Folk-Baroque church to be renovated at the northern gate of the Bükk

The 18th century church of Mályinka in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county is being renovated with public funds and donations. The project is being carried out by Juhász László, a private contractor, on behalf of the Tiszáninneni Reformed Church District, and Cemix Hungary Kft. products are being used for the renovation.  

It took its final form in the 20th century 

The unique Baroque church of the village on the northern slopes of the Bükk Mountains was built on the foundations of a medieval church destroyed by fire in 1740. The west-facing, vernacular Baroque gabled building has a gable gable roof and a monochrome painted wooden roof.

Like the church, the 10-metre-high, squat wooden belfry with a roof soffit was built in 1785 in the folk baroque style. The church took its present form during later renovations, including one in 1912. The church was listed as a historical monument in 1958, when the last minor renovation took place.  

Extensive studies preceded the project 

More than six decades had passed since then, and it was time to renovate the building: the masonry of the church had recently suffered water damage, and the woodwork, much of which dates back to the earlier medieval church, had also been significantly damaged by water.

The current project aims to save and restore the historic monuments and renovate them to meet the needs of today.

The project has been preceded by extensive expert studies, including archaeological excavation, historic preservation, building diagnostics, painting restoration, sculpture restoration and dendrochronology. Following the expert studies, the full renovation is underway under the continuous supervision of the experts concerned. Anikó Bottyán, artist-conservator, is supervising the restoration work.

Delivery expected in February

The details of the project were provided by László Juhász, the contractor, and Cemix, the supplier of the products.

According to the information received, the external works, i.e. drainage, dry-plastering, roofing and roofing, have been completed. At the moment, the interior architectural and technical works are in progress, as well as the installation of the windows and doors.

At the same time, restoration work is also taking place, but in a workshop. Work is expected to be completed by the end of January, with the handover expected in February.

Two decades of good working relationship helped the project

A Cemix Eurosan WTA plastering system was used as a key element of the project for both the exterior and interior work processes. In this connection, both companies emphasised to our newspaper that the contractor and the manufacturer Cemix have a working relationship that goes back two decades, which has also formed the basis of the current cooperation.

"We have been using the Cemix drying plaster system since 1998 and have used Cemix products on a number of historic building renovations to our own and our customers' overall satisfaction"

 - said László Juhász.

Zoltán Papp, as the responsible regional project manager of Cemix, reported that prior to the works, laboratory tests were carried out to prepare a lay-out and renovation proposal for the contractor, which was accepted and implemented to the maximum extent possible by the company in terms of the materials used in the construction.

Longevity was the focus of the investment 

We also learned from László Juhász that before plastering started, the walls were insulated with grout to prevent the absorption of soil moisture through capillaries.

In conclusion, Zoltán Papp said that the clients focused on the restoration of the exterior and interior wet and damaged plasterwork and its longevity, taking into account the requirements of the listed building.

"To achieve this, the Eurosan drying plaster system Cemix was used, supplemented with Renti repair mortar, which also has excellent vapour permeability, and SiliconTOP, another excellent vapour permeable and durable facade paint."