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A Paint
Professional's Guide to Exterior Painting
Tips for Ensuring a Professional Exterior Paint
Job when Painting Your House
By Mark J. Donovan
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Early summer and late summer/early fall are great
times for exterior painting. Paint professionals prefer these times of the year
for exterior painting, because the weather is warm and typically drier. Rain and
high moisture levels wreak havoc with painting as not only do they delay or
interrupt exterior painting projects they also prevent the paint from adhering
well to the house siding.
Exterior house painting can involve three levels of effort (1) painting just the
trim, (2) painting just the house siding, or (3) painting both the house siding
and trim.
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Summarized below is a paint professional’s guide to
exterior painting. By following these tips you can
ensure a quality paint job that will last for years.
The first step in any exterior house painting project is
to repair any damaged house siding or trim work.
Either replace the damaged areas outright or repair
them by using epoxies or wood fillers. Also if the
home has shutters remove them from the home and
paint them on the ground separately.
Also if any of the old paint is chipping use a wire
brush to remove it. Make sure to use safety glasses
during this process. Also, if the home is old first
test the old paint for lead content before doing any
scraping. If there is lead in it and it is flaking
off you should contact a lead abatement professional
first before painting the home.
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The next critical step in the professional guide to
exterior painting is to thoroughly clean the house siding. A pressure washer
works best for cleaning house siding, but always use it on its lowest pressure
setting, hold the nozzle downwards at all times, and start from the bottom of
the house and work your way upwards.
After making all the necessary structural repairs to the house siding and trim,
it’s important to prepare the house and the surrounding area for painting.
Remove any items around the perimeter of the home that you could trip over or
interfere with you during your painting such as barbecue grills, hoses, and
children toys.
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Also remove any exterior house light fixtures or
tape over their edges. Place drop cloths over the
shrubs, patios, sidewalks and decks.
If the home has never been exterior painted or
you’re painting old aluminum siding then prime the
siding first before painting it. A primer helps to
ensure that the paint will adhere well to the house.
Once the house has been cleaned and primed you’re
ready for painting. Even though the paint cans may
have been shaken at the paint store always stir the
paint prior to applying it. Also, when using
multiple cans of paint, even of the same paint
color, it is wise to mix a few gallons of them
together into a larger paint bucket to ensure an
even and consistent color on the house.
Any exterior painting project should start at the
top of the house. Start your painting at the roof
eaves and work your way downward. By doing this you
will prevent any inadvertent drips over freshly
painted wall surfaces. Also try to paint on the
shady side of the house at all times so that the
paint has time to dry more slowly.
Window and door trim, along with rake and fascia
boards, should be done after the house siding has
been completed.
Once you’ve completed the exterior painting step
back and look for any necessary touch up spots. Also
reattach the painted shutters if necessary. Once the
touch ups are complete you can begin the clean up
process of removing the drop clothes and attaching
any light fixtures.
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