Will treatment damage a wildlife pond?

Ponds are sheeted and run-off is diverted well away from them.

Do you leave a written record of what was done?

Photographs of before and after the visit, plus anything found in poor condition.

Can you remove ivy marks?

Suckers can be treated and weathered off, though the shadow of an old ivy run can take a season to fade fully.

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 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.

What if the render is cracked?

We will point it out and work around it. Cleaning does not fix cracks and can make them more obvious.

Do you take the waste away?

There is very little on a wall job. What comes off the surface is rinsed to a drain that can take it.

What about the windows afterwards?

Frames and glass in the spray path are wiped as the masking comes off.

Softwashing cob and painted render walls around Churchstow

Church-and-inn village just north of Kingsbridge.

If the walls on your Churchstow property have gone patchy or green, the finish itself is usually sound. Church-and-inn village just north of Kingsbridge, and growth on cob and painted render sits on the surface rather than in the structure.

Working out what is wrong on a Churchstow wall

01The first question is whether the staining sits on the surface or has gone into the material, because only one of those cleans off.
02Whether the render is thin-coat or traditional is checked at a bead or a reveal.
03Photographs taken before work provide the reference for judging the result later.
04Where the pattern is a band at the bottom, splash from the ground is doing it.
05A test patch at low strength shows what the surface will do before the full elevation commits to it.
06Where the wall carries a previous coating over render, its edges are inspected for lifting.
07How quickly a splash of water darkens the surface says how porous the finish has become.
08A damp meter reading inside a stained corner separates a cleaning job from a building problem.

Material first, method second

Modern render, whether sand and cement or a thin-coat system, has a slightly porous face that holds airborne spores.
A rendered wall under a failed drip detail restains within a season however well it was cleaned.
Painted masonry can be cleaned, though a paint film that has already lost adhesion will lift where it was going to fail anyway.
Painted plinths take splash and are worked as a separate band from the main face.
Cob and lime-finished walls are moisture-sensitive by design.
Where cob has been cement-rendered at some point, that render traps moisture and the wall behaves badly.

Why this keeps happening on TQ7 elevations

A path that slopes towards a house rather than away from it keeps the base of the wall wet after every shower.
Airflow through a passage between two houses is fast but the passage itself is in permanent shade.
Nutrients from a nearby feeding lawn or planting drift onto a wall and give growth something to work with.
Soil banked above the damp course keeps the base of a wall permanently wet.
Spores travel on the wind and land everywhere. What decides whether they take hold is whether the surface stays damp.
A wall shaded by its own porch roof for half the day dries at half the rate of the face beside it.
A split downpipe puts a single wet stripe down an elevation, and that stripe goes green months before anything either side of it.
Overflowing gutters feed the top of the wall continuously through the wet months.
Where a wall was cleaned without a biocide, the regrowth is often patchier and faster than the original.

On site in Churchstow

1.Photographs are taken of anything found in poor condition, so it can be shown rather than described.
2.External light fittings are switched off at the consumer unit before the elevation around them is treated.
3.Any garden furniture within the spray arc moves before the mix is made up, not while the lance is running.
4.Where a porch roof sits mid-elevation, it is sheeted and its own tiles cleared before the wall above is touched.
5.Waste water is directed to a soakaway or drain that can take it rather than allowed to pond on a lawn.
6.Where growth has spread onto a UPVC panel or door surround, it is wiped rather than sprayed.
7.Vents serving a boiler or flue are checked and left uncovered, with the elevation around them worked dry.
8.External drains below the work are covered with a grate mat and cleared before we leave.
9.Growth in a shaded return is treated on the same visit even when only the front was asked about, if access allows.
10.Dwell time is the active ingredient. The treatment is left on the growth long enough to kill it rather than being chased off with water.

Local detail that changes the job

Kingsbridge sits about 4.8 miles from Churchstow on our round, so visits are often shared.
Typical wall finish here is cob and painted render, which sets the cleaning method.
Postcode district: TQ7. County: Devon. Approx 15.6 miles from the PL3 base.
Recorded character: village. Church-and-inn village just north of Kingsbridge.
Access is usually via A379 and A381.

See everywhere we cover in TQ7

Preparing a village property

Tell us if a gutter has been overflowing, because that changes what we look at first.
Clear the base of the elevation of pots, ornaments and loose paving where you can.
Mention any glazing you already know is cracked before work starts.
If parking needs a permit or a bay suspension, tell us early.
Tell us if there is a low wall or a step at the base of the elevation that gets slippery.
Say where the outside tap is, and whether it runs at any pressure.
Move cars off a drive that runs tight to the house if you can, and tell us if you cannot.
Mention any planned decorating so the drying window can be built into the date.

Order of work, top down

Where a soakaway is already struggling, wall work is planned for a drier stretch.

Rendering or repair work should always finish before cleaning starts, never the other way round.

Small repairs to pointing are best done after cleaning, when what needs doing is visible.

Conservatory roofs go before the wall above them, then get a final rinse afterwards.

Practical questions answered

Will treatment damage a wildlife pond?: Ponds are sheeted and run-off is diverted well away from them.
Do you leave a written record of what was done?: Photographs of before and after the visit, plus anything found in poor condition.
Can you remove ivy marks?: Suckers can be treated and weathered off, though the shadow of an old ivy run can take a season to fade fully.
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 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.
What if the render is cracked?: We will point it out and work around it. Cleaning does not fix cracks and can make them more obvious.
Do you take the waste away?: There is very little on a wall job. What comes off the surface is rinsed to a drain that can take it.
What about the windows afterwards?: Frames and glass in the spray path are wiped as the masking comes off.

Neighbouring places we work

Summary

Doing the roof, gutters and walls in the right order is most of the value. One elevation, two elevations or the whole property. The method does not change, only the time it takes. Cleaning reveals condition. Sometimes that means finding a repair, and it is better found than hidden under moss.

Ask what method we would use

Tell us what the wall is finished in and we will tell you exactly how we would approach it before any money is discussed.

Ask the question 07830 242403

Quote for a Churchstow property

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