Surface Coatings & Decorative Finishes

Masonry paint is one option among several and sometimes it is the right one. The difference is in specifying for the substrate: choosing between a film-forming and a vapour-permeable system, deciding whether the surface needs stabilising first, and diagnosing why any previous coating failed rather than covering it.

Only if you find out why it is flaking first. Flaking in sheets is usually a bond failure or moisture pushing out from behind. If the wall is wet because of a defective gutter, a leaking downpipe or a bridged damp proof course, a new coating will fail the same way. We would rather identify that and tell you than take the job twice.

A vapour-permeable coating lets moisture vapour pass out through the wall instead of sealing it in. Older solid-wall construction generally needs this. Sealing such a wall with a film-forming coating can cause blistering, internal damp and frost damage to the masonry. Whether you need one depends on how your wall is built, which is something we check on site.

Usually not on its own, and we would be cautious of anyone who promises it will. External coatings can reduce water absorption into a wall, but internal damp is far more often caused by a specific defect or by condensation. Fix the cause first, then coat.

Often, yes, particularly where you are extending or repairing part of an elevation. Bring it up at the quotation stage so we can look at the existing texture and colour before choosing a system.

Yes, always, and it is treated rather than just brushed off. Organic growth left on a surface will grow back through a new coating, and it also indicates the surface stays damp, which is worth understanding before specifying.

It depends on the area, the amount of preparation and the access. A small elevation might be a couple of days including preparation, a full house with scaffold considerably more. Coats also need time between them, and cold or damp weather extends that.

Some of it, in settled conditions. Most external coatings have minimum application temperatures and must not take rain while curing, so winter work depends heavily on the forecast and dates can move.

Yes, that is generally the point, but it is worth being aware that if your property is listed or in a conservation area, changing the external appearance may need consent. We will flag it if we think it might apply, and we would expect you to confirm with the council before we start.

We do not publish a lifespan figure, because it depends enormously on the system, the exposure of the elevation and how well the surface was prepared. What we can say is that a correctly specified and properly prepared coating outlasts a badly prepared one by a wide margin, which is where the effort goes.

Yes. They are often more exposed than the house itself, taking weather from both sides and sitting with no roof overhang, so they are worth specifying carefully rather than treating as an afterthought.