*Shines @perchypanther signal into the sky*

We need to get the side of our house re-rendered. It’s a massive (4 storey) gable end wall, old – 1911 – brick under existing crappy cement render. South west facing and high up so it gets loads of driving rain and wind.

We’ve had two quotes from firms we like, one swears by Weber monocouche render and the other Johnstone’s silicone. Prices are close enough to make no difference.

Any consensus on which is better from the STW hive mind please?

I heard monocouche couldn’t be repaired whereas silicon can. I’ve just had silicon (bonding then fibreglass mesh plus primer then the finish). C19th Bricks have dried out, noticeable improvements in heat and sound insulation, no more painting, much improved appearance. Would certainly do it again despite it being more expensive than the alternatives. Going rate is £52psm so expect to part company with almost a bike.

Thanks BillMC. Funnily enough the ‘Weber’ guy said monocouche is easier to repair than silicone 😀 ! That’s great that silicone has cured your problems though, we’re hoping for a similar outcome.

I’ve got about 90sqm to do and some challenging scaffolding so it will be a very nice bike indeed…

It certainly improves the saleability of a place (might be relevant soon) plus in the future I shall be looking very very warily at brickwork, pointing, render, damp, plastering, bleeding. An estate agent said he’d had monocouche done and I assume he knows something about it whereas the plasterer I employed was much preferring the silica.

If it’s cost neutral, i’d choose silicone over monocouche. It’s more durable, more crack resistant and stays looking cleaner for longer due to it’s hydrophobic nature. It’s usually more expensive than monocouche. I’d say you’re comparing an expensive monocouche system with a cheap silicone system there. Ask how much the Weber Silicone is perhaps?

Smooth render systems, of both flavours, don’t patch well if repairs are required and can also be prone to algal growth over time, especially light colours.

Be aware that your smooth white gable might end up green in a few years.

An estate agent said he’d had monocouche done and I assume he knows something about it

I’ve heard estate agents explaining why all the loft insulation was stacked in the corner of the roof space in its original packaging (I assume the estate was signed off on a ‘random sample’) was to ensure the bathroom was nice and warm. Did he know what he was talking about? (and no we didn’t buy the house).

Hmmmm I’ve read Perchy’s post several times now but I still don’t get it. Can somebody explain the punchline 😉

Out of interest does anyone know how that £52/m stacks up against external wall insulation with a timber finish? Are there any industry standard figures for these sorts of things?

Hmmmm I’ve read Perchy’s post several times now but I still don’t get it. Can somebody explain the punchline 😉

I’m honoured I got an entirely serious response 😉 !

Weber MPRAL is c. £20/m2 at a thickness of 15mm. Johnstone’s silicone enhanced is c. £7.50/m2, but 1.5mm thick and has additional costs for the base layer which I can’t (be arsed) to determine.

Neither seem to have any horror stories coming up on Google.

double post, ignore

So what do I have here? There are 3 distinct layers. The brickwork, then a 15mm layer that looks to my untrained eye like concrete, then a 1mm layer of brittle stuff with a paint coating. This piece, the outer 1mm painted layer fell off after the last freeze. Looks like the rest will go at some point.

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2kQ5nQ8]IMG_2057[/url] by KingOfBrad, on Flickr

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2kGyDxu]IMG_2058[/url] by KingOfBrad, on Flickr

Hilarious, I’m just goggling re external repairs and STW comes up. Anyway I’m in the process of buying a spot which has dreadful paint peeling off the offshot walls. Surveyor recommended monocouche and I’m seeking out quotes but the question is, does anyone have any advice for removing paint reasonably economically without damaging processes like sandblasting? Or can the render be applied over paint?

@BillMC is the paint directly onto brick?

I Went with silicone in the end and – also funnily enough given this post reappearing – the renderers’ are hopefully coming on Friday to put the base coat on. My garden and house currently look like a bombsite after they stripped 90m2 of old render off last week.

Paint on brick. No render to remove but I’m wary of damaging the Victorian brickwork particularly since it’s a south-facing wall and will get lots of weather. Incidentally, I’m really happy with the silica job I had done….improved heat and sound insulation and looks smart.

Could you jetwash it off?

The worst of it is on the second floor and I think jetwashing can be deleterious. I’m interested in any views rather than just get told what is most convenient for the contractor.

I had what BillMC has, the base is a fairly simple bonding mixture with the mesh to help withi movmement in walls. I had the Licata system put on my house, so after the bonding and mesh it’s then painted with a special primer (which you have coloured to your chosen colour) and then the final render/paint layer which you have coloured – this is the 1-2mm thick (depending on what you want) layer that finbar mentions.

I had a load left over from the main house and then used it to do a small garden/porch wall. It had already had a traditional sand/cement render done, so it was simply primer + final coat to match the house.

https://licataltd.co.uk/product/silicone-top-coat-render/

Can’t remember exactly how much i paid for the house now, but it wasn’t much differnt to traditional sand and cement as the Licata systems go up so quickly.

one mans opinion

Be aware that your smooth white gable might end up green in a few years.

I never saw the original thread but there’s a house with white silicone render next to ours that was built 4-5 year ago – it’s gone green with algae.

Oh blimey, more to worry about. At least traditional render is cheaper. Just read one of the trade sites which suggests the walls are pressure water cleaned and sealed every couple of years. Much of the walls I’m concerned with are high, inaccessible and close to plants growing which doesn’t augur well. Seems like it will have to be traditional materials.

Just read one of the trade sites which suggests the walls are pressure water cleaned and sealed every couple of years.

Sounds right – the owner of the house next door had someone go round a jetwash the [white] gutterings etc and maybe some of the render. But as it’s two storey it would need probably need scaffolding to reach everywhere.

At least traditional render is cheaper.

And is easily repainted.

We’re getting our silicone render done in RAL7038 which is greeney/grey hopefully heading any staining issues off at the pass 😎 .

Singletrack rides to the rescue again! Oddly enough my decision to move was in part informed by a thread on here (as well as my hoover, binoculars, camera, full-suss, on and on). I’m surprised Which magazine still exists.

Thread resurrection again! Just going through the process of getting quotes for rerendering the side of our house. It’s currently sand and cement and is cracking. Somewhere water is getting behind the render and making it’s way into our porch. South West facing on the top of a hill near the coast and gets regularly blasted by wind and rain and baked in full sun. Reading online about the different types of render and then the comments in this thread and I’m back to square one and as confused as ever. I really don’t want to be going through all this again in 10 years time if cement doesn’t last. We have a quote from a builder who does all sorts and a couple of quotes from plasterer’s but yet to have a quote from a render specialist.