VIPEQ Guide — Render Repair Ireland
Yes. If your external acrylic render is cracking, crazing or losing adhesion, VIPEQ natural cork thermal coating can be sprayed directly over the sound areas — without stripping the entire wall back to bare masonry. The cork forms a new flexible, vapour-permeable, crack-bridging layer that addresses the very reasons acrylic render fails.
Acrylic render is a thin, polymer-modified coating prized for a smooth, modern finish. But in the Irish climate it has a common weakness: it is relatively rigid. As a building moves with thermal expansion and contraction, the acrylic layer cannot flex — so it cracks. Once cracks open, driving rain enters behind the render, and the freeze-thaw cycle through winter widens those cracks and breaks the bond between render and substrate. Over time, sections go hollow, delaminate, and begin to fall away.
Other common causes of acrylic render failure include UV embrittlement of the binder, moisture trapped behind an impermeable layer, poor original substrate preparation, and incompatible coatings applied over existing paint or unstable surfaces. The result is the same: a cracked, patchy, tired-looking facade that continues to deteriorate.
The trap with conventional repair
The standard fix is to strip everything off and re-render with the same rigid material — only for the cracks to return in a few years as the cycle repeats. VIPEQ breaks that cycle by applying a flexible, cork-based coating instead.
VIPEQ Thermal Corkspray is a spray-applied natural cork thermal coating. It is not a rigid render — it contains natural cork granules suspended in a flexible resin binder. That flexibility is the key difference: where acrylic render cracks under thermal movement, the cork coating stretches and bridges those micro-movements without splitting.
It is also vapour-permeable. Unlike acrylic render, which can trap moisture behind an impermeable film, the cork coating lets the wall breathe — so any moisture within the masonry can escape rather than building up and forcing the coating off. This breathability is especially important for Irish properties, where driving rain and high humidity mean walls are regularly wet.
The critical test is whether the existing render is still bonded to the wall. Tap the surface: a solid, dull sound means the render is well-adhered and can be over-coated. A hollow, drum-like sound means that section has delaminated and must be removed and made good before the cork is applied. You do not need to remove every trace of the old render — only the loose, hollow or crumbling areas.
Heavily chalked, flaking or peeling paint on top of the render should also be removed, and any biological growth (algae, moss) treated. Once the wall is stable, clean and primed, the cork is machine-sprayed in a continuous layer — typically 3–6mm — forming a new seamless facade over the entire surface.
Assessment
The wall is tapped and inspected for hollow, delaminated or structurally cracked sections. We identify what must come off and what can stay.
Remove loose render
Hollow and crumbling sections of acrylic render are cut out. The areas are made good with a compatible repair mortar to create a stable, flush substrate.
Clean & treat
The surface is cleaned to remove dirt, algae, efflorescence and biological growth. Any flaking paint is removed.
Fill wider cracks
Cracks wider than approximately 1mm are filled and stabilised. Hairline cracks are bridged by the cork coating itself.
Bonding primer
A primer is applied to ensure strong adhesion between the existing acrylic render and the incoming cork coating.
Spray cork coating
VIPEQ Thermal Corkspray is machine-applied in a 3–6mm seamless layer, giving a new flexible, weather-resistant, thermally improved render finish.
Send us photographs of your exterior walls and we will assess whether the render is sound enough to over-coat with VIPEQ cork — free, no obligation.