FAO Bullder - painting house

[abstibus]

Hi, Builder
My house is made of local stone (I think it's granite). The bay is made of brick. and he house is dashed. I would love to brighten the exterior - would it be okay to have it painted or would this prevent the walls from 'breathing'?
I would be glad of any advice.
Many thanks.

[citytilidie7]

IT WOULD BE A SHAME TO PAINT, WHY NOT HAVE IT CLEANED AND RESTORED.

[The Builder]

Hi annemolie ............. when you say "dashed", I guess you mean it's rendered and roughcast? .......... ie plastered with a chunky finish?

Yes, it it were bare granite, then sand-blasting (and re-pointing) would look great.

Assuming it's rendered, then it's quite normal to use masonry paint. They're generally non-porous, so no breathability. There's a lot of unecessary worry over this. It rather depends on the construction. Cob should breathe, but stone and rubble construction is really not so sensitive. It depends on how "purist" you want to be.
For "breathability" ............. try "Farrow & Ball" masonry paint (wonderful colours, but expensive,) or, paint made from lime (limewash) to be really "pukka".

[Old_Geezer]

For my own information, what's Cob ? Sorry just confiused by that bit.
That said I wasn't aware walls needed to breath anyway. If it says masonary paint on the tin, I trust it.

[abstibus]

Hi, Builder
As always, you come up trumps.The house has a finish of fine stones and sometimes the gales are so fierce that (just) a few come off.
I don't want to go down the road of re-dashing just to brighten it up.
Can I use masonry paint? It would give it extra coverage.
Many thanks indeed.

[The Builder]

Hi OG ............. I forgot that not everyone has heard of cob. It's very common here in the south-west. Farmworkers would clear a patch of topsoil and dig up the subsoil underneath. They mixed that with water to a paste. Chopped straw was added to give the material some mechanical strength (re-inforcement).
Timber shuttering 2' wide by 2' high was then filled with the mix to form the walls of the building. When that was dry, the shuttering was raised to make another 2'.
That's the basic idea. It does vary around the country.
Cob should never be "tanked" or waterproofed, so that, by "breathing", damp can always manage to escape.

[The Builder]

Hi Anne .......... you're very welcome :o)
Certainly use (good quality) masonry paint.

TB

[abstibus]

Thanks again, Builder.

[Old_Geezer]

Thanks.