Ivy removal - builder, gardener or tree surgeon?

GDB2222

I foolishly let ivy grow up the side of our house. It’s brick, about 90 years old. I easily cut all the stems, And I wrestled the ivy off the house, but I left a lot of small bits embedded into the bricks. Only now, 5 years later, are these mostly getting dried out enough to remove. The leftover bits are only moderately unsightly and not damaging anything, so I have not been too concerned. 

20122013

Albermarle said:

20122013 said:

twopenny said:

'Getting it off around the gutters needs to be done by hand so it doesn't dislodge the gutter. Get them cleaned while they are up there as the leaves could cause a problem with the downpipe.'

May I suggest to let them know that you would need photos to show what they have cleaned eg  gutter and roof emptied and cleaned or it may show any repairs needed etc and show close up and overall off the roof  (and not just showing you how much 'rubbish' they have collected') so you know what work had been carried out.

We had some ivy that got behind the fascia boards and even behind some lead flashing, opening up gaps that could have caused leaks. 

Hello Albermarle, I agree, and I was not suggesting to open anything Instead I was saying  if they get their gutters or roof cleaned ask to see some photos of where it had been cleaned, so you know whether there are any damaged caused by the ivy, etc, and you will know the state of it.

Savvy_Sue

We have since had the house repainted, but I rather liked the traces of 'dead' ivy going up the walls after we'd removed it. However, I didn't like the way it grew behind the rendering and pushed it away from the brick behind it ... cue nasty damp patches. 

Our gardener cut it off and left it to die, and we've not let it re-grow. 

John_the_Boy

Removed a lot of ivy from my house. Cut the roots and treat with root killer and let the growth die off. Then gently ease the dead growth off, it will leave lots of small tendrils attached to the brick but these can be brushed off with a very stiff brush or if kept fairly wet it will encourage them to rot away over time.

vacheron

TadleyBaggie said:

I did my own removal. I located the root(s) and sawed through them and then waited for the ivy to die. It then peeled off the wall quite easily.

I also did this. Our previous owner loved the stuff and had sections of block paving removed around the house perimiter for it to grow up through.

Like @Albermarle, hers had even grown up to the top of the first floor and into the loft, leaving this huge ominous nest of leafless thin tendrels taking over one of the far corners! 

Almost the week we moved in we found al the main stems at the base of the house and sawed through them, we then left it for a couple of days to begin to dry out then tore it off the wall from the bottom. We got rid of any remaining pieces adhered to the wall with a pressure washer which did a great job (providing you don't mind spending a couple of hours up a 3 section ladder holding a device that is trying to push you away from the wall like a jet engine)!