DH Painter & Decorator paints metal gates, railings and steel garage doors in East Hunsbury, NN4, a short drive south of Northampton town centre. The estates here are not railing-fronted, so most of the work is garage doors, side gates and commercial or community railings.
A suburb without railed front gardens
If you picture metal railing work, you might imagine the Victorian terraces nearer the town centre, with cast-iron railings set into low front walls. East Hunsbury is different. Its houses date mainly from the 1980s and 1990s, set back behind open-plan front gardens and drives, so there are very few railings at the front of homes. The metalwork that does need painting turns up in other places, and it is worth knowing where before you call so the visit covers everything at once.
Steel up-and-over garage doors
For many homes the largest metal surface on the property is the garage door. Sales and letting listings for streets such as Stanford Way and Thames Road mention detached and single garages, and steel up-and-over doors are common on houses of this era. After 30-odd years their factory finish has usually chalked or faded, and rust starts where the coating has been scratched, at the bottom edge and around the handle. Repainting one involves:
- washing off chalking and grime so primer can grip
- wire brushing and sanding rust spots back to bright metal
- a rust-inhibiting primer on bare steel, or a primer made for galvanised surfaces where the zinc coat is still intact
- two finish coats in a colour that suits the front door and neighbouring brick
The door has to be propped open and closed during the job to reach the edges, so we work with you on when the garage is out of use.
Wrought-iron side gates and garden metalwork
Occasional wrought-iron or mild steel side gates turn up in place of timber ones, and some gardens may have metal arches or short runs of decorative railing. These pieces sit low, near damp soil and planting, and often near gardens that back onto the green corridors around Grangewood Park and the brook, where shade keeps them wet. The hinge pins and the bottom of the uprights usually rust first. We take loose rust and flaking paint back to sound metal, prime the bare spots and repaint, and we ease seized hinges where we can. Our main metal gate and railing painting page explains how preparation differs by metal type.
Railings at shops, schools and community buildings
Beyond the houses, the suburb has two retail centres, at Butts Road beside Blacky More and on the Merefield site off Mere Way, along with Blacky More Community Centre, Hunsbury Library and two primary schools. Sites like these often have guard rails, bollards, handrails and boundary fencing in painted steel. Work on them has to fit around opening hours, term times and room bookings, and wet paint near a school gate or a shop entrance needs clear signage and a sensible order of working so people can always get past. We are happy to quote for small runs of commercial or community railing as well as private gates.
Picking a colour for metal on a brick street
Because the metal here is mostly a garage door or a side gate seen beside facing brick and a front door, colour choice is about the whole frontage rather than the item on its own. Many owners match the garage door to the front door, or choose a dark grey, black or deep green that recedes against the brick. White steel doors show rust staining and dirt quickly, so a mid or dark shade is easier to live with. We can look at the house with you before ordering paint.
To see what else we cover locally, visit our East Hunsbury page.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
