Painting the house is one of those jobs that people love – at least they love it after it’s finished. The work itself involves multiple steps and can take some time. For this reason, you don’t want to perform a paint job any more often than absolutely necessary. Here are seven tips for exterior painting that will allow your work to keep looking good for the longest possible time.
1. Prep, and prep some more
Professional painters know that preparation is often a more time-consuming job than the actual painting. To get good results, make sure all surfaces are clean and dry. Scrape peeling paint and sand where necessary. Remove mold and mildew. Clear away shrubbery and tree branches that could get into the wet paint. The better the surface is prepared, the better – and longer-lasting – your paint job will be.
2. Paint at optimal times
Exterior paint does best when the temperature is between 60 and 85 degrees. Spring and fall are good times to paint, as are days in the summer that aren’t too hot. Temperature is a big factor in how well paint adheres to surfaces. Also watch weather forecasts and work when no rain is expected for at least several days.
3. Use a good primer
When you put on a primer coat, you’re giving your paint a much better surface on which to make a tight bond and significantly reduce the chances of it peeling. Plus the final finish will appear much smoother and more uniform in color. If you use a primer-and-paint all in one product, make sure to apply two coats.
4. Buy good paint
For exteriors, 100 percent acrylic latex paint is the best. You’ll get great adhesion and durability with long-term retention of color. When you buy a top brand such as Benjamin Moore or Sherwin-Williams, you can expect your paint job to last 10 or more years.
5. Colors and weather
Vibrant, bright colors tend to lose their luster more quickly than earthy tones, so keep that in mind when selecting your color scheme. Ideally the walls should have a basic, conservative shade that will hold up for many years. If you use vivid colors for trim, you may have to repaint them at one point, but it’s a lot easier to paint just the trim than the whole house again.
6. Don’t be stingy in applying the paint
Regardless what kind of paint you use and how many coats you apply, make sure to apply paint liberally. Thick coats will last and look good much longer than thin, miserly coats. And remember to never add water to latex exterior paint. The paint is developed with the ideal consistency in the factory and should be used as-is right out of the can.
7. Do you need an extra coat?
This is another area where skimping won’t pay off. Two good, thick coats of paint will provide much better protection against the elements than a single coat. The whole idea here is to keep you from having to paint any more than is necessary, so do a little extra work up front and enjoy it for many more years.
Franklin Painting of Farmington, Conn., is ready to help with any residential paint project that’s bigger than you want to tackle or for which you need a true professional touch. Call (877) 646-7774 and find out how we can bring amazing results to your home.
