removing paint from brick

Removing Paint from Brick – Best Practice Guide If you have tried removing paint from brickwork you will know just how tedious a process it can be! Depending on how large the area is, it could take you several hours to days to completely remove it. Considering the time and effort involved, this is almost … Read more

preparing walls for painting

Preparing Walls For Painting – Tips for the best results

Preparing your walls for painting is the first step in getting a smooth, attractive, and durable finish. Whether you’re painting an old and worn wall or a newly plastered wall, you should always prep it before applying the first coat of paint. If you don’t have a painting background or haven’t painted before it is something you might not know. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to prepare different walls for painting that you’ll find useful for your home painting project.

Preparing a wall before painting

There are different wall surfaces that you may need to prepare before you start painting. The technique you use on an old chipped, and a rough wall will not be the same as the one you use on a newly finished and generally smooth wall with a plastered finish. Depending on the surface you’re dealing with, follow the steps outlined below when preparing walls for painting:

Preparing a plastered wall

A plastered wall is the easiest to paint, as the surface will be relatively smooth with little blemishes.

    • A freshly plastered wall will only need a primer and undercoat to get your wall ready for the first coat of paint
    • Use a roller to apply a primer, followed by an undercoat to create the best painting surface
    • Priming the surface will seal it and keep the plaster from soaking up the paint when you apply it. If you don’t do this it can lead to a lot of waste, resulting in more coats of paint being needed than necessary
    • Also, remember to let the new plaster fully dry before you start prepping to paint. This will be evident when the wall turns a uniform grey/pink colour with no dark patches and can take anything from 24 hours up to a week depending on the temperature of a room

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Tips For Painting A Room

How To Prepare a Wall For Painting Planning to paint your walls and ceilings but don’t know where to begin? Just starting can seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. With some preparation, you can paint your walls like a pro. Painting Planning & Preparation Before you start painting a wall, it is crucial … Read more

Remove Artex

How To Safely Remove Artex & How Dangerous Is it?

Asbestos was commonly used in ceilings up until the 1980s when its use was banned due to its health risks. If your property was built before this time, there is a good chance that original ceilings and walls artex could contain asbestos. You should always use a wet working removal system to remove artex as this prevents the dangerous asbestos dust particle from escaping into the air and being breathed in through your nose and mouth.

If you do have asbestos in your artex, ceiling or wall covering, it is important not to panic, as it’s only dangerous if you come in contact with the dust particles if it is disturbed. As long as the artex is in good condition and left undisturbed with no cracks, there is no risk to your health. If you need to remove or repair your artex ceiling, we would advise that you speak to a professional who has experience dealing with asbestos or you should use our wet working removal system X-Tex Artex Remover.

If you are looking to remove wall or ceiling coverings whether they contain asbestos or not, you can use Eco Solutions X Tex Artex Remover safely and without the worry of asbestos poisoning. X Tex uses a working wet system and this means whilst removing the wall or ceiling covering there will be no dangerous dust fibres as the covering always remains wet. Getting a professional in to remove ceiling and wall coverings containing asbestos can be tricky, to find someone as well as the costs of someone doing this for you in a safe way. 

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Painting Doors

Tips For Painting Internal Doors

Do you need help with painting doors in your property? Read our tips which will make the job quick, safe and easy for you.

Preparation is key and if you prepare and follow our tips you will end up with upcycled, beautiful new looking doors and you will have saved yourself a lot of money replacing them.

You can attain a perfect, long-lasting finish if you prepare adequately, use the right tools and supplies, and use a good technique. Make an old door look brand new again with these expert tips.

Choose Your Interior Door Paint Colour

There are many factors to consider when choosing an interior door paint colour. The first is the overall aesthetic of your home. If you have a modern home, you’ll want to choose a colour that complements your contemporary style. For a traditional home, you might want to choose a more classic colour like white or cream. The second factor to consider is the trim in your home. If you have dark wood trim, you may want to choose a light-coloured door to ensure it doesn’t look too dark and heavy. Conversely, if you have light-coloured trim, you can get away with a darker door colour, it really does depend on the look you are trying to achieve. Finally, think about the colours of the rooms adjacent to your doors as you don’t want colours to clash within your home and will want to choose a colour that works well with all of them.

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Artex Remover

Home Strip X-Tex Textured Coatings Remover Questions & Answers Hearing questions and answers about a product from customers and the manufacturer themselves can really help you understand what it can do and if it’s the right product for you. Find out the answers to all the questions you have about Eco Solutions Artex & Textured … Read more

Girl with Balloon Banksy

Beautiful Graffiti Artwork: The Work of Banksy

Banksy is one of the most well-known graffiti artists in the world. His work can be found on buildings, walls, and bridges in towns and cities all over the UK and across the world. Banksy’s art is often political or social commentary, and it always manages to provoke thought and conversation.

While Banksy’s identity remains a mystery, there are some things that we do know about him. For instance, he was born in Bristol, England in 1974. He began his career as a graffiti artist in the early 1990s when he started spray painting stencils on walls around Bristol. In 2003, he gained worldwide attention for his series of playful and subversive street artworks in London.

Banksy’s art is unique in that it often employs humour to make its point. Whether he is critiquing capitalism or war, there is always an element of wit present in his work. This has endeared him to many fans who appreciate both the beauty and message of his art.

If Banksy created his artwork on your property then I’m sure that you would be over the moon, however, any other graffiti is normally an eyesore and you would want to remove it quickly. Eco Solutions solvent-free Graffiti Go is a safe and efficient way of removing graffiti from surfaces and materials and is used by thousands of people over the world.

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Kitchen Remodelling

Remodelling Your Kitchen Ideas (using what is there)

The kitchen is the heart of every home. It is where families gather, where holidays are celebrated, and where many of life’s most memorable moments begin. And for most of us, it’s one of the most important rooms in our homes. So if you are thinking about remodelling your kitchen, it’s important to make good use of the space you have and design a kitchen that works for you.

If you are looking to remodel or as some will say, upcycle your kitchen, read our step to step guide with lots of tips and ideas to get you started.

Step 1: Have a Strategy when you are Remodelling

The first step to any kitchen remodelling is creating a plan. This step is especially important if you’re working with a limited budget; knowing exactly what you want and need will help you make the most of your resources.

Sit down and think about how you want your kitchen to look and function; consider what kind of layout would work best, what appliances you need, and the type of cabinetry that will suit your needs. If you’re not sure where to start, there are plenty of resources available online, in kitchen retailers or in home improvement stores that can give you lots of ideas for designing your space.

When you have a general idea of what you want, it’s time to start getting into the details. Make a list of everything that needs to be done and in what order to complete your remodel, these should include big-ticket items like new cabinets as well as smaller details like hardware and lighting fixtures. Knowing exactly what needs to be done will help keep costs under control and ensure that nothing is forgotten during the renovation process.

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Cleaning Products

How Dangerous Are The Chemicals In Your Cleaning Products? No one can deny that cleaning products are essential in maintaining a clean and healthy environment. However, the chemicals used in some of these products can be extremely dangerous if not used properly. It is important to always read the labels on cleaning products before using … Read more

uPVC Maintenance & Cleaning

How to Clean uPVC Windows, Doors, Guttering, Facias & Conservatories

It’s really quite surprising just how dirty your uPVC windows and doors can get. Whatever the time of year they will be exposed to all weathers and elements outside and the same on the inside as well. Whether you have newish uPVC windows or older style ones they will all start to lose their brightness and shine after being exposed to the elements. 

The winter weather can cause black mildew, mould, moss, general dirt, dead insects, cobwebs and the build-up of dirt and grime on your windows and doors outside and this can make your property seem dull and unkempt. Giving them a good clean with the right product will clean and brighten them and you’ll see such a difference. 

The same for the inside of your uPVC windows and doors, they will be exposed to the colder winter months and in contrast, the central heating can cause first and sometimes mildew to build up, especially where the panes of glass meets the uPVC. 

You may look at your windows and think they need replacing which is a huge cost when all they actually need is a good clean using Eco Solutions uPVC Cleaner.

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