Painter Oldeberkoop, living among the trees

Oldeberkoop lies in Ooststellingwerf, on sandy soil by the Tjonger, and is one of the older villages in the area. It is a village of woods and tree-lined lanes. That makes it pleasant to live in, and for a painter it is a very different situation from the open clay land in the west of the province.

Here the wind is not the biggest problem, the shade is. Wood dries more slowly, and the north side often has a green film. That is why we first look at how your house stands among the trees.

Growth on a facade is not a cosmetic flaw you can paint over. Paint doesn't bond well to it, and what lies beneath stays damp. So we first clean and degrease, and then sand. Only when the surface is clean and dry does the primer go on.

What the rest of that preparation looks like you can see under sanding and priming. If you have a house in the shade cleaned earlier, you can also put off the next paint job a little longer.

Painting outdoors needs dry weather, 5 to 30 degrees and a maximum of 85 percent humidity. Under the trees, however, it stays wet in the morning and after a shower for longer than a weather map suggests. A sunny day in open country can still mean waiting half a day here.

So we prefer to plan exterior work in the driest weeks. On our page about painting weather in Friesland you can see how many suitable days there are per month. And if a job does fall late, under painting in winter you can read what is still possible.

Falling leaves stay on roof edges and in corners, and hold moisture there. As a result barge boards and fascia boards here often deteriorate from the top, and you only see it when the paint comes off. Overhanging branches scrape and block the sun.

So at the site visit we look at those spots too. If wood is affected, we repair or replace it before we paint. It is also worth checking whether a branch close to the facade can go: that already makes a big difference.

The frames on the north side deserve attention as well. The paint there often still looks good, but the wood can be damp inside. Probing the lower threshold with a screwdriver then tells you more than the colour of the paint.

A photo of every facade, preferably including the north side, tells us how much growth there is. Also take a photo of the roof edge and of the trees closest to the house. Add when it was last painted and in what colour.

At the site visit we probe the wood, look at the surface and discuss the colours. A colour that is lovely in full sun can turn out differently among the trees. We are happy to think along on that.

Extra cleaning and longer drying are steps that take time, and you see that in the price. A national market indication is exterior painting from €35 per m2, wood rot from €50 per spot and an exterior frame from €50 each. These are not MJA rates.

After the site visit we give you a fixed price for the agreed work. If the weather turns, we move the job rather than paint on wet wood.

The quote states exactly which steps we carry out, so the cleaning too. Watch for that when you compare quotes: a lower price without proper cleaning can mean the paint goes onto a dirty surface, and you notice that on the facade a few years later.

MJA Allround Bouw is based in Mirns and works throughout Friesland, through Wolvega also in the Stellingwerven. Mohamed Ajubi is your point of contact. We are a member of OnderhoudNL and a recognised training company, and we work with brands such as Sikkens, Sigma and Wijzonol.

Is your house among the trees and do you want to know whether it is time? Send a few photos via the quote request or call 06 3006 0558, and we will come and look.