FINISHING TOUCH

FIRST IMPRESSIONS DO COUNT. WE ASK THE EXPERTS ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF CLADDING, RENDER OR JUST A SIMPLE COAT OF PAINT FOR THE EXTERIOR OF YOUR HOME.

Appearances do count. We ask the experts for their tips on cladding, paint and render.

SO YOU’VE MADE the decision to move or improve, or perhaps you’ve purchased in the perfect location at the right price, but sadly, rather than the house of your dreams, it’s the stuff of nightmares. There is no denying that a home’s exterior is important — it sets the tone for the interior, adds value to the property and ideally makes it a place you’re proud to live in. Fortunately, a home lacking in architectural merit doesn’t have to spell aesthetic disaster. If your budget is tight, you can make small changes — such as clearing the clutter, doing some landscaping, or updating your front-of-house accessories — that will make a big difference. If you’re in a position to spend a bit more, the options increase but you’ll need to think bigger picture and longer term. What style do you want to achieve? Is it going to be possible with your budget and existing property? How do you prevent overcapitalising? While there are many ways to update your home, in Australia the three most popular changes are cladding, paint and render. Here, we look at the merits of each to help you get started.

CLADDING

While common external cladding options include timber, stainless steel, aluminium, fibre cement, zinc and corrugated iron, many homeowners are now gravitating towards the ‘weatherboard’ exterior — be that the country, Queenslander or Hamptons-inspired look. Cladding not only offers a relatively fast, dramatically different profile but most products are easy to install, and resist flaking, warping and swelling. Most are also resistant to fire, damage from termites, rot and moisture — which are all extremely important for Australia’s varied climate. So where to start? Can a tired red-brick home really be transformed into a weatherboard bungalow overnight? Cladding is versatile and can be applied to most substrates with the addition of timber or steel battens, or framing, and according to Tim Elliott, James Hardie product manager, “It also comes in a number of profiles to suit any home style. Knowing the design you want will narrow down your material choices, which you can then evaluate on their durability, ease of use and suitability to the style you want to create.” Most homes will benefit from a full wrap — meaning your entire exterior is clad — as this will achieve the desired look most efficiently, make it easier to tie in with other features and help with resale. If it’s not possible to apply a full wrap to your house due to budget constraints, or because the expense is unlikely to pay off in a future sale, all is not lost. According to Tim, a partial update can be challenging so “it’s best to draw the eye away from elements that don’t fit in and look at options that can marry styles, such as using Scyon Axent Trim around aluminium windows”. Partial cladding, however, can be successful in a modern extension where using a mix of finished materials is the desired effect, or in cases where the cladding is used as a decorative feature. Interior designer and Hamptons expert Natalee Bowen of Indah Island says your choice of colour will also go a long way in achieving a cohesive look. “A focus on neutral shades like whites, creams and greys provides the foundation palette for the Hamptons look, while blues in a range of tones from duck egg to rich navy offer the ideal contrast.” One of the benefits of this type of cladding is that it comes ready-primed and can be painted any colour you choose. >

Most homes will benefit from a full wrap — meaning your entire exterior is clad…

PAINT

A paint refresh is often the first port of call in an exterior makeover because although paint is quite expensive, it is a job that can be tackled by the homeowner. While most properties will benefit from a fresh coat of paint, you do need to consider its value to make an informed decision. Taubmans DIY and renovation expert Cherie Barber puts it simply: “If you have a lower budget property — $750,000 or less — a paint refresh will ensure you don’t overcapitalise. Typically, a cosmetic renovation should never cost more than 10 per cent of the total value. Once you start looking at properties over that value, there is an expectation that you up-spec the quality of everything — meaning render or cladding.” However, not every material will tolerate painting. While fibre cement, timber and aluminium weatherboards will be fine, older plastic or vinyl cladding will not (well, certainly not in the long term). And if you’re thinking of painting bricks as a stop-gap before rendering, Cherie has this advice: “If a renderer is dealing with painted bricks it will add thousands to the rendering quote because they have to hack into every brick to remove the paint.” If the textural properties of brick appeals, painting them can have a dramatic effect. In renovating his own home, Melbourne architect John Liu of Inbetween Architecture chose to embrace the original 1970s structure and update it with a contemporary white paint, and also use it as a reference point for a newer extension. “We love painted bricks for their texture and imperfections, and our preference is always to leave the original exterior and come up with a response to it.” If current trends are anything to go by, this response is an increasingly common one. In selecting colours, Taubmans colour marketing manager Jesus Peña Canton, advises “On the emotional side, you need to consider what you want from your house — how vibrant or relaxing you want it to be.” On a more practical level, lighter colours will show more imperfections and dirt, especially on an older property with intersections and joints; whereas darker colours will generally be easier to apply, especially on brickwork. “If you are too nervous to overhaul the whole exterior, painting your front door can change the feel of your home in a matter of hours, as well as being a simple way to embrace new-season trends,” Jesus continues.

RENDER

Of the three update options, render is the most contemporary in feel and is therefore a good option if you want to modernise a dated home. On the flip side, using render on a heritage building can actually devalue the property and rob it of its identifying characteristics, so your decision should be based on the era your house was built in. “Render is a very modern change,” says Cherie. “You shouldn’t have one element on your facade that’s very modern and then have decorative fretwork and cute moldings, and a picket fence. I always say that you should have one personality with your facade — you’re either modern or heritage.” There are two main types of render available — traditional sand and cement render, and the newer acrylic render. While the traditional render will be slightly cheaper in the short term, it is extremely prone to cracking and you will still need to paint it. Initially you will spend more on materials for acrylic render, but any paint colour can be added to the mix so once it is applied your walls are finished. “The cost of a renderer and a painter will be about the same as an acrylic render, which on average is $10,000–$15,000,” says Cherie. “Different houses are suited to different renders — you can use either render on a red-, brown- or blonde-brick house but you can only use acrylic render on a fibro house because sand and cement render needs texture to adhere to.” As with cladding, a full render is always preferable, especially if your property’s in the upper end of the market. If you decide to do a partial render, Cherie advises you do the front facade and wrap it around the sides to a logical point, usually to a side gate, and then paint the house in the same colour. “It’s so important once you’ve rendered, or painted, to add what I like to call the ‘bling’,” says Cherie. “Things like street numerals, front door lights, paving paint, and good landscaping. Skip this stage and your house will end up looking like a half-baked cake!” For more information, visit inbetweenarchitecture.com.au; jameshardie.com.au; indahisland.com; taubmans.com.au

If the textural properties of brick appeals, painting them can have a dramatic effect.