What changes the size of a rendering job
Rendering costs in Scarborough: what changes the job
This page gives no prices. It explains what changes the size of a rendering job, because two jobs on similar-looking houses can differ a great deal, and quotations are only comparable once they describe the same work rather than a single total.
On this page
Access and scaffold
Height drives the scaffold, and Scarborough has plenty of tall buildings: the council's design guide describes three- and four-storey terraces at North Bay and four- and five-storey buildings on South Cliff's main streets. A conservatory, a lower roof or a narrow side passage below the wall changes the scaffold design too. Where the scaffold stands on the pavement, the scaffolding company needs a North Yorkshire Council licence, with at least seven days' notice and extensions every four weeks.
How long the scaffold stays up matters as much as how high it is. A silicone system needs at least 14 days between base coat and finish on K Rend's data sheet, and lime needs at least two weeks under hessian according to Cornish Lime. An exposed elevation may also need the scaffold sheeted.
Removal and what it reveals
Overcoating sound render is a smaller job than stripping it, and stripping pebbledash produces a great deal of debris to bag and remove. Once render is off, the wall underneath may need repairs that nobody could see before: loose or cracked bricks, failed lintels, open joints, old openings. A wet wall may need time to dry before re-rendering, which SPAB recommends for saturated older fabric.
That is why a good quotation separates the work it can price firmly from an allowance for repairs found after stripping, and explains how those repairs will be agreed.
The system and the details
A one-coat monocouche goes on in a single thick layer. A silicone system needs a meshed base coat, a primer and a finish, each with its own waiting time. Lime is built up in several coats, each left to set, then limewashed. External wall insulation adds boards and usually means extending eaves, moving pipes and relocating meter boxes, as the Energy Saving Trust notes.
Details add work out of proportion to their area. Every window and door needs beads, sealant and a sill drip; K Rend's detailing sheet calls for mesh lapped 300mm past each opening head. Every downpipe, light, sign and bracket has to come off and go back. A plain gable is a smaller job than a wall of the same size full of windows.
| Factor | Smaller job | Larger job |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Low wall, ground-level working | Three storeys or more, scaffold on the pavement under licence |
| Existing render | Sound, cleaned or overcoated | Hollow or pebbledashed, fully stripped |
| Background | Sound brick or block | Repairs, wet walls or old openings found after stripping |
| System | One-coat monocouche or a coating | Multi-coat lime or insulation boards |
| Details | Plain face, few fittings | Many openings, pipes, signs and features |
Weather and season
Render has weather limits: K Rend's K Mono should not be applied below 5°C or above 30°C or with frost forecast within 24 hours, and its silicone finish not in strong sun or wind. Work that runs into a cold, wet season pauses more often, keeping the scaffold up longer. Ask how each quotation allows for weather pauses.
Common questions
Why are there no prices on this page?
Prices depend on the wall, the access and the details, so a figure given without a survey would mislead. Ask for quotations that describe the work elevation by elevation, so that like can be compared with like.
See housing and planning information for Scarborough and nearby places, including the source and geography behind each figure.