the owners don't seem to spend much time there.

A shot of the building.

Some chutes.

On top.

The old substation.

Fuses.

The toilets, complete with shower in the corner.

Old switches.

A tunnel that goes back into the steep embankment.

Inside. The back is bricked off - it lead to a shaft which was presumably used to take lime down to the bottom.

On top of the shaft is a shipping crate to keep people falling in.

The shaft.

The limepit.

 

[skittles]

It still used, amazing

Nice photos

 

[borntobemild]

Can't tell if that's snow or lime on the last shot.

Amazing find - particularly so close to London

 

[zimbob]

Interesting

WTF is up with the giant cuddly toy?

 

[LiamCH]

It still used, amazing

Nice photos

It's not still used as a limeworks. I'm not sure what the new owners use it for, but I have seen lorries going in, and through a hole in a wall of the only building still in use I can see a great deal of building material. However, I haven't seen any evidence of their activity on site for several months - a shed that they were building has been left unfinished. I don't know why.

 

[Foxylady]

WTF is up with the giant cuddly toy?

Wondered what you meant at first! I think what you're talking about is a hopper distributor. There would normally be pipes connected to the 'feet', and materials would be fed through them into hoppers. At least I think that's what it is.

Interesting site, Liam. Cheers.

 

[LiamCH]

Bloody bastards!

I visited today to find a large change had taken place.

Before:

After:

How did this happen? The girders have melted! This must have cost the owners thousands. It was only built a few months ago, and the fire also melted the power cable to the other room, which is still standing. Bloody bastards.

 

[RichardB]

Wondered what you meant at first! I think what you're talking about is a hopper distributor. There would normally be pipes connected to the 'feet', and materials would be fed through them into hoppers. At least I think that's what it is.

Interesting site, Liam. Cheers.

No, it's definitely a cuddly toy, you can see its face in the large version of the first picture.

 

[zimbob]

No, it's definitely a cuddly toy, you can see its face in the large version of the first picture.

It's not just me then

Looks like a giant monkey....

 

[wolfism]

If you look closely at the 9th pic, the big cuddly monkey is wearing a Petzl climbing harness! Either that, or he's clipped onto a fall restraint lanyard …

Interesting site, Liam – the fuses are particularly "period".

 

[Foxylady]

No, it's definitely a cuddly toy, you can see its face in the large version of the first picture.

I didn't notice that. Well spotted. It does look like a hopper distributer though.

 

[TheLondoners]

It's changed a lot since my last visit over 10 years ago now. The tramp that lived in the outbuilding seems to have moved on and the giant stuffed monkey has been taken down from the ceiling. Still, nice to see it still there. (the building, not the monkey or tramp)

 

[RichardB]

I always associate Rickmansworth with the girl in the café whose story wasn't told in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

 

[LiamCH]

Haha! So do I actually. If only the world had lasted a little bit longer.

 

[Cosmicmoon]

Bastards. That is so abysmal. I can't believe someone would set fire to it. All of that hard work down the drain