Great Laxey Wheel repairs will 'last for decades', heritage body says

The Great Laxey Wheel is due to start turning again by the end of May

Ongoing repairs to the Great Laxey Wheel are "complex" but will safeguard the structure for the next 60 years, Manx National Heritage (MNH) has said.

Works on the iconic landmark began in January and are due to be completed by the end of May.

The wheel, which is 72ft (22m) in diameter, last turned in September 2020.

MNH's John-Paul Walker said the work included timber and masonry repairs as well as redecoration.

He said, given the different types of maintenance required, it was "very complex to do it all at the same time" but it was important the team was "covering as much as possible" while they have the access.

The iconic structure was built in 1854 to pump water from the Laxey Mines

One of the challenges, Mr Walker said, was discovering the "true condition" of some elements of the structure once the scaffolding was in place.

He said: "There were some timbers that look fine on the outside but then you actually drive a screwdriver in or do a test drill, and you discover that actually it's the inside of the timber that's rotten."

They were things that "you would have never have seen from the outside," he added.

Work to complete the current phase of the project, which involves the replacement of rotting timbers and repainting, is being carry out by Auldyn Construction.

Site manager Matt Boyd said the access they have been able to gain would help them with future maintenance as it had given them a "blueprint to move on".

He said he was looking forward to the wheel being "connected back up" and the other components being back in place.

Working on the structure had been a "fantastic" opportunity "just to see the grand scale of it", he added.