08 / cleaning
DOFF superheated steam, gentle abrasive cleaning, chemical, jet wash and soft wash cleaning for facades, cladding and hard surfaces, and for residential exteriors: period brick, natural stone, patios, driveways and block paving. Method chosen to the substrate. DOFF and TORC are delivered by our specialist partner inside the A Star package, under our RAMS.
When this is the right route
Scope · included
Scope · not included
Sectors
Process
01
Substrate type confirmed (stone, brick, render, cladding), soiling type assessed (atmospheric, biological, paint, soot), test area agreed with client. Pressure or steam method confirmed before any work begins.
02
DOFF steam for heritage or sensitive substrates; gentle abrasive cleaning where carbon sulphation, ingrained staining, paint or limescale will not shift with steam alone; chemical biocide for biological growth; jet wash for hard surfaces where pressure won't damage; softwash where pressure and chemistry both need controlling. Run off pH and disposal route set out.
03
RAMS written for the project: chemical handling, PPE matrix, run off containment plan, exclusion zones during application, pedestrian and vehicle protection. COSHH for any biocide or neutraliser.
04
Containment bunded, test area cleaned and signed off by client, full application by elevation. Neutraliser applied where chemical spec calls for it. Public access protected throughout.
05
Before/after photo record, cleaning record (method, products, pH readings where relevant), condition note if coating or restoration work is to follow.
Completed June 2026
Primark · Stevenage (Phase 1)
Town Square, Stevenage · R.G. Carter Projects Ltd
Facade redecoration and aluminium glazing respray
Case study
Town Square, Stevenage · Restoration
We restored the outside of Primark's town centre store in Stevenage for R.G. Carter. Each surface needed its own method. We finished in June 2026, in seven weeks.
See what the job involved and how we handled it.
Read the case study →Built for the people who buy decorating
We are a specialist subcontractor, not a turnkey fit out outfit. We deliver decorating, spraying, restoration and coatings under main contractors and direct estate teams.
For main contractors
Variations are agreed in writing and delivered without delaying handover. You get a handover record for each store.
For estate + FM teams
Survey to handover without closing the unit. Powder coat restoration is specified to the surveyed substrate. Run off, masking and reopening tracked store by store.
For retail estate leads
We match the paint system to your brand and estate specification. You get progress and handover records for each store. If the timetable moves, we tell you early and replan with the site team.
Find the right route
Most visitors arrive with a sector problem before they know the coating system. These routes match the way buyers search: home and residential work, retail fit out programmes, and industrial painting or warehouse coatings.
House painting and decorating
Painting and decorating for homes in Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire, inside and out. You get a fixed written quote before we start, and any extras are agreed in writing first. We protect your floors and furniture and leave the house clean every day.
Retail decorating
Retail decorating is about more than paint. We work nights around store teams and other trades, and we match brand colours exactly. Late variations are agreed in writing and delivered without delaying handover.
Industrial painting contractors
Industrial and warehouse scopes need the coating system specified by substrate condition, not by what is cheapest to apply. We survey the floor, the cladding, the steelwork and the roof before recommending a system, then plan MEWP access, exclusion zones and drying time sequencing around live operations.
How we deliver
Every job is director-led. You deal with one contact and one timetable, from survey to handover.
01
Stores stay open. Surveys, masking and run off planned around foot traffic.
02
Night programmes on retail and hospitality estates. Clean before doors open.
03
Rolling store programmes sequenced against the main contractor plan.
04
Based in Poole, Dorset. Our crews travel to sites across the UK.
05
Decorating, on site spraying, powder coat restoration and floor coatings under one PM.
06
Before and after record, sign-off notes and the specified product record.
Frequently asked
Yes. It uses very hot steam at low pressure, so it lifts dirt without wearing the surface away. Our specialist partner cleans a test patch first, inside the A Star package and under our RAMS, and we agree the result with you before going further.
TORC is Stonehealth's gentle rotating vortex system: low air pressure, a little water and a fine inert granulate. We use it where steam alone will not shift the soiling, such as carbon sulphation on stone, ingrained staining on concrete, and paint or limescale removal. Like DOFF, it is delivered by our specialist partner inside the A Star package, under our RAMS. We agree a sample area before cleaning the whole wall.
Contained, captured and disposed in line with the chemical spec and site drainage rules. Set out in the RAMS pack before mobilisation.
The cleaning regime is matched to the substrate. If the intention is to preserve the existing coating, we confirm that in the spec. If it's a preamble to recoating, we can strip in the same pass.
Yes. MEWP or scaffold access, chosen at survey based on elevation height and run off management requirements.
The chemistry is substrate specific. The same stone on two different buildings can behave differently due to previous treatment, weathering or salt contamination. A site visit takes 30 minutes and prevents a specification that damages the facade.
Yes. DOFF runs very hot but at very low pressure. It lifts paint, moss and soot without forcing water into the brick or wearing the face away. That is why conservation officers often ask for it on listed and period homes. A high pressure washer can soak old brick and lime mortar and damage them.
Yes. We use rotary wash heads at controlled pressure that clean the block surface without excavating the kiln dried sand from the joints. After cleaning we inspect the joints and re sand where needed with fresh kiln dried silica sand. A joint stabiliser seal is available as an optional extra to hold the sand long term.
Start a conversation
Where we can, we check access and the state of the surfaces before we price, so the quote matches the real job. Email drawings to office@astardecorators.com, or send photos on WhatsApp.
Related services
05 / coatings
TOR liquid coating systems for flat and profiled commercial roofs. Substrate condition, product specification, access and edge protection are confirmed before mobilisation.
07 / coatings
TOR and spray combination systems for profile sheet, rainscreen and curtain wall cladding. Cleaning matched to the surface, a matched RAL finish and a system selected after survey.
02 / restoration
Faded shopfronts, curtain walls and entrance frames recovered to a matched RAL or BS finish. Works carried out around live trading after substrate testing.
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