Comparison
Bodaq® film vs repainting and replacement
Architectural film wins where the substrate is sound and the space has to keep working: it goes on dry, in hours rather than days, with no wet trades and no tear-out. Repainting is still the right call for large flat painted areas on a budget, and replacement is right when the substrate itself has failed or the layout is changing.
The comparison
| Bodaq film | Repaint | Relaminate | Replace | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demolition | None | None | Strip-back required | Full tear-out |
| Typical downtime | Hours to a night shift | Days, plus cure and odour | Days, usually off site | Weeks, with lead times |
| Wet trades | No | Yes | Adhesives, off site | Varies |
| Dust and fumes | Minimal | Solvent or low-VOC odour | Off site | Significant |
| Curved and profiled work | Wraps — 220% elongation across the roll | Yes | Limited without postforming | Yes, fabricated |
| Finish range | 468 patterns including stone, metal, textile | Colour only | Wide | Widest |
| Existing substrate | Retained | Retained | Retained or partly | To landfill |
Downtime is usually the real number
On an occupied asset the cost that matters is rarely the finish — it is the room, the floor or the lift being out of service. A film install is dry, so there is no cure period before the space goes back into use and no odour to ventilate. A lift car can be refinished on a night shift. A hotel floor can be turned room by room without closing the floor. Where that is the constraint, film usually wins on total cost even before the finish is compared.
Where paint is still the better answer
Paint is hard to beat on large, flat, already-painted wall areas where a colour change is all that is wanted, where the budget is tight, and where the programme has room for cure and ventilation. Paint also handles irregular and textured surfaces that film cannot follow cleanly. If the surface is plaster with a texture, or the geometry is complex and fussy, paint is the sensible choice.
Where replacement is still the better answer
If the substrate has failed — water-damaged board, delaminating carcasses, blown edges — film will not fix it and will make the failure look deliberate. The same applies when the layout is changing, when the joinery is the wrong size or configuration, or when the existing units are simply at the end of their life. Film resurfaces; it does not rebuild.
What drives cost
We quote rather than publish rates, because the honest drivers are project-specific:
- Pattern and quantity — the code you choose and how much of it you need.
- Surface complexity — flat casework is quick; profiled millwork, bullnoses and cut-arounds take time.
- Preparation — the condition of what is underneath is the biggest swing factor.
- Access and hours — night and phased work costs more than an empty floor.
Send us the scope and we will price it properly. For material data behind the comparison, see performance and test data.