Exterior Painting Services
Three surfaces, three different preparations and paint systems, usually done together.
Masonry and Render Painting
Walls washed, treated for algae, repaired where the render is blown or cracked, stabilised where the surface is chalky, then two coats of a quality masonry paint in a colour of your choice. We mask and sheet so the paint stays on the house.
Woodwork Painting
Fascias, bargeboards, soffits, windows, doors and cladding: sanded back, rotten sections cut out and spliced, primed and finished in a flexible exterior gloss or satin that moves with the timber instead of cracking.
Metal Painting
Cast iron gutters and downpipes, railings, gates and metal windows: rust removed, treated and primed, then finished in a metal paint that lasts.
Paint only lasts as long as what's underneath it. Before we paint in Crewe we fix blown or cracked render, rake out and repoint failed mortar, and check whether timber fascias and soffits are worth painting at all or should be replaced in uPVC.
Why Preparation Matters
The paint is the last ten per cent of the job. These four steps are the other ninety, and skipping any of them is why so many Crewe houses are peeling two years after they were painted.
Cleaning
Walls and woodwork washed down to remove dirt, salt and chalk, and treated with a fungicidal wash to kill the algae and mould that would otherwise grow through the new paint.
Repairs
Cracked and blown render patched, rotten timber cut out and replaced, failed sealant renewed, lead and roofline faults above the wall put right so water stops running down it.
Stabilising
Chalky, powdery or previously limewashed surfaces are treated with a stabilising solution so the new paint has something solid to bond to. Without it the paint pulls away with the loose surface beneath.
Priming
Bare render, new repairs, bare timber and metal are primed with the correct primer for the surface before the finish coats go on.
Quality Paints
We use trade-quality masonry paints with a fifteen-year rating, breathable where the wall needs to dry out, and flexible exterior wood finishes that don't crack and peel. On older solid-walled houses in Crewe, CW1 that means breathable silicate or lime-based paints rather than the plastic coatings that trap damp. Cheap paint is the most expensive thing you can put on a house, because the labour to apply it is the same and it has to be done again twice as soon.
Colour Choice
White and cream are still the most popular in Crewe, but soft greys, sage greens, heritage blues and pale pinks all suit the local housing, and a bold front door against a neutral wall never fails. We bring colour charts and can paint a test patch on the wall before you decide. In conservation areas and on listed buildings we'll check whether the colour needs approval.
When To Paint
Late spring to early autumn is painting season in Crewe. Surfaces need to be dry, the temperature above about 8°C and no rain forecast for the day, which rules out most of the winter and a fair few summer days too. We book exterior painting with weather in mind and will move a day rather than paint a damp wall.