Case Study:How Our Render Repair Services Transformed a London Façade in 7 Days

Five floors of this residential building in East London required high-quality render and façade repair services.

With our specialised reputation and rope access capabilities, the client chose Spectrum to complete the task knowing we’d cause minimal disturbance and finish the repairs quickly and to high industry standards.  

Discover how our specialist technicians tackled this job in just one week using their skills, resources, and expertise.

The Logistics

The property management company that hired us for this project, AM Surveying, were already familiar with our work and trusted we could complete the render and façade repairs within the one-week deadline.

Our pre-site assessment of the site revealed the following issues:

• Numerous cracks and defects in the masonry walls are caused by age and natural wear and tear.
• There were no eyebolts or permanent anchorage on the roof, which required us to install portable anchorage.
• The site would need sectioning off for health and safety as it is on a public pavement next to a bus stop.

With our plan in place, we arranged an appropriate time to complete the work that suited our client and the residents of the property.

The Site

The five-floor building is in a busy residential district of East London on Offord Road. Its masonry walls covered around 450 square meters and were enclosed by neighbouring buildings on each side and across the street.

Cracks and defects upon the walls were clear from the street, with the original render installed over 20 years ago. Most render needs repair work after five years, so fixing these issues was long overdue.

The Project 

When first arriving on-site, we needed to establish a safe system of work on the roof and public protection of the ground below. We deployed a deadweight trolley to provide our portable anchorage.

Two rope access technicians could then abseil from the roof across the five floors working from side to side. Despite always tethering all equipment so it doesn’t fall, we still used barriers and signs to border a small section of pavement below as an extra precaution.

With our rope access and safety on the ground level established, we proceeded with the necessary render repairs. As specialists in facade repairs in London, we’ve encountered numerous other projects like this job. Therefore our two experienced technicians recruited for this project could proceed with minimal complications or delay.

Part of render and façade repair is to prepare the substrate for fresh render. A standard “tap test” helped the team find any loose spots before they continued removing the defective or broken render. Our operatives made light work of the five-floor preparation. Working from top-to-bottom and side to side, they carefully raked out cracks using angle grinders so as not to cause unnecessary damage.

All pieces of render that were removed were then handled carefully for safe disposal. After establishing the correct type of render that blends with the original, the technicians return to the roof to mix a batch before fixing the cracks and painting.

Due to the expertise of our rope access technicians, they could quickly identify the type of render required through thickness and colour composition, despite the original dating back over 20 years. After mixing the bucket of render to the precise match, the two technicians abseil down, clipping the bucket to the backup line in case they ran out and required more.

With the cracks filled and walls painted across the whole five floors, neighbours of the property were so impressed that they even inquired about our render repair services!

Challenges

The first challenge for this façade repair project in London was to ensure we had a safe system of work and that none of our render repair methods would endanger our two technicians or the public.

Deploying the deadweight trolley enabled us to use rope access, and establishing a small barrier below ensured the public couldn’t pass directly beneath both operatives as they worked.

We tethered all the equipment used for the render repair and painting to prevent anything from falling to the floor, which could damage property and vehicles or even cause harm to pedestrians.

The next challenge was to avoid unnecessary damage when removing the loose and defective render from the masonry walls. Using the right tools for the job was one thing, but having the right professionals with the experience to recognise and remove what was necessary to maintain high service standards was imperative.

Furthermore, the site was situated above a bus stop and a busy public area. So, we were glad our rope access capabilities allowed us not to cause any disruption both on the pavement and road.

Our two rope access technicians also had to create the right render match to suit the original. We train all our render repair specialists to recognise the correct render type from colour composition and thickness.

If the render is modern, it contains colour throughout. On the other hand, if the render is older and made from sand and cement, the colour is on the surface with a grey layer beneath. We used a modern sand cement render containing a small amount of silicone for added flexibility. This material compatibility is crucial for consistency.

The Result

Our expertise made all the difference with this job, causing zero disturbance and completing it in just one week.

A lovely, smooth finish on both the façade and render satisfied our client once again. One resident admired our work so much that they asked for a quote on a separate building.

Here is a quick overview of the project from start to finish:

• The pre-site visit enabled us to devise the best plan for render repair and on-site logistics.
• We installed a temporary deadweight anchor on the roof so we could use rope access methods without needing a permanent installation.
• A safe public area on the ground level ensured no harm or disturbance could come to any passing pedestrians.
• Two rope access technicians began by identifying and removing any loose or broken render with a tap test and angle grinder tools.
• We prepared the correct render colour match before both operatives abseiled, filling cracks and holes before painting.
• All five walls of the residential building had a lovely, smooth, and professional clean finish.
• The façade and render repairs for this project went smoothly thanks to our technicians' experience and skill set, alongside our ability to use rope access.

Got a façade or render repair project in mind? Get in touch for a quote.