Mock Tudor maintenance/renewal/removal

always_ot

We have a house that is approx 20 years old, with mock Tudor on the front.

It's been repainted a few times, but has a few issues, such as:
- a few minor (vertical) cracks are appearing in the plaster
- rust smears are running down the plaster from the horizontal wood (I assume coming from other rusted nails holding it in place)
- it all needs re-painting
- oh, and one of the vertical pieces of wood has fallen off! (due to rusted/snapped nails) - the wood is fine, but does need re-fitting

I'm posting because something needs to be done with it, and I have no idea where to start!

I worry if I get it fixed up and re-painted, the rust marks will re-appear from the nails once it has rained a few times.

Can something like this be economically repaired/maintained, or does or is it have a limited life span?

Should we be thinking of complete replacement?

Can it be permanently removed (and would it leave scars on the house where it is taken off the wall in the form of holes/plaster remnants)?

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, what kind of tradespeople would I get in to quote/advise/sort this? Builders, joiners, plasterers, mock Tudor specialists?

Fire_Fox

If no wood is rotting or render blown (coming away from the base material) all of that sounds cosmetic. All sorts of preparation is done to lift old product or muck, rust stains are treated with a stain blocker, wood is treated to preserve and protect then render is painted.

It is a specialist decorators job AFAIK.

I *think* if render is blown it would sound hollow if knocked on BUT if one of the regulars says different believe them!

EachPenny

always_ot wrote: »

I worry if I get it fixed up and re-painted, the rust marks will re-appear from the nails once it has rained a few times.

You can avoid this by insisting the repairs are done using stainless steel screws. They are relatively expensive, but won't go rusty (as even zinc-plated ones will after time).

always_ot wrote: »

Can something like this be economically repaired/maintained, or does or is it have a limited life span?

It depends on the timber used, and how it was treated before being installed.

Cheap softwood with minimal preservative won't last forever. Hardwood will last longer, and is something that could probably be taken off the wall, given a good sanding, and then refinished looking just as good as new timber.

It would be worth you looking at different kinds of finish and selecting one which gives the longest life for the timber you have (or use for the replacement).

always_ot wrote: »

Can it be permanently removed (and would it leave scars on the house where it is taken off the wall in the form of holes/plaster remnants)?

You say the wall is plastered, but are you sure? Render would possibly be more likely.

The feasibility of removing it will depend on whether the walls were rendered all over first, with the wood attached over the top (I'd expect to be most likely), or if the timber was attached first and the render/plaster applied in the remaining spaces. The former would be easier, the latter would require quite a bit of repair work.

Small holes can be repaired and painted over, but larger holes/patches will be difficult to repair invisibly. You might also have a problem simply blending in the repaired areas with the surrounding areas which have had possibly multiple coats of paint over the years. You can easily reach the point where it is cheaper to remove the existing render and start again.

More importantly, you need to consider the effect of removing the mock Tudor effect on the appearance of the house (and possibly its value). If it is part of a development then it might look 'odd' if yours no longer matches in with neighbours - obviously this isn't a consideration if the hosue stands alone. It is possible (though probably unlikely) that you might have planning issues if you significantly change the appearance of the house.

If you (or someone you know) are good with photoediting apps then you could try editing a picture of the house to remove the mock tudor effect to see how the house would look without it.

Other than that I agree with the comments Fire Fox makes.

always_ot

Apologies, I'm using the word plaster when I should be using render.

The piece of wood that came off weighs a tonne, so I suspect it's hardwood.

There is render in the space behind the wood, so I suspect it was rendered first, though what I was getting at was considering total removal (of wood, and render) back to the brickwork behind. Would the removal of the render leave marks/scars on the brickwork?

There are other houses on the estate (the same as ours) without render/mock Tudor - so visually (as long as there aren't any scars) it wouldn't look odd.

Finally, you said we could insist on the repair being done with stainless steel screws, but what about the existing nails that are holding up the rest of the timber (and rusting/leaving marks down the render)? I'll still get the rust patches re-appearing on the render as they rust further won't I?

chrisw

You can actually get UPVC/plastic replacement tudor boards. eg:-

https://www.gbplastics.co.uk/Products/Tudor_Board_Cladding_UPVC_PVC_gable

Not everyone's cup of tea, but might be worth thinking about if you're not keen on timber maintenance.

EachPenny

always_ot wrote: »

There is render in the space behind the wood, so I suspect it was rendered first, though what I was getting at was considering total removal (of wood, and render) back to the brickwork behind. Would the removal of the render leave marks/scars on the brickwork?

Yes, the render will not all come off leaving the surface below clean and tidy - if the render was applied properly then it will have formed a chemical bond like attatchment. To remove all traces of the render you would need a very patient builder using mortar stain remover (usually an acid-based product).

But if the house was constructed with the intention of rendering it then it is unlikely to be constructed using facing bricks. It is quite likely to be concrete blocks underneath, or else commons or 'seconds'... it is unlikely to look pretty. Even on the assumption you were lucky to have good quality brickwork underneath then the very minimum they would need to do after removing the render and cleaning the bricks would be to repoint all the joints. It wouldn't be a cheap job.

always_ot wrote: »

Finally, you said we could insist on the repair being done with stainless steel screws, but what about the existing nails that are holding up the rest of the timber (and rusting/leaving marks down the render)? I'll still get the rust patches re-appearing on the render as they rust further won't I?

If it were me I would get all the wood taken off the wall and ensure any broken screws/nails were removed from the render. Unless you do that there is no way of knowing which bits of wood might fall off next, or where rust stains will come through again. I'd also do it that way because cleaning up and refinishing the wood would be far easier with it off the wall. The fact the existing fixings are poor and need to be redone makes it worth the additional effort required to take it all off and put it all back up again.

always_ot

Thanks for all the input everyone, it's all really useful.

docmatt

You’ve probably already had it done but https://tudorboard.com/ sell the plastic mock Tudor that looks like wood and they can recommend a fitter as we have used them before. It's coloured all the way through and not like the white plastic boards that have a laminate on.