If you've been saying "I really need to paint my house" then this blog is for you!
The most important part of painting a house is what you do BEFORE the paint even hits the surface - the prep work! Extensive prep work makes for a beautiful, smooth, finished product. Painting over an un-prepped surface will result in your new paint job looking just as rough as it did before!
If you're not an experienced painter, it can be very easy to get overwhelmed if you decide to tackle painting the exterior of your house. A common misconception is that it's just throwing up a couple coats of paint and you're done. A properly prepped and painted house can last up to 10 years. Whether you use this post to do it yourself or just to learn about our processes, we're going to take you step by step through painting the exterior of a house. Let's get started!
Preparing your house for paint:
Before you start, check the weather! You'll want to pick a dry weekend where the humidity and chance of rain is low to ensure the paint dries nicely
The New England summer and fall should offer the best weather to paint your house. Late morning when there is no dew or early afternoon before the sun starts to go down are typically the best times to paint to ensure a proper drying.
House will be pressure washed with an environmentally friendly bleach and water mixture to remove all dirt, mold, and mildew to prepare the surface
We soak all surrounding plants and vegetation down before starting with any chemicals to help preserve them. We then wash the house down with a low pressure tip on our machine and an environmentally friendly bleach and water mixture. The low pressure tip will ensure a thorough clean that will not damage the substrate. We also soak the plants and vegetation again after the wash just to ensure that no chemicals are left on them.
All areas where loose, peeling paint is present will be scraped and sanded to ensure a smooth looking surface
Before you start scraping and sanding, it is a good idea to cover the surrounding ground and/or vegetation with plastic/drop cloths to make for easy clean up of paint chips and other debris that falls.
If there are any rotting or cracked boards they will be replaced. If rot repair is needed, we will then orchestrate a carpenter. All areas that are sanded to bare wood will be spot primed and all gaps where the siding meets the trim will be caulked for a water tight and seamless appearance. You will also want to remove any obstructions before painting. This includes things like house numbers, mailboxes, etc.
Painting:
After all the prep work is completed, one or two full coats will be applied to the body, trim, and doors (applied via spraying, brushing, or rolling)
Be sure to paint from the top down so that wet paint doesn't drip down on freshly painted areas. We typically start with the siding working our way from the top down and then move on to the trim afterwards.
After:
Upon completion of the job, a walk through should be conducted to ensure that everything looks satisfactory and to find any areas that may need touch ups
As stated before, painting the exterior of a home can be a bit overwhelming. If the DIY process seems out of reach, contact us and our team will take care of everything for you! Check out our gallery to see some of our exterior projects.
Thank you for reading, stay tuned for our next blog post! Feel free to comment any questions/comments/suggestions.
Phone: (1) 855-PAINT-11
E-Mail: admin@granitestatepainters.com
Or Click Here to request a FREE estimate online!