FAQs - spraying UPVC windows

Absolutely! Prior to around 2015 your only option would have been to use a plastic paint which would fade or crack after a few years’ exposure to the weather, but today’s high-tech, speciality paints give you a beautiful, inexpensive and durable finish at a fraction of the cost of replacing your doors and windows (up to 80%!), saving you thousands of pounds.

First, you’ll save thousands of pounds (up to 80%!) compared to the cost of replacement. Second, it’s much more environmentally-friendly than dumping your existing (very hard to recycle) windows and doors on a landfill.

Third, it will make your doors and windows more durable and resistant to sunlight, weather and atmospheric pollutants, adding years to their life. Fourth, it will enhance your property’s appearance and make it look more modern, adding to its resale value.

And fifth, the whole process can usually be done in two days, saving you a lot of hassle, disruption and multiple days of having contractors on your property. It’s the economical and hassle-free option.

Not all companies spraying UPVC windows are the same. Click this link to see what makes us different and why you should give your hard-earned cash to us and not somebody else.

“How much does spraying UPVC windows cost?” is probably the #1 FAQ. Obviously it depends on the number of doors and windows to be sprayed plus whether there are any accessibility issues, i.e. how easy or difficult is it to get at them.

We’d have to see your property to give you an exact quote, but most ‘normal’-sized properties cost around  £800 for the front, a little more if you want fascias, gutters and drainpipes included. Contact us for a no-obligation quote. And don’t worry, we have a strict policy of non-harassment; we won’t hound you every five minutes asking you if you want us to do the job.

We’d draw the line at working Christmas Day, but working on a Saturday or Sunday is no problem for us if they’re the only days that suit you. And what’s more, we won’t charge you any extra!

There shouldn’t be. Our sprayers are fastidious and will remove or cover anything that doesn’t need spraying, including all surrounding brickwork. For your peace of mind, we’ll give you the opportunity to sign-off on our masking before we apply a drop of paint, so you can be confident  there’ll be no overspray.

Plus, we use modern, HVLP sprayers, which minimises the risk of overspray (if you want to know more about this, see the next FAQ).

And after they’ve finished the job our sprayers will clean up everything and remove all rubbish, including all masking materials. You won’t be able to tell we’ve been (apart from the incredible, fantastic-looking doors and windows, of course!).

The first type of equipment used for spraying UPVC windows and doors was called ‘Airless’. This is because the spray consisted of 100% paint, blasted at high speed. The advantage of this is that it takes less time to spray a window, but it’s harder to control overspray, so the chance of spray ending up on your glass or brickwork is increased.

Because of this speed/time benefit, airless equipment is still preferred by many companies, but the next generation of equipment was HVLP.

This stands for HIgh Volume, Low Pressure. With HVLP, the paint is mixed with a high volume of air at relatively low pressure, producing a very fine atomisation that gives a flawless finish. The reduced pressure makes sure that an increased percentage of the paint sticks to the window or door, reducing overspray and the chance that your window panes or brickwork will be contaminated.

Obviously it depends on the size of the job, but most ‘normal’-sized properties will be completed in a two days. We appreciate that having your doors and windows sprayed disrupts your household and we aim to keep the time taken to an absolute minimum. Once we’re at your property you’ll have our undivided attention for the whole time; there’ll be no ‘nipping off’ for an hour to see another customer.

And if we haven’t  completed the job by the end of the promised time and you’re OK with it, we’ll stay on site and keep working until the job’s finished, at no extra charge to you. That way we’ll minimise the disruption to your household and get you fully functioning as quickly as possible.

“How long will spraying my UPVC windows last?” is the #2 FAQ.

It really depends on who you use. If you use a sprayer who skips sanding and simply uses a cheap plastic UPVC paint you can buy over the counter in a DIY store, it will look fine immediately it’s been applied, but after a couple of years’ exposure to sunlight, the weather and atmospheric pollutants it will crack and fade. Our high-tech, speciality paints actually create a chemical reaction with the UPVC which means they bond with the frames rather than simply lying on top of them as a coat. A professionally done job should last twenty years.

Our paint supplier guarantees their product for ten years. Most sprayers simply pass on the paint manufacturer’s guarantee (ask them about this) but in addition we also match it with a ten year guarantee on our work; so if the paint cracks, peels or fades we’ll respray it for free. Ask other sprayers if they can say the same. The coyboys will always offer you a guarantee on the paint, but if they’ve used cheap plastic paint it won’t be worth the paper it’s written on. What will you do if they’re nowhere to be found and not answering the phone?

You can have any colour you like. ‘Anfield Red’ or ‘Toffee Blue’ to match your football allegiance? ‘Canary Yellow’ if you originate from Norwich? The same as next door to give a pleasing ‘neighbourhood aesthetic’? Your wish is our command, although most customers opt for black or a shade of grey.

Visit www.ralcolor.com or www.ralcolorchart.com to see the range of colours available. The two sites have the same information but in a different format; you may prefer one over the other.

Although “Can you spray white UPVC windows grey?” seems very specific, it’s something we get asked a lot. The answer is, no problem. In fact, anthracite grey is the most popular colour our customers choose, to give their property a clean, modern look. It really transforms the look of your property and makes it stand apart from everything else in the street.

You can have Matt (10% shine) or Satin  (30%).  The split is about 50/50

We accept cash, bank transfer, credit and debit cards and Paypal. Did you know that Paypal now allows you to spread the cost of anything over £99 interest-free over 4 months?

All you need do is move any vehicles out of the driveway (if applicable) and any large items of patio furniture. But if you live on your own and can’t manage it don’t worry, we’ll do it for you. There’s no need for you to clean the frames, we’ll do that with speciality cleaning products to remove the layers of pollutant that will have built up over the years.

We’re based in Liverpool but we cover Merseyside and the whole of the northwest, including Manchester. In fact, we’ve sometimes travelled much further afield and stayed overnight, so if you live elsewhere in the country don’t be afraid to ask for a quote.

It’s possible you’ve just found the deal of the century, but it’s much more likely your quote provider’s intending to cut corners somewhere: shoddy masking, old-fashioned sprayers, no sanding, cheap plastic paint. The list of potential problems is endless. Check if your quote includes all the steps in our UPVC spraying process (click this link to find out more); if they skip more than one or two steps, don’t touch them with a bargepole. But the choice is yours. It all depends on whether you want to take the risk of saving a couple of hundred pounds now, only to have the whole job redone in a few years.