Is my render under warranty - will cleaning affect it?

A softwash is the method most render manufacturers themselves recommend. Pressure washing is what tends to void a warranty.

My house is only five years old and already green. Is something wrong?

No. Thin modern render on a shaded elevation greens quickly. It cleans easily too.

Can you get lance marks out of K-Rend?

Honestly, no. Once the colour is cut through, cleaning will not restore it.

PL6: modern render, K-Rend and new-build estates

PL6 is the newest large slice of the city. Estates built from the seventies onwards, modern interlocking tile roofs, and a great deal of through-coloured render - which is a specific material with a specific failure mode, and the reason wall cleaning is the job we do most here.

PL6 covers 12 places we work in, 3 to 6.9 miles from our base at 58 Reddington Road, Plymouth (Devon, Plymouth City Council, West Devon Borough Council) - all inside our 20-mile radius of Plymouth.

Questions we get asked in PL6

Is my render under warranty - will cleaning affect it?: A softwash is the method most render manufacturers themselves recommend. Pressure washing is what tends to void a warranty.
My house is only five years old and already green. Is something wrong?: No. Thin modern render on a shaded elevation greens quickly. It cleans easily too.
Can you get lance marks out of K-Rend?: Honestly, no. Once the colour is cut through, cleaning will not restore it.

Why modern render greens so fast

Through-coloured silicone and acrylic renders are thin, slightly textured and applied over insulation or board rather than over solid masonry. The face stays cool because there is no thermal mass behind it, so overnight condensation sits on it longer than it would on brick.

Add a bit of shade and you get algae within three or four years of the house being handed over. It is not a defect and it is not neglect - it is how the material behaves.

K-Rend is not a pressure-washing surface

The most common damage we are called to look at in PL6 is lance marks in K-Rend: pale stripes where the colour has been cut through. It cannot be washed back in, and patching never matches.

The correct method is a biocide at low pressure, left to work, then a gentle rinse. Slower, but it leaves the surface exactly as it was.

New-build gutters and construction debris

On estates under ten years old the commonest gutter blockage is not leaves - it is mortar snots, offcuts and roofing grit left from the build. It is worth one clear-out to get it gone.

Reached via A386, A38, Eggbuckland Road, Plymbridge Road. Recorded wall finishes: render, brick, painted render. Roof coverings: concrete tile, modern interlocking tile, slate.

Towns and suburbs in PL6

Villages and neighbourhoods in PL6

Lopwell - wall softwash

Render quote for PL6

A photo of the elevation in daylight tells us the render type and how far the growth has gone.

Quote my render

Districts next to PL6