House and Villa Painters in Phuket Town

What kinds of buildings need painting in Phuket Town?

Phuket Town differs from the other zones in our painting service areas across Phuket in one main way: most of the buildings are old. Painters in Phuket Town meet three broad groups of property. The first is the Sino-Portuguese shophouses of Phuket Old Town, on Thalang Road, Dibuk Road, Krabi Road, Phang Nga Road, Yaowarat Road and Soi Romanee. The second is the older detached houses and colonial-style mansions that stand in their own walled gardens. The third is a mix of commercial blocks, offices, small hotels and family homes on the slopes around Khao Rang.

Owners of private homes can see the whole scope on the house and villa painting page. Shop owners, boutique hotels and offices should look at painting for commercial and business premises.

What should be checked on a Sino-Portuguese shophouse before painting?

An old-town shophouse is narrow at the front, runs deep and shares its side walls with the neighbours. The facade carries stucco mouldings, columns, arches and decorated capitals. Three checks come before any colour goes on.

1. Old paint layers and the plaster surface. Walls that have been repainted many times often carry a thick build-up that lifts in sheets. That build-up is scraped back to a firm layer, and chalky plaster receives a primer made for aged masonry.
2. Moisture in the wall. Deep shophouses with little daylight commonly show damp marks low on the walls. When a painter finds a stain that keeps returning, the owner is told to have the cause dealt with by a specialist before painting.
3. Stucco detail. Cutting in around mouldings is small-brush work and takes longer than a flat wall, so the quotation counts decorative areas as a separate fine-work item.

Because old-town facades may fall under local rules on colour and style, building owners should confirm what is allowed with Phuket City Municipality before settling on a shade.

How is the timber on old Phuket Town houses looked after?

Folding shopfront doors, louvred upstairs shutters, carved entrance doors and timber upper floors give Phuket Town shophouses their character. The same parts wear quickly where afternoon sun and driving rain reach them. A louvred shutter has dozens of slats, and each slat is sanded and coated on both faces. Owners can keep the traditional solid colour or choose a stain that shows the grain. The method for each is set out under our wood painting and staining service.

How do narrow streets and the five-foot way affect scaffolding?

Many old-town streets are one-way with very little kerbside parking. In front of each shophouse runs the covered arcade that Phuket people call the five-foot way, which pedestrians use all day. For facade painting that leads to several practical rules.

• Scaffolding is set up so the walkway stays open, and is sheeted so no paint drips onto people or passing cars.
• Materials are best carried in early in the morning, before the shops open.
• Thalang Road closes to traffic for the walking street market on Sunday evenings, so facade work on that road is cleared away before then.
• Where shophouses share a wall, the painter cuts a clean colour line at the join with the next unit, and the owner should let the neighbours know in advance.

Scaffolding is quoted as its own line, separate from the painting. The height and the space available are assessed on the survey day. The scope for outside walls is described under exterior painting for houses and buildings.

How much does the sea at Saphan Hin affect paint in town?

Phuket Town lies on the east side of the island. The nearest sea is at Saphan Hin, a shallow bay with far gentler wind and waves than the Andaman coast. Buildings near Saphan Hin and the lower end of Phuket Road still receive some salt air, so wrought-iron grilles, balcony rails and roller shutters deserve a rust check each time they are repainted. In the centre of town and around Khao Rang, the main causes of wear are different: strong sun that fades colour, traffic soot, and algae on walls squeezed so close to the next building that sunlight never reaches them.

How do you arrange a visit to a property in Phuket Town?

Phuket Pro Painters travels to the building to measure it at no charge. Owners in the old town should say in advance whether there is anywhere to park and at what hours the shop trades. After the survey, a written quotation shows surface preparation and scaffolding as clear separate items. Our painters have more than 10 years of experience, and the workmanship warranty that applies after handover follows the terms stated in that quotation.

Estate houses and townhouses east of the centre are a different kind of job, covered on the page about painters in Rassada. For houses and condos further north along Thepkrasattri Road, see painting work in Koh Kaew.