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It’s summertime once again, and so attention is turning to outside jobs for trade professionals up and down the country (when the weather allows, that is). Typically geared towards refreshing and restoring a property’s exterior, the work may be varied, but can be made simpler.
There are plenty of filler options available for a whole host of exterior tasks, including the repair of broken window ledges, re-shaping weathered or worn-out walls and even replacing cracked or damaged render – without needing to chop it off!
Before buying a product, it’s important to consider the type of job you’ll be working on, the condition of the surface and the intended finish you require. Take the example of the broken window ledge; if it’s a sandstone sill, weathering may have left it soft and crumbling, so you’d need to stabilise it first with a wall hardener product. It’s also quite typical for this type of surface to become damp, in which case you could use a filler specifically designed to adhere to damp. You’ll also want to think about how you want to work. Does it need to be painted tomorrow? What colour will you be painting it? How strong does it need to be?
Toupret recognises that each job requires the right product, and that’s why they offer the largest range of exterior fillers on the market.
For filling, they offer three powder products that can be applied to any depth and be used for repairing or reshaping broken corners, edges or decorative features. But each has distinct properties over the others. For example, Masonry Repair Filler is light in colour and can be applied to damp surfaces, making it an ideal product for retaining walls and sills which are generally more affected by damp. Rock Solid Repair Filler is white in colour and rich is resin, giving it the added strength required for more hard-wearing repairs, such as to the corner edges of buildings. Tough Multi-Filler has a good deal of strength whilst still being easy to sand; white in colour, it can also be used for localised skimming, thanks to its long working time of 40 minutes.
Some fillers are designed especially for skimming, for smoothing out wide areas of rough, textured or damaged masonry surfaces, as well as for repairing render. Toupret offers two options – Ready To Use Skimcoat Filler, which has an unlimited working time, as well as the powder Skimcoat Filler, with an open time of 6 hours, and ability to repair lime render.
TOP TIP: Lime render can be a tricky surface type. Opt for a powder filler with no Portland cement content, such as Toupret’s Tough Multi-Filler or Skimcoat Filler. The pH levels in these products are not aggressive towards the lime content, making them compatible for repairs. If you prefer to use a ready mixed filler, ensure that you first prime the surface.
You can check out the full range of Toupret exterior products on their website, where you can also use their comparison tool to find the right product for your work this season.