Can two elevations be done on separate days?

Yes, and splitting a larger property over two visits is normal.

What if part of the wall does not come up?

It is left to weather rather than pushed harder, and we will say what we think is happening.

Can you work while builders are on site?

Better after they finish, so their dust and debris does not land on clean work.

Is a second visit ever needed?

For heavy lichen, a lighter second application later beats increasing pressure on the first.

What about the smell for neighbours?

Mild and short-lived, and we avoid boundary elevations when someone next door has washing out.

Can lichen be removed completely?

The organism is killed, and what is left weathers off. Deeply rooted lichen on stone can take a season to fade.

Will you tell me if the gutters are the real problem?

Yes, and it is common enough that the gutter line is checked on every wall visit.

How much water does a wall job use?

Less than a pressure wash, because the work is dwell time rather than volume.

PL11 - Cornwall - 5.6 miles from PL3

Wall and render softwash near St John (Cornwall)

Everything below applies to painted render and stone elevations in St John (Cornwall), inside the PL11 area we cover in full. The method is set by the surface and the exposure, and nothing else changes it.

The wall finishes we meet around PL11

Patched render takes treatment differently from the original, which is why patches are identified before work starts.
Render responds to dwell time better than almost any other finish, which is what makes softwash suit it.
Chalking paint is a rougher surface than new paint, which is why older painted walls green faster.
Masonry paint over render adds a film that traps moisture if the substrate was damp when it was applied.
Stone elevations vary enormously in hardness, and the pointing is usually the weakest part.
Slate-faced walls shed water quickly but the bedding mortar does not.

Conditions around St John (Cornwall) that feed growth

Driven rain sticks to a wall face rather than running off it, which keeps the surface wet long enough for spores to settle.
Where a gutter joint weeps rather than pours, the stain is thin, vertical and very persistent.
A split downpipe puts a single wet stripe down an elevation, and that stripe goes green months before anything either side of it.
Render that has lost its water repellency absorbs and holds surface water instead of shedding it.
Algae needs moisture far more than it needs dirt, so the wettest elevation greens first regardless of how clean the house is.
Overflowing gutters feed the top of the wall continuously through the wet months.
Ivy pulled off a wall leaves suckers and a shaded, damp face that greens quickly afterwards.
A wall shielded by a car port dries slowly because it never sees direct sun or driven rain.
Silt washed down from the roof leaves a thin feeding layer on the render below.

Checks made before anything is applied

01Any staining that continues below ground level is a drainage question, not a cleaning one.
02The condition of the cills tells you how much water has been running down the face.
03Cracks are traced to their ends, because a crack that runs to an opening behaves differently from one that stops.
04A slow walk of the gutter line from the ground finds most of the causes worth fixing.
05How quickly a splash of water darkens the surface says how porous the finish has become.
06A short section of hose test shows whether run-off drains away or ponds at the base.
07A fingernail drawn across the growth says more in a second than a photograph does.
08The direction the growth thickens in points at the source of the moisture.

What happens on the day

1.The finished elevation is looked at from the pavement, not from the ladder, because that is where it will be seen from.
2.Corners are worked from both directions so the overlap sits in the angle and not on the open face.
3.Any window left open is closed, or that section is skipped and left for a second visit.
4.Where two different finishes meet on one elevation, they are treated as two jobs on one wall.
5.The strength of mix is stepped up only after a weaker one has been given its full dwell and judged.
6.Where a wall runs straight down to a lawn, a run of sheeting is pegged along the base instead of relying on dilution alone.
7.Vents serving a boiler or flue are checked and left uncovered, with the elevation around them worked dry.
8.Heavy lichen gets a second lighter application on a later visit instead of an increase in pressure on the first.
9.Where a porch roof sits mid-elevation, it is sheeted and its own tiles cleared before the wall above is touched.
10.Any garden furniture within the spray arc moves before the mix is made up, not while the lance is running.

Access and preparation

Tell us if a fence panel is loose, because sheeting gets pegged to something solid.
Mention any glazing you already know is cracked before work starts.
Unlock side gates the night before if you are not going to be in, because a locked passage stops a whole elevation.
Trim back anything that has grown tight against the wall, or ask us to work around it.
Mention shared access or a right of way that we will be crossing.
Say whether the side passage is wide enough for a wheeled kit trolley.
Note where hoses can be run without crossing a doorway.
Point out any alarm sensor mounted externally on the elevation.

Coverage and travel

Typical wall finish here is painted render and stone, which sets the cleaning method.
PL11 covers 4 town hubs and 12 villages or districts in our radius.
Recorded character: estuary hamlet. Church parish north of Millbrook Lake.
Postcode district: PL11. County: Cornwall. Approx 5.6 miles from the PL3 base.
Torpoint sits about 3.2 miles from St John (Cornwall) on our round, so visits are often shared.

See everywhere we cover in PL11

Asked most often in PL11

Can two elevations be done on separate days?: Yes, and splitting a larger property over two visits is normal.
What if part of the wall does not come up?: It is left to weather rather than pushed harder, and we will say what we think is happening.
Can you work while builders are on site?: Better after they finish, so their dust and debris does not land on clean work.
Is a second visit ever needed?: For heavy lichen, a lighter second application later beats increasing pressure on the first.
What about the smell for neighbours?: Mild and short-lived, and we avoid boundary elevations when someone next door has washing out.
Can lichen be removed completely?: The organism is killed, and what is left weathers off. Deeply rooted lichen on stone can take a season to fade.
Will you tell me if the gutters are the real problem?: Yes, and it is common enough that the gutter line is checked on every wall visit.
How much water does a wall job use?: Less than a pressure wash, because the work is dwell time rather than volume.

Close to St John (Cornwall)

Useful pages alongside this one

Ask about doing it in stages

Front now, the rest later is a perfectly sensible way to do it.

Ask about stages 07830 242403

St John (Cornwall) wall softwash, in short

Method, dwell and patience beat pressure and speed on every wall finish we work on. Every coated wall has a maximum pressure it tolerates, and it is much lower than most people assume. The finish underneath is usually intact. It is the film on top that has aged.

Quote for a St John (Cornwall) property

Monday to Saturday, 8am – 7pm