What about air bricks and vents?

Covered for the duration, uncovered before we leave.

Can you clean a wall covered in ivy?

The ivy needs removing first. Once it is off, the shaded face behind it is treated as normal.

Should the gutters be done at the same time?

Usually. Overflow is behind a large share of wall staining, so clearing it protects the work.

Will the wall need doing again next year?

Not usually. How long it holds depends on shade, run-off and airflow rather than on the treatment.

Can you clean a wall before painting?

Yes, and it should be done first. Paint over live growth fails from underneath.

Can you treat one elevation only?

Yes, and it is common. Often only the shaded side has a problem and the rest of the house needs nothing.

Do you have a minimum size of job?

A single gable or a porch is still worth doing properly.

Do you clean chimney stacks?

Where they can be reached safely from a position that keeps us off the roof covering.

Wall cleaning for city district property in Barbican

Barbican, Devon - PL1

This page is about one job in one place: cleaning granite, painted stone and lime render walls in Barbican, Devon. Softwash means chemistry and dwell time doing the work rather than pressure.

Quote for a Barbican property

Monday to Saturday, 8am – 7pm

How the work is actually carried out

1.Downpipe backs and the strip of wall behind them are done by hand, because a sprayed pattern always misses them.
2.Water is drawn from an outside tap where there is one, and carried on the van where there is not.
3.Timber decking or a doorstep directly under the work is covered rather than rinsed afterwards.
4.Ground-level splash marks are worked separately from the main face, since they are silt rather than growth.
5.Anything found broken before we arrived is photographed before work starts, not after.
6.External drains below the work are covered with a grate mat and cleared before we leave.
7.Neighbouring cars and windows are checked before spraying starts on a boundary elevation.
8.Where a lean-to gutter runs at wall height, it is cleared first so it does not overflow mid-visit.
9.A pass along the underside of the soffit catches the black spotting that everyone forgets until the wall is clean.
10.Hoses run outside gates where children or dogs are about, and gates are closed behind us each time.

Reading the finish on a Barbican elevation

Thin-coat systems are thinner than people assume, and a jet held still in one place leaves a permanent shadow.
Bead edges and stop ends on a rendered elevation are the details worth protecting from driven water.
A test patch low down and out of sight is how failing paint is found deliberately.
Masonry paint over render adds a film that traps moisture if the substrate was damp when it was applied.
Deeply rooted lichen on granite can take a full season to fade after treatment.
A granite elevation is judged corner by corner, because exposure varies more than on a rendered face.
A stone wall in deep shade holds moss in the joints long after the faces have dried.
Lime mortar in a stone wall is softer than the stone by design, and that design is worth respecting.
High pressure and hard sealants both work against how a lime wall is meant to behave.
The colour of a lime finish is in the material, so it returns rather than being restored.

The reasons behind the staining

Shading from a neighbouring building can matter more than the aspect of the wall itself.
A wall shaded by its own porch roof for half the day dries at half the rate of the face beside it.
Nutrients from a nearby feeding lawn or planting drift onto a wall and give growth something to work with.
A textured coating applied over an already dirty surface holds that dirt as a feeding layer.
Where a wall was cleaned without a biocide, the regrowth is often patchier and faster than the original.
A wall behind a dense fence panel is in still air permanently, and still air never dries anything quickly.
Tree canopy overhead drips long after the rain has stopped and drops organic debris onto the wall face.
Driven rain sticks to a wall face rather than running off it, which keeps the surface wet long enough for spores to settle.
Cold bridging at a lintel can keep a narrow band of render damper than everything around it.

Practical points to sort first

Tell us where the drains run if the garden has a soakaway rather than a mains connection.
Say if a conservatory or lean-to abuts the elevation, so glazing can be sheeted.
Mention any planned decorating so the drying window can be built into the date.
Bring in washing, cushions and anything fabric that lives against the wall.
Say whether the property is occupied during the day, since that changes nothing technically but helps the plan.
Say if there is a wasp or bird nest under the eaves, and we will plan around it.
Let us know if the property is listed or in a conservation area, as it affects method choice.
Point out any window that does not seal properly, so it gets sheeted rather than sprayed near.

How the wall is read first

01Previous cleaning is usually visible as a slightly different texture rather than a different colour.
02Whether the growth has spread onto glass and frames tells you how long it has been established.
03Where the pattern is a band at the top, the gutter line is doing it.
04The direction the growth thickens in points at the source of the moisture.
05Any staining that continues below ground level is a drainage question, not a cleaning one.
06The angle of morning sun on the elevation tells you how long it stays damp.
07The mortar is tested with a key at a discreet point, since soft mortar sets the whole method.
08A wall that feels chalky under the hand is telling you the coating has aged, not that it is dirty.

Questions Barbican owners ask

What about air bricks and vents?: Covered for the duration, uncovered before we leave.
Can you clean a wall covered in ivy?: The ivy needs removing first. Once it is off, the shaded face behind it is treated as normal.
Should the gutters be done at the same time?: Usually. Overflow is behind a large share of wall staining, so clearing it protects the work.
Will the wall need doing again next year?: Not usually. How long it holds depends on shade, run-off and airflow rather than on the treatment.
Can you clean a wall before painting?: Yes, and it should be done first. Paint over live growth fails from underneath.
Can you treat one elevation only?: Yes, and it is common. Often only the shaded side has a problem and the rest of the house needs nothing.
Do you have a minimum size of job?: A single gable or a porch is still worth doing properly.
Do you clean chimney stacks?: Where they can be reached safely from a position that keeps us off the roof covering.

Barbican in plain facts

PL1 covers 3 town hubs and 2 villages or districts in our radius.
Recorded character: city district. Historic harbourside quarter around Sutton Harbour.
Typical wall finish here is granite, painted stone and lime render, which sets the cleaning method.
Postcode district: PL1. County: Devon. Approx 1.4 miles from the PL3 base.
Nearest full coverage hub: Plymouth City Centre (PL1), Plymouth City Council.

See everywhere we cover in PL1

Within a short run of Barbican

Weekday or Saturday

We work Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm, so it does not have to eat into your working week.

Pick a day 07830 242403

Guides worth a look first

To sum up for PL1

Water in the wrong place explains most tired elevations, and it is cheaper to fix than to keep cleaning. If the staining sits in the substrate rather than on it, we will say so before taking the work on. A wall in poor condition is better found before cleaning than discovered halfway through. Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm.