Can the whole house be done in one go?

Often, depending on size and access. Larger properties split naturally into two visits.

Can you work around a conservatory?

The glazing is sheeted first and given a rinse at the end.

Is it safe around pets?

Keep them indoors during application and for a couple of hours after, and there is nothing to worry about.

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.

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.

How is a quote put together?

By elevation area, surface type and access, written down before anything starts.

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.

Do you need a parking space?

Somewhere within hose reach of the elevation is enough.

PL19 - Devon - 12.9 miles from PL3

Low-pressure wall treatment across Tavistock Town

Tavistock Town sits in the PL19 district about 12.9 miles from our base in PL3, and the walls here are typically painted render and slate-hung stone. That finish decides the method long before anything else does.

Quote for a Tavistock Town property

Monday to Saturday, 8am – 7pm

What helps before we arrive

Tell us if a fence panel is loose, because sheeting gets pegged to something solid.
Note where hoses can be run without crossing a doorway.
Point out any alarm sensor mounted externally on the elevation.
Trim back anything that has grown tight against the wall, or ask us to work around it.
Close and latch every window on the elevations being worked, including any small top lights.
Point out any window that does not seal properly, so it gets sheeted rather than sprayed near.
Say if any part of the wall has been jet washed before, and roughly when.
Say whether the side passage is wide enough for a wheeled kit trolley.

Wall build-ups common in PL19

Render cleans up well at low pressure and badly at high pressure, because pressure removes the finish along with the growth.
A rendered wall under a failed drip detail restains within a season however well it was cleaned.
Where a painted wall has been patch-repainted, the patches clean at a different rate.
Painted plinths take splash and are worked as a separate band from the main face.
Rubble stone walls have deep joints that hold moisture and feed growth from within the joint.
Lime mortar in a stone wall is softer than the stone by design, and that design is worth respecting.

Diagnosis before treatment

01The angle of morning sun on the elevation tells you how long it stays damp.
02The condition of the cills tells you how much water has been running down the face.
03The direction the growth thickens in points at the source of the moisture.
04A test patch at low strength shows what the surface will do before the full elevation commits to it.
05Anything that cannot be explained by water is treated with more caution, not less.
06Where the pattern is a band at the top, the gutter line is doing it.
07The underside of the soffit is checked, because staining there rarely stays there.
08The elevation is read from the pavement first and from a metre away second.

Damp, airflow and what feeds growth

A drying rack or store built against a wall keeps that panel of it permanently shaded.
A blocked hopper head can soak the same square metre of wall for an entire winter without anyone noticing.
Mild damp winters here keep growth metabolising through months that would stop it in a colder, drier county.
Guttering that has dropped at one end holds standing water and drips continuously at the low point.
Where a wall carries a heavy climbing plant, the fabric behind it is nearly always damper than the rest.
Render laid over a colder substrate holds surface condensation into the morning.
A single missing tile above an elevation can put water onto the same square metre for years.
A conservatory or extension roof abutting a wall throws water back at it every time it rains.
Any surface that holds a drop of water long enough to be seen will hold it long enough to feed growth.

First, next, last

If windows were cleaned recently, tell us, and they get sheeted rather than redone.

The number of elevations completed in one visit depends on their area, access, condition and weather.

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

A first clean is heavier work than the ones that follow, so the interval afterwards can be longer than people expect.

How a softwash visit runs

1.Fixings for hanging baskets and washing lines are unloaded before the elevation is worked, then put back.
2.Weep holes above openings are left clear so the wall can drain the way it was designed to.
3.Any electric meter box, alarm bell or external socket is bagged before the lance comes out.
4.The van is parked so hoses do not cross a footpath, and matting goes down where they have to.
5.Treatments are kept away from vegetable beds entirely, with those sections sheeted rather than diluted.
6.External light fittings are switched off at the consumer unit before the elevation around them is treated.
7.Timber decking or a doorstep directly under the work is covered rather than rinsed afterwards.
8.Applications are kept off hot surfaces in direct sun, because a mix that flashes off has no dwell time at all.
9.Where growth has spread onto a UPVC panel or door surround, it is wiped rather than sprayed.
10.Ridge and verge debris that has landed on the wall head is brushed off dry before anything wet goes on.

Questions Tavistock Town owners ask

Can the whole house be done in one go?: Often, depending on size and access. Larger properties split naturally into two visits.
Can you work around a conservatory?: The glazing is sheeted first and given a rinse at the end.
Is it safe around pets?: Keep them indoors during application and for a couple of hours after, and there is nothing to worry about.
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.
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.
How is a quote put together?: By elevation area, surface type and access, written down before anything starts.
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.
Do you need a parking space?: Somewhere within hose reach of the elevation is enough.

Guides worth a look first

Where Tavistock Town sits on our round

Typical roof covering here is slate, which affects what washes down onto the walls.
Access is usually via A386 and A390.
Typical wall finish here is painted render and slate-hung stone, which sets the cleaning method.
Tavistock sits about 0.6 miles from Tavistock Town on our round, so visits are often shared.
Recorded character: village. Historic Cornish-market town on the Tavy.

See everywhere we cover in PL19

Within a short run of Tavistock Town

Painting soon?

Walls should be treated and fully dry before a brush goes near them. Tell us the decorating date and we will work back from it.

Line it up 07830 242403

To sum up for PL19

Access and surface type decide the plan far more than the size of the house does. A wall in poor condition is better found before cleaning than discovered halfway through. If a wall is greening in one strip, the answer is usually plumbing rather than cleaning.