JoeJoe wrote:
Our 1960's house has a spar dash exterior (small sharp stones,
pebbledash style).When we had our extension built a couple of years
ago the builder tried hard to match the new and old exteriors, but it
doesn't look very attractive. Despite the well documented
reservations (once you do it has to be repeated on a regular basis,
etc) we decided to go ahead and paint the house white.

Having never attempted to do it before we have a few questions for the
panel:

1. The stones (spar) are generally well stuck to the wall, but the
guy that was painting the neighbours' house suggested that,
considering the age of the original render, a 1st layer of paint
mixed with PVA would be advisable to ensure everything remains intact
. Does it make sense? If so, at what ratio?
2. How many layers will be required? Note that the house has never
been painted before.
3. Do we need to prime the walls?
4. Does the 1st layer need to be thinned, and at what ratio?
5. Should we use oil or water based paint, and why?
6. Which paint should we use (we live in one of the wettest parts of
the UK if that makes a difference)?
7. How often should it have to be repainted to achieve an acceptable
appearance?
8. Roller or brush? The stones are very small and sharp. Any
recommendation of a make/type/etc? Time no issue (pretty much) -
quality of finish is the main concern. Don't want to use spray (long
story...) 9. Should we just get the experts in? The gable ends (it is a
detached) are very high and difficult to reach, so we will have to
get them to do those anyway, but we were hoping to do the front and
back ourselves (better finish, and cheaper overall).
10. Any thoughts on window sills (they are concrete ones) - should we
leave them or paint as well?

Many thanks in advance for any useful information.

J.

Leave it to someone who has the wherewithall to do it correctly - painting
pebbledash is a pain in the arse, and he'll probably charge you as much just
to do the high bits.


If you are definately having it painted and you want a try, just do a square
at ground level with a roller to see what it's like - you won't be doing it
yourself.

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008