Wall cleaning for estate property in Boringdon
Named after Boringdon Hall, north of Plympton St Mary.
Most enquiries from Boringdon start with one elevation that has gone darker than the rest. Nine times out of ten the reason is how long that face stays damp, not how dirty it is.
Quote for a Boringdon property
Monday to Saturday, 8am – 7pm
Shade, damp and run-off
- Sheltered courtyards feel pleasant and dry slowly, which is a bad combination for a wall.
- A cracked cill throws water back at the wall instead of clear of it.
- A downpipe discharging onto a hard surface next to the wall sends the water straight back at the brickwork.
- Salt spray does not itself grow, but it roughens and holds damp, which is the same outcome.
- Pebbledash holds water in the shadow of every stone, so it stays damp long after a flat render has dried.
- Sheltered gable ends collect airborne spores because there is no wind to move them along.
- Airflow along a terrace is different from airflow around a detached house, and the drying patterns follow.
- Washing without a biocide simply resets the clock and leaves the roots in place.
- Rain running off an unsealed timber fascia carries tannin down the wall as a brown stripe, not growth at all.
Boringdon at a glance
- PL7 covers 3 town hubs and 7 villages or districts in our radius.
- Plympton sits about 0 miles from Boringdon on our round, so visits are often shared.
- Recorded character: estate. Named after Boringdon Hall, north of Plympton St Mary.
- Access is usually via A38 and A374.
- Typical wall finish here is painted render and stone, which sets the cleaning method.
Surfaces this page is written for
- Render cleans up well at low pressure and badly at high pressure, because pressure removes the finish along with the growth.
- A rendered plinth takes more water than the face above it and is usually the first band to look tired.
- A test patch low down and out of sight is how failing paint is found deliberately.
- Cleaning before repainting is not optional, because paint over live growth fails from underneath.
- Lime mortar in a stone wall is softer than the stone by design, and that design is worth respecting.
- The rinse on stone is gentle enough that nothing is driven into an open joint.
Reading the surface
- 01The state of the pointing is judged at the most exposed corner, not the most convenient one.
- 02Whether the growth has spread onto glass and frames tells you how long it has been established.
- 03The condition of the cills tells you how much water has been running down the face.
- 04Previous cleaning is usually visible as a slightly different texture rather than a different colour.
- 05Where the pattern is vertical and narrow, plumbing is looked at before chemistry is.
- 06Old repair patches are identified early, because they take treatment differently from the surrounding finish.
- 07Where the pattern is a band at the bottom, splash from the ground is doing it.
- 08Colour matters: green suggests algae, black suggests fungal spotting, grey-white crust suggests lichen.
Sequencing the outside of the house
Roof work always precedes wall work, because everything released from the slope lands on the elevation below it.
Fascia and soffit cleaning is folded into the wall visit rather than being priced as a separate trip.
Where a roof clean is planned for later in the year, walls are worth leaving until after it.
The number of elevations completed in one visit depends on their area, access, condition and weather.
Before the day in Boringdon
- Tell us where the drains run if the garden has a soakaway rather than a mains connection.
- Say if the elevation is overlooked by a neighbouring window that should stay shut.
- Let us know if scaffold or a tower is already up for other work.
- Say if any part of the wall has been jet washed before, and roughly when.
- Say if you would prefer the front done on a different day from the back.
- If a security light or camera covers the elevation, tell us so it can be isolated.
- Tell us if there is a low wall or a step at the base of the elevation that gets slippery.
- Point out where the render was patched, since patches clean differently from the original.
Nearby villages and districts
Common questions about wall softwash
- Can two elevations be done on separate days?
- Yes, and splitting a larger property over two visits is normal.
- Do you jet wash walls?
- Not on render, pebbledash or paint. Pressure takes the finish off with the growth and brings the problem back sooner.
- What about air bricks and vents?
- Covered for the duration, uncovered before we leave.
- Do you clean render above a flat roof?
- Yes, with the roof covering sheeted and the drip detail checked.
- Can you tell from a photo whether it will clean up?
- Usually yes for surface growth. Staining that is in the material is harder to judge without seeing it.
- Will my drive be slippery afterwards?
- Anything walked on is rinsed clear before we leave.
- Is it worth cleaning a wall in winter?
- Yes. Cool damp conditions suit the method, and heavy rain during application is the only real obstacle.
- Can you clean render on an insulated system?
- Yes, with extra care around bead edges where water should not be driven in.
Photos and a postcode
That is the whole enquiry. We come back with what we would do and what it costs.
In a sentence or two
Nothing on this page needs a site visit to price if you can send a couple of clear photographs. A treated wall keeps changing for a fortnight, which is the sign the method worked. Every visit ends with the elevation judged from where people actually see it. Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm.