Exterior cleaning in Bathwick, Bath
Bathwick is Georgian ashlar at its most formal — Great Pulteney Street and the terraces around it, much of it listed, all of it inside the Bath World Heritage Site. There is no version of this work that starts with a pressure washer.
What we get called out for in Bathwick
- Bath stone and ashlar frontage cleaning by low-pressure steam
- Listed and conservation-area facade work
- Roof moss treatment on slate and Welsh slate slopes
- Cast-iron gutter, hopper and downpipe clearance
- Stone step, railing and light-well cleaning
Bath stone, and why the machine choice is not negotiable
Bath stone is a soft oolitic limestone. Water at pressure opens the face, and once the face is open the stone weathers faster and holds dirt more readily than it did before you cleaned it — you have made the problem permanent. The accepted method on a Bath frontage is low-pressure superheated steam, worked in small sections with the dwell doing the cleaning. It is slower and it costs more per square metre. It is also the only approach a conservation officer will be comfortable with, and the only one that leaves the stone in better condition than it started.
Listed status, consent and the practicalities
Tell us at first contact whether the building is listed, because it changes the process before it changes the price. Cleaning a listed elevation can require Listed Building Consent from Bath & North East Somerset Council, and we would rather raise that at quote stage than halfway through. On the ground, Bathwick streets are narrow with residents' parking, so we schedule around the quiet windows and keep the working footprint tight.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need Listed Building Consent to clean my facade?
Possibly. Cleaning a listed elevation can require consent from Bath & North East Somerset Council. We will tell you what we think applies and we will not start work on a listed frontage without that settled.
Why can you not just pressure wash Bath stone?
Because it is soft limestone. Pressure opens the face of the stone, and once it is open it weathers faster and soils faster than before. The damage does not weather out.
What method do you use on ashlar?
Low-pressure superheated steam, worked in small sections. It is slower than pressure washing and it is the method that leaves the stone intact.
Related pages
DOFF steam cleaning for stone · Render & wall cleaning · Roof cleaning & moss treatment · Gutter, fascia & soffit cleaning · All Bath areas · Typical prices · Customer reviews · 7-day rework guarantee