Exterior Cleaning in Gillingham
Gillingham has grown a great deal, and the newer estates around the town are where we do most of our work here — modern render, block paving drives and roofs that are green far sooner than their owners expect.
Modern render is the fragile one.
People assume period property is the delicate stuff and a new build can take anything. With render it is very nearly the other way round. Modern thin-coat systems — K-Rend, silicone and the like — are a few millimetres of coloured finish over insulation or block, and a pressure washer will take that straight off the wall in seconds.
Once it is gone there is no patching it invisibly. The repair is a re-render of the whole elevation, because a patched section never colour-matches. We have seen it on estates around Gillingham more than once, always after somebody hired a machine for the weekend.
Thin-coat render also greens up quickly on north and east elevations, which is why so many houses barely ten years old already look tired. The good news is that a proper softwash brings them back completely — and does it without touching the finish.
What we clean in Gillingham.
Re-sanding is not optional.
Almost every drive on the newer Gillingham estates is block paving, and washing block paving removes the kiln-dried sand from the joints. Skip putting it back and the blocks work loose, the pattern starts to creep and weeds return within months. We sweep fresh sand in as standard — it is part of the job, not a line item we add at the end.
Questions from Gillingham.
Is softwashing a chemical treatment?
Yes — that is exactly why it works without pressure. A biocide is applied at very low pressure and kills the algae, lichen and moss living in the surface; nothing is blasted off, so the roof, render or stone underneath is left untouched. The dead growth then breaks down and weathers away over the days that follow. It goes on at the correct dilution, with borders, planting and drains covered first and everything washed down before we leave.
Can you clean K-Rend without damaging it?
Yes — but only with a softwash. Thin-coat systems like K-Rend and silicone render are a few millimetres of coloured finish, and a pressure washer takes them off the wall in seconds. The repair is a full re-render of the elevation, because patches never colour-match. We never put pressure near it.
Do you re-sand block paving afterwards?
Always, as standard. Cleaning removes the kiln-dried sand from the joints, and without it the blocks work loose and weeds come straight back. It is part of the job here, not an extra we add at the end.
Do you cover the villages around Gillingham?
Yes — Milton on Stour, Bourton and the surrounding villages, plus Mere just over the Wiltshire border. Shaftesbury is a few minutes south.
Gillingham is a short run north from our base near Sturminster Newton.
Ready to see the difference?
Send a photo of the job and we will come back with a clear, fixed price within 24 hours. Free, no obligation, no pressure.