Has anyone had any experience of Andura Coatings. They appear to be a
company who provide a range of products for coating the exterior of
buildings. They have a website : http://www.andura.com/ but work
through agents, who are assigned sole control of geographical regions.

The reason I ask is because we need to do something about the
pebbledash on our house (30's semi) at some point this year. It
covers the top half (maybe a little less) of the house and appears to
be basically sound with some small cracks and the sort of wear you'd
expect from the weather over a number of years.

A rep from the local agency for Andura turned up on the door the other
day offering a free survey with no-obligation. As this is something
we were planning on doing later in the year we accepted (sceptically)
the free survey. A chap turned up and after confirming that there was
no obligation and making it very clear that we wouldn't be signing
ANYTHING that night he was allowed to continue.

The basic spiel is that these products they offer are very thick,
long-life coatings applied via spray to a repaired and patched wall
creating a permanent barrier to the weather. They claim a life span
of tens of years and they also claim that the products stop rain
getting in but are also breathable, thus letting moisture trapped in
the substrate to escape.

Does this sound feasible or is it just snake oil?

Other options I've considered a
1) Total DIY. Hire scaffold, buy masonary paint, fill cracks with
cement, paint.

2) Handyman. Source materials but pay someone to do the actual
climbing and painting.

3) Long term coatings as mentioned above. Completely non-DIY and
pricey, but potentially means never having to paint again before we
move.

The idea of having something done once and not having to get up a
ladder every three years is appealing but it is pricey.

If choosing options 1 or 2 which type of paint should I go for? Are
all exterior masonry paints pretty similar or are there things to
watch out for?

thanks for any advice or opinions.

--

Steve F

Fitz wrote:
Has anyone had any experience of Andura Coatings. They appear to be a
company who provide a range of products for coating the exterior of
buildings. They have a website : http://www.andura.com/ but work
through agents, who are assigned sole control of geographical regions.

The reason I ask is because we need to do something about the
pebbledash on our house (30's semi) at some point this year. It
covers the top half (maybe a little less) of the house and appears to
be basically sound with some small cracks and the sort of wear you'd
expect from the weather over a number of years.

A rep from the local agency for Andura turned up on the door the other
day offering a free survey with no-obligation. As this is something
we were planning on doing later in the year we accepted (sceptically)
the free survey. A chap turned up and after confirming that there was
no obligation and making it very clear that we wouldn't be signing
ANYTHING that night he was allowed to continue.

The basic spiel is that these products they offer are very thick,
long-life coatings applied via spray to a repaired and patched wall
creating a permanent barrier to the weather. They claim a life span
of tens of years and they also claim that the products stop rain
getting in but are also breathable, thus letting moisture trapped in
the substrate to escape.

Does this sound feasible or is it just snake oil?


Anything which looks like a quick and easy fix is almost always snake
oil. This definitely includes spray on coatings.

I must say - I've often wondered who on earth would entertain the idea
of buying from a door to door salesman...



If choosing options 1 or 2 which type of paint should I go for? Are
all exterior masonry paints pretty similar or are there things to
watch out for?

I've go for a fine textured manory paint - this will cover up any
imperfections once you've patched up. I've used both Dulux and Sandtex
products with very good results.


--
Grunff

"Fitz" wrote in message
om...
Has anyone had any experience of Andura Coatings. They appear to be a
company who provide a range of products for coating the exterior of
buildings. They have a website : http://www.andura.com/ but work
through agents, who are assigned sole control of geographical regions.

The reason I ask is because we need to do something about the
pebbledash on our house (30's semi) at some point this year. It
covers the top half (maybe a little less) of the house and appears to
be basically sound with some small cracks and the sort of wear you'd
expect from the weather over a number of years.

megasnip
thanks for any advice or opinions.

--

Steve F

Steve,

Has the same problem with the rear of my Edwardian house. it was all
pebbledashed and in places had been patched where doors & windows had been
altered - looked a mess and was threadbare in places - other parts were away
from key (tap test).

I had an Andura agent hack off all the loose pebbledash last summer, match
in with new then spray with the high build coating. There were a few issues
with the company over the 'matching in of new to old' which resulted in me
reducing their payment but the actual coating seems very good. I was most
impressed with a sample sprayed onto a thin bit of plastic - I bent it
double but the coating stayed intact.

In summary I think the breathable coating is very good if on a sound under
surface, but will be useless if the base is compromised.

My alternative (which would have been much cheaper) was to have it
re-pebbledashed, but I don't like the look of dashing and this coat
shouldn't need re-painting for 15 years or so.

I suggest that you ask for reference houses in your area and speak to the
owners - I did with three and they were all happy with the results after
several years. Fortunately the neighbour of one of my friends had had it
done so I could also get an 'un-refered' comment as well.

Andrew Mawson

In summary I think the breathable coating is very good if on a sound under
surface, but will be useless if the base is compromised.

My alternative (which would have been much cheaper) was to have it
re-pebbledashed, but I don't like the look of dashing and this coat
shouldn't need re-painting for 15 years or so.

The alternative which would look 1000's of times better and be very
breatheable is pargeted lime plaster with a limewash paint finish, but
then I expect pargeting is more pricey again than Andura cos it takes
a long time to do

Anna
--
~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plasterwork, plaster conservation
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling and pargeting
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 07976 649862

"Anna Kettle" wrote in message
...
In summary I think the breathable coating is very good if on a sound
under
surface, but will be useless if the base is compromised.

My alternative (which would have been much cheaper) was to have it
re-pebbledashed, but I don't like the look of dashing and this coat
shouldn't need re-painting for 15 years or so.

The alternative which would look 1000's of times better and be very
breatheable is pargeted lime plaster with a limewash paint finish, but
then I expect pargeting is more pricey again than Andura cos it takes
a long time to do

Anna
--
~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plasterwork, plaster conservation
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling and pargeting
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 07976 649862


Anna,

You would have been very welcome to quote!

How often though does the limewash need re-doing? This is a three storey
building - some of which needs scaffolding to access over low level
obstructions, and the last lot of scaffolding cost £550 for a couple of week
hire ! The Andura seems to last by all reports at least 15 years but
expected to be more like 25. If the limewash needs re-doing every few years
it becomes a heck of a price.

Andrew

You would have been very welcome to quote!

How often though does the limewash need re-doing? This is a three storey
building - some of which needs scaffolding to access over low level
obstructions, and the last lot of scaffolding cost £550 for a couple of week
hire ! The Andura seems to last by all reports at least 15 years but
expected to be more like 25. If the limewash needs re-doing every few years
it becomes a heck of a price.

It depends on how exposed to the weather the building is but maybe
after five years the first time and then every ten years after that,
so no, its not a maintenance free option. The limewash is a
sacrificial coat which protects the plaster from acid rain and a new
coat every so often fills in any hairline cracks too.

Anna
--
~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plasterwork, plaster conservation
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling and pargeting
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 07976 649862