Since the bridge closures in August, painting crews have continued to systematically jetwash the bridge’s iron chains, prepare the surfaces for painting, and apply the three coats of paint required to protect them for the next decades. During our Heritage Open Day events in September, members of the refurbishment team spoke about their roles in this process. If you attended our talks, you may have learned about some of the specialist tools created to paint between the chains, heard how the painters measure the thickness of the paint applied in microns (and how our engineers certify that it has been applied correctly), found out about the specialist scaffolding system (which is much lighter and more flexible than regular scaffolding so it can flex with the movement of the bridge), or seen how the huge paving slabs laid on each abutment were carefully lifted and then relaid in their correct places.
This simple tool allows painters to check the thickness of a coat of paint as it is applied.
Paintbrushes like this one help the painters to access awkward spaces
Two thirds of the painting on the bridge’s land chains (the chains sloping from the ground to the tower tops) has been completed, and a special additional coat of non-skid paint has been added to their upper surface. Although our engineers and maintenance crews tend to use platform lifts (or ‘cherry pickers’) to reach the higher parts of the bridge safely, there is always the rare possibility that a worker may need to ‘walk the chains’ to carry out repairs or maintenance. Along with the latchway system (workers wear a fall arrest harness similar to those used by rock climbers and clip onto a steel wire running along the top of the land chains), the non-slip paint helps to provide a safe working environment when required.
This photograph of a bridge inspection in the 1970s shows how maintenance used to be done!
Last month we also reported that the wooden handrail running along the top of the parapet girders which form the outer edge of the footway across the bridge were also being replaced. The new handrails are made from Accoya wood, a specially treated pine which has a working lifespan of up to 60 years and does not swell or shink with changes in humidity or temperature. This wooden handrail is not used by pedestrians as it is behind the safety mesh that keeps you safe as you cross – but instead provides a track for the hand-cranked gantry, a person powered cradle that hangs below the bridge deck and slides along the full length of the bridge to allow engineers to inspect the underside of the bridge – so it is essential that the rail provides a nice smooth surface. The rails had to be removed to allow the ironwork of the parapet girders to be fully painted and the old wood removed provided a template so the new replacements could be cut exactly to shape.
With the wooden handrail removed, the top of the parapet girder could be painted.
Standing on the gantry, this member of the painting crew was able to prepare a stanchion on the outer edge of the footway for painting.
Finally, electrical work continues as the bridge’s wiring is updated and redundant systems removed. This month, electricians have been working in the Clifton Tower, and you may have spotted them in the arch or on the roof of the tower. As painting is completed on each section of chains, the electrical team have also been installing cable baskets, which will keep the wires crossing the bridge neatly in place and out of view between the chains.