Surfaces & materials
Surfaces and finishes, and how each one wants to be cleaned
The single most common cause of damage is not dirt, it is the wrong method on the wrong finish. A pressure washer that is fine on concrete block paving will scar silicone render and open up soft sandstone. These pages cover the finishes we meet across Plymouth and the surrounding villages, and what each one tolerates.
Finish-by-finish
- Cleaning K-Rend and silicone renders
Owner of a silicone-rendered property wants safe cleaning.
- Cleaning pebbledash without losing the stones
Owner of a pebbledashed house worried about damage.
- Granite, limestone and Devon stone walls
Owner of a stone property wants appropriate cleaning.
- uPVC cladding, fascias and soffits
Owner with green or chalky white plastic trim.
- Indian sandstone patios: cleaning without blotching
Owner with a stained or patchy sandstone patio.
- Porcelain paving: low maintenance, not no maintenance
Owner with porcelain slabs that look dull or slippery.
- Composite and timber cladding maintenance
Owner with clad elevations wanting safe maintenance.
- Solar panels, roof access and cleaning around them
Owner with panels who needs surrounding roof and gutters cleaned.
- Flat roofs, valleys and where water actually goes wrong
Owner with a flat roof or valley collecting debris.
- Chimneys, ridges and the growth nobody can see
Owner with mossy ridge or stained chimney.
How we decide on method
- Anything painted, rendered or coated is treated at low pressure with dwell time, because the finish is the thing we are trying to keep.
- Hard, dense surfaces such as concrete paving and engineering brick can take mechanical cleaning, controlled with a flat surface cleaner instead of a bare lance.
- Soft or porous stone is treated conservatively and often over more than one visit, because it will not grow a new surface back.
Services these guides relate to
- Wall Cleaning & Softwash
- Window Cleaning
- Pressure Washing
- Roof Cleaning
- Gutter Cleaning & Clearing
- Patios & Driveways
Other topics
Not sure what your walls actually are? A close-up photo is usually enough for us to identify it.
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