Home / Farlington & Drayton
Gutter cleaning and decorating in Farlington and DraytonGutters, fascias and painting on your own doorstep.
This is home ground. APP Decorating works out of Old Farm Way, so a house in Farlington or Drayton is a few minutes from the van, not a trip across the city.
BeforeAfter
The houses in Farlington & Drayton.
Farlington and Drayton climb the lower slopes of Portsdown Hill, between the Havant Road and the top of the hill. Most of the streets were laid out between the wars and in the years after, so the typical house is a 1930s semi or detached with a big front bay, a hipped roof in clay or concrete tiles, and a long back garden running up or down the slope.
Higher up you get post-war bungalows and chalet bungalows with dormers, and here and there a 1960s or 1970s close squeezed in where an orchard or a big garden used to be. Down by the Havant Road and the A27 the houses look out over Langstone Harbour and Farlington Marshes, and they take the wind and the damp air straight off the water.
A lot of the 1930s fronts were pebbledashed or rendered at some point, and many have had UPVC fascias, soffits and windows fitted over the last thirty years. That mix of old masonry and white plastic is exactly what shows the dirt.
What Farlington houses usually need.
- 01
Bay roofs with their own little gutters
The front bay on a 1930s semi has its own short gutter and often a lead or felt top. It fills faster than the main run because leaves blow into the corner and stay there. It is also the gutter right over your front door, so when it overflows you notice.
- 02
Leaves from the hill
Gardens on the slope of Portsdown Hill tend to have mature sycamores, ash and fruit trees. In autumn the seeds and leaves end up in the gutters and the downpipe hoppers, and a blocked hopper soaks the wall below it.
- 03
Dormers over flat roofs
Chalet bungalows have short gutters on the dormers that drain onto flat roofs below. When they block, water sits on the flat roof. A gutter vacuum on a pole clears them without anyone walking on the felt.
- 04
Green film on north-facing fronts
Houses on the hill that face north get very little sun on the front, so the fascias, soffits and the face of the gutter grow a green film that never dries out. A UPVC-safe wash and a pure water rinse take it back to white.
- 05
Tired pebbledash and render
Painted pebbledash fades and chalks, and old masonry paint starts to flake around the bay and under the sills. Once the outside is clean it is easy to see whether the front just needed a wash or genuinely needs a repaint.
Paintwork in Farlington.
The 1930s houses in Farlington and Drayton were built to be looked at: deep bays, leaded lights, decorative brick or render around the porch. When the masonry paint has gone chalky and the bay woodwork is peeling, the whole street front looks tired.
We repaint render and pebbledash in masonry paint, bring bay frames, porches, front doors and gates back up, and pick out sills and trims. Inside, the high ceilings and picture rails in these houses are worth doing properly, and we decorate rooms, hallways and stairwells too.
From Farlington to Farlington.
Because the van is local, a quick look costs nobody a long drive. If you are in PO6, from the Havant Road up to the hill and across to Highbury and Cosham, just call and we can usually come and see the job.
Window cleaning starts from £15 and gutter, fascia, soffit, cladding and conservatory roof cleaning from £30. Painting and decorating, inside and out, is priced after a visit. See the colour card for more jobs and the full price list.
Asked in Farlington.
Do you cover Drayton and Cosham as well as Farlington?
Yes. Drayton is next door and Cosham is a couple of miles west along the bottom of the hill. The whole PO6 area is local ground.
My front bay gutter keeps overflowing. Is that a separate job?
It is usually just part of the gutter clear. We vacuum the bay gutter along with the main runs and check the outlet so it drains.
Can you clear gutters on a steep back garden?
Yes. The carbon poles let us work from the safest level spot, so a sloping garden or steps up to the back of the house are not a problem.
Can you repaint pebbledash?
Yes. Painted pebbledash and render can be cleaned and repainted in masonry paint. We look at the condition first and price it after a visit.