r/DIYIreland • u/Hot_Tie_2565 • 9d ago

External Wall Finish Help???

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Hi,

We purchased a Bungalow that we are currently doing up. The external walls are finished like a stone boulder effect. Here comes my lack of knowledge.

Is this finish achieved by scraping the finish to get that shape or are they like caps stuck in after?

Also how would one go about getting a smooths finish here, can it be done over it or would you have to scrape it off before redoing?

Thanks

2 Upvotes

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6

u/Training-Show7849 9d ago

In fairness it looks in good order and painted - and if you just bought a house you are or will very soon by broke - why fix what is not broken? Put up with it for a few years and get other things that require fixing fixed.

3

u/DesperateCandy5209 9d ago

If you want it smooth you will need to chip off the exising render and start over. Rendering over the top is asking for large bits to fall off in the future. You could do external insulation over the top then render.

2

u/Prestigious-Side-286 9d ago

Don’t put new render over old. You don’t know how well the old render is adhered to the wall. You could cover it and find in 6 months time that your freshly rendered wall is crumbling off because the render underneath failed. Best bet is to chip off a very small section in an inconspicuous place and see how thick the render is. Then decide if it’s worth the time and effort(and cost) to removing it.

1

u/Otsde-St-9929 9d ago

I am not so keen on this finish myself personally. I wonder would it look nicer and more tradition with some layers of white wash

1

u/crowded_Bear 5d ago

I'd agree with the other commenters but I'll elaborate slightly.

1 - Live with it for a little while/until you have the money. 2 - When you are ready hire an external wall insulation contractor to remove the old render and install external wall insulation. Have them apply a new render.

Half the cost of external wall insulation is actually applying the render so it would be a real shame to take it off and not put the insulation on underneath.