Plasterer and Renderer in Bootle
Dock-side terraces, inter-war pebbledash, and walls that take the weather off the Mersey.
Southport, the Sefton coast, Liverpool and West Lancashire
Terraces built before cavities existed
The older Bootle stock, the tight streets running back off Stanley Road and Hawthorne Road, is Victorian and Edwardian terrace built solid. One leaf of brick, no cavity, nothing between the outside face and the inside plaster but the thickness of the wall itself.
That single fact decides what can go on it. A hard sand and cement render on a solid wall traps water in the masonry instead of letting it out, and the wall then dries inwards through the plaster. Half the blown render we are asked to look at on stock like this is not a workmanship problem, it is the wrong system on the wrong wall.
Dock air is not the same as ordinary air
Bootle sits on the Mersey with very little in front of it, and the walls facing the river get salt as well as rain. Salt gets into porous brick and old render, holds moisture, and crystallises as it dries. That expansion is what quietly pushes a finish off a wall over a few winters, and it is why a coating that lasted fifteen years inland lasts eight here.
It is the same problem we deal with on the Southport seafront, which is the one genuine thing a Southport firm brings to Bootle. A breathable, water-repellent build-up handles it. A film-forming masonry paint over failed render does not.
The inter-war and post-war estates
Away from the docks, a lot of Bootle is inter-war and post-war semis, much of it originally council built and now largely owner-occupied. That stock has a cavity, which opens the options back up, and an enormous amount of it is pebbledashed.
Sound dash can sometimes be overclad, which saves the mess and the cost of taking it off. Hollow, cracked or lifting dash has to come off first and it makes a serious quantity of debris. Which one you have is settled by tapping the elevation, not by looking at it.
What we are asked for most in Bootle
External Rendering
Re-rendering tired, cracked and blown elevations, including stripping off failed pebbledash first.
Read moreSilicone Rendering
Through-colour silicone over basecoat and mesh, breathable and never needing painting.
Read moreInternal Plastering
Skimming, float and set, ceilings and repairs, flat enough to run a hand across.
Read moreDry Lining & Plasterboarding
Stud walls, ceilings and insulated linings, set out square, taped and beaded before skimming.
Read moreRe-rendering the whole house rather than one elevation? See full house re-rendering, which is the same work priced and sequenced for every elevation of a Bootle house at once.
We have not written up a job in Bootle yet. The nearest ones on the same kind of wall are a terrace taken off an old painted render and an end terrace rendered front and flank. Everything we have photographed start to finish is on our work.
Questions from Bootle customers
Do you come out to Bootle?
Yes. It is about fourteen miles from Liverpool Road in Southport, straight down the A565 through Crosby. We are a Southport business that travels to Bootle rather than a local one, and we would rather say that than imply otherwise. The estimate is written down before anything starts and there is no separate travel charge on it.
Is my Bootle terrace a solid wall?
If it is one of the older streets, almost certainly. Anything built before about 1920 round here is single leaf. It matters because a solid wall needs a breathable finish, and putting a hard cement render on one is what causes the blowing we are usually called out to look at.
Can pebbledash be rendered over?
Sometimes. If it is sound and well keyed it can be overclad, which saves taking it off. If it sounds hollow, is cracked or is lifting in patches it comes off first, because a new system over a failing one just buys a few years before the whole lot lets go together.
Do you charge to come and look?
No. Estimates are free and given in writing after we have come out and looked at the walls. We do not price rendering or plastering over the phone, because what a wall needs is decided by what is underneath it.
What customers said
4.7 out of 5 on Google and 5.0 from 35 reviews on MyBuilder, plus 100% recommended from 6 recommendations on Facebook. Every review below is verbatim from those profiles, and each one says which.
I received a first class service from Birkdale Plastering. Anthony always attended as arranged. He was invariably polite and hard-working and cleared any mess before leaving. I am very pleased with the finished job.
Antony did a great job would highly recommend him
Render of an outside wall. Excellent job and finish Turned up when he said, cleaned up and took the time to protect the areas around the job. Would highly recommend to family and friends.
Anthony did an outstanding job pebble-dashing our entire house. It was a challenging project but he handled every aspect with professionalism and care—nothing was ever too much trouble. He worked incredibly hard and maintained a clean and tidy worksite throughout. We couldn’t be happier with the result.
Anthony has done an excellent plastering job today for us in Formby. Repaired a hole on our kitchen ceiling after a leak whilst on holiday. Very good finish and so tidy too! Would Definitely recommend him!
Outstanding work would highly recommend went above and behond with everything, if anyone needs rendering this is your man.
Areas we cover
Based on Liverpool Road in Southport. We work right along the Sefton coast, down into Liverpool, and inland across West Lancashire as far as Preston. Every town below has a page of its own.
Related services
Internal Plastering
Skimming, float and set, ceilings and repairs. Flat walls that take paint evenly and stay that way.
Read moreDry Lining & Plasterboarding
Stud walls, ceilings and insulated linings, set out square, taped and beaded before skimming.
Read moreDecorative Plasterwork
Cornice, ceiling roses and panelled ceilings restored, matched and run in where sections are missing.
Read moreGet a free written estimate
Tell us what the walls are doing and we will come and look. You will get an honest assessment and a written price, with no obligation and no pressure.
Get in touch
Tell us what the walls are doing and we will come and look. Free written estimate, no obligation.
- Phone 07923 545449
- Email anthony9thompson@yahoo.co.uk
- Address
Birkdale Plastering and Rendering
546 Liverpool Road, Southport PR8 3BG - Opening hours Every day, 7am to 9pm