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It’s hard to imagine water shortages after all the rain we’ve had so far this year, but it’s still important to conserve water. Out of all the water on the planet, there is less than 1% accessible fresh water for us to use. Population growth, climate change and rising water use for industry, all impact water availability. If we don’t take efficient action now, the UK could be hit by water shortages in 2050.*  

A rainwater diverter is an excellent way to conserve and harvest water to use during the drier, summer months, reducing water bills whilst helping the environment. 

A diverter attaches to the downpipe that takes rainwater from the roofline guttering, channelling water from the drainage system down a flexible pipe to a storage tank or water butt. Our diverter kit allows approximately 50% of the water go into the butt with the rest going down to the ground drainage system. With careful installation, when the water butt is full,  excess water will flow back up the flexible pipe, down the rainwater pipe and into the drain.  

We offer this product for all sizes of round pipe and a rectangular option which will fit any of our standard square or rectangular pipes. Contact us to find out more. 

*Source, Waterwise 

Established in the 1870s, J & JW Longbottom is proud to be based in the heart of West Yorkshire at Bridge Foundry in the historic town of Holmfirth. Situated at the confluence of the Rivers Holme and Ribble, the town consists of stone-built weavers’ cottages built on the eastern slope of the Pennine Hills, with charming, cobbled streets and alleyways.  

Holmfirth can trace its origins back over the past two thousand years. Stone age settlers, Romans, Anglo Saxons and Danes all left their mark, mostly living peacefully and farming the land. During Saxon and Medieval times, the Lords of Wakefield used this forested land for hunting. The name Holmfirth comes from Anglo Saxon, with holm an abbreviation of ‘hollin,’ a place with holly, and firth, an open area in forest or woodland.  

The town grew around an ancient route bringing salt from Cheshire into the West Riding and started with a corn mill and bridge in the 13th century, with the church dated around 1470. Three hundred years later, it was transformed from a small rural village in the Holme Valley, into a thriving mill town of the Industrial Revolution, as well as a substantial producer of stone and slates from the surrounding quarries. The flourishing cloth industry produced and processed woollen yarns and cotton, from spinning and dyeing to weaving and finishing. Right up until the 20th Century, the textile industry was the main local employer and the area known as, “The town busy with wool.”  

Prosperity increased as the mills grew, with workers arriving from Ireland and Europe. In 1850 the steam train reached Holmfirth, thanks to the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, sadly closing in the mid-1960s after the Beeching cuts. The Bilberry reservoir, built in the 1840s, supplied water to the mills in the Holme Valley to turn the heavy water wheels powering the mills. The water that brought prosperity also brought destruction and tragedy; in 1852 heavy rain caused the reservoir to burst its banks, sending a torrent of water onto Holmfirth with extensive loss of life and damage to infrastructure.  

Today the mills are silent and whilst many were lost to fire, flooding, or pulled down to make way for new homes, some have survived and been converted into residential housing, shops and cafes. Holmfirth is still a thriving town, popular with tourists who visit the area now famous for music and the arts, as well as walkers, drawn to the rugged moorland scenery and proximity to the Peak District National Park.  

A haven for artists and makers, galleries and studios offer metal work, felting, ceramics, sculpture and paintings for sale. The original Holme Valley theatre and cinema has been restored back to its 1912 glory and is home to live music, film, theatre and comedy shows. The Holmfirth calendar is filled with festivals from literature, art, film and music (folk, brass and contemporary) to food, drink and agriculture. The National Pennine Cycleway route runs through the centre of town and in 2014, Le Tour de France passed through on its Grand Depart. 

Of course, Holmfirth is probably most famous for the BBC comedy classic, Last of the Summer Wine, filmed from 1973 to 2010, 31 series chronicling the lives of three old friends in the autumn of their lives, eventually becoming the longest running sit-com in the world. Sid’s Café, often featured in the show, is still open, along with many other cafes, bistros, restaurants and historic pubs offering an array of gastronomic delights.  

Did you know Holmfirth was the centre of early film making before Hollywood even existed? James Bamforth, a local portrait photographer, started making magic lantern slides in 1883, progressing to monochrome films telling stories on a big screen through a series of photographs, with Holmfirth and some of its residents, featuring in the first silent movies shown all over the world. Bamforth was recognised as one of the early pioneers of filmmaking, but a move to producing cheeky, comic postcards in 1910 proved more lucrative, and his film career was put to one side. Bamforth Postcards was printing over 20 million cards by 1918, eventually becoming the world’s largest producer of postcards and is still in print today.  

High up on the hills above the town is Holmfirth Vineyard, covering seven acres and offering panoramic views over the Holme Valley. The vineyard produces award-winning English wines, from fruity reds to aromatic whites, and offers guided tours and wine tasting. Longley Farm, the first dairy in Europe to make cottage cheese on a commercial scale, is still privately owned and based in Holmfirth.  

We are fortunate to live and work in this wonderful corner of ‘God’s own country.’ J & JW Longbottom has been trading from the same foundry since the 1870s. Formed as a partnership between local brothers, Joe and Joshua Woodhead Longbottom, the company produced rainwater goods, expanding to meet the increasing demand for other cast ironware like lampposts and heavy grates. Production continues following the same traditional methods, enhanced where appropriate by modern materials and practices. 

We are often asked, ‘What is the purpose of a union clip and do I need one for each gutter?’ 

Every cast iron gutter has a jointing piece built in to one end, either an external one known as a socket, or an internal one known as a spigot. This is how gutters are connected to each other. 

A union clip can be used as a double socket or double spigot; its purpose is to provide a joint where there wouldn’t otherwise be one, usually when reusing an off-cut of a gutter which can then reduce the total number of gutters required for a job.  

With rainwater and soil pipes, the joint is an external socket at the top of the pipe. Here we offer a union socket, sometimes called a loose socket, again to allow those off-cuts to be used. 

Have you checked your hopper heads are firmly attached to your downpipes? Are your gutters clean, unclogged ready for winter conditions? It’s important to check rainwater goods at this time of year when trees are shedding their leaves and before winter sets in, to keep the outside drainage system of your home working efficiently. 

Whilst it’s wonderful to watch the autumn leaves change their hue and fall from the trees they can cause havoc, clogging gutters and obstructing drains. Even a small blockage can cause water to back up and flood the surrounding area and possibly penetrate a property; we recommend setting aside some time every week to clear leaves and debris from drains and pipes to keep the drainage system working efficiently. 

Water is the main cause for decay in most traditional buildings. In many cases, regular maintenance and repair of rainwater goods can vastly improve a property’s condition without having to resort to expensive and intrusive interventions. This maintenance should be carried out from the roof right down to the ground and it’s a good idea to go out and check your building in the rain – this can highlight issues and leaks you might not always see if you do your maintenance on dry days. 

Check pipes for any holes, cracks or signs of deterioration. Pipes and gutters should be repainted periodically to protect from rust and corrosion, check the condition of paint and consider repainting if necessary to prolong their life. Damaged drainage castings can often be repaired, and our expert engineers can help with replacing a missing piece or welding a broken section. 

 We can even replace ornate pieces by taking a cast of the design and replicating it, in many cases this provides a cost-effective alternative to replacement and is especially useful to preserve items of architectural interest.  

The base of your property should also be checked to make sure that drains and drainage channels are clear and any plants growing against the foundation of a building should be removed; non-breathable surfaces like tarmac should not come right up to external walls. 

With issues of increased rain due to the changing climate, maintenance may be needed more regularly in the future and if your rainwater goods are well maintained and still failing, they may need to be widened or sympathetically added to in order to prevent ongoing issues. 

To find out more about our repair service, click here.