Painting your home’s exterior is more than just a home improvement project; it’s a way to breathe life into your home’s curb appeal. A fresh coat of paint can transform a lackluster exterior into a neighborhood showstopper. But to ensure a top-notch paint job, there are some crucial preparation steps homeowners must take.
Key Takeaways
- Proper preparation is a key aspect of a successful exterior paint job, including assessing the home’s current condition and checking for damages, mold, and the current paint condition.
- Safety measures for pets and kids are vital during the painting process.
- Thorough cleaning and prepping of the surface, including removing contaminants, dust, mold, and mildew, is necessary to ensure a lasting, high-quality paint job.
- Repair of any damages, cracks, or broken exteriors should be done before painting.
- Priming the surface before the new coat of paint increases the paint’s longevity and gives it a more uniform look. Different surfaces may require different types of primer.
Assessing the Condition of Your Home’s Exterior
Inspecting for Damage
First off, a thorough evaluation of your home’s exterior is essential. Be on the scout for visible signs of damage like cracks, rot, loose materials, or any worn-out surfaces. This framework check should include all parts of your home’s exterior—siding, windowsills, doors, and other wooden elements. These damages could hinder the quality of the painting work, not to mention, prematurely degrade your new paint job.
It’s worth noting that encountering issues that aren’t simple fixes shouldn’t discourage or deter you. Instead, it’s a call to action to possibly involve painting professionals. They can advise on these issues if need be, or engage a handyman to address them before the paint job starts.
Checking for Mold or Mildew
If your home’s exterior is victim to contaminants, whether that’s lead-based paint or the presence of mold and mildew, swift action is necessary. Mold and mildew not only pose a risk to the paint’s longevity but can also affect your health. If your home was built before 1978, it might have been painted with lead-based paint, which is also a health hazard.
Remember, exterior painting isn’t simply a matter of aesthetics. It’s also a protective layer keeping your home and family safe from potential health hazards.
Evaluating the Paint Condition
Look closely at the current condition of your paint. If the surface is rough, peeling, or flaking, then it’s a signal that the exterior walls need sanding and prepping. Proper sanding is crucial to enhance the mechanical bond between the coats of paint. Consequently, this extra step prepares the surface for a fresh, uniform coat, while also adding years to your paint job’s lifespan.
Make Arrangements for Pets and Kids
When preparing for any home improvement job, especially exterior painting, it’s essential to plan arrangements for young children and pets. While house painting can be an exciting time, it isn’t always safe or suitable for the little ones or our furry friends.
Kids, out of curiosity, might head towards the painting area, which can lead to accidents or messes. On the other hand, pets could get underfoot or could potentially ingest harmful materials. None of which is desirable while getting a fresh coat of paint on your home’s exterior. Safety and convenience are why kids and pets should stay clear of the work area during painting jobs.
As an expert painting contractor, your painting project is a priority but also, keeping your family members, including pets, safe throughout the process.
Cleaning and Preparing the Surface
Preparation makes all the difference when it comes to creating a lasting, high-quality exterior painting project. To achieve desirable results, the surface must be completely clean, free of contaminants, repaired, and primed for the fresh coat.
Remove Contaminants from Existing Home Exterior Painting
If the house has existing paint, speeding up the cleaning process can be achieved by power washing the entire house. However, if the house’s siding is made of softwood, such as redwood or cedar, it needs to be cleaned carefully by hand scrubbing with detergent and water to avoid any damage.
Power Washing the Exterior
A challenge that comes with exterior painting is reaching high places and cavities that may not be easily accessible. Power washing is an effective solution for these situations. Injecting high-pressure water onto the surface, this method quickly and efficiently eliminates dirt, grime, and mildew that may have built up over time.
To maximize the benefits and minimize the risks, it’s often recommended to hire a painting contractor. Professionals are equipped with the knowledge, experience, and equipment to do the job safely while ensuring a clean surface ready for new paint.
Repairing and Priming the Exterior
The exterior painting process involves several steps, and among these, repairing damaged surfaces and priming are paramount. Let us dive deeper into these essential stages in any exterior painting project.
Repairing Broken Exteriors
Once any damage or cracks are discovered, it’s recommended to fill these in with a quality epoxy filler. This filler should be left to dry entirely before proceeding with additional preparations. It’s also worth noting that if your house’s exterior painting has been neglected for a considerable period, a professional painting contractor may be the best bet to ensure these repairs are performed accurately and safely, thus protecting the longevity of your forthcoming paint job.
Prime Anything That Hasn’t Been Primed
Following the repair work, it’s necessary to prepare the surface for the new coat of paint. Surface priming stands as a vital stage in the house painting process. Priming offers your paint the best chance to form a reliable adhesion with the surface, ensuring a more uniform look to your paint job while helping to increase the lifespan of the paint.
Different surfaces, be it wooden sidings or vinyl sidings, might require different types of primer. For instance, when working with acrylic paint, it’s best to use an acrylic primer. This primer will help to accommodate the contraction and expansion of the siding material, preventing future cracking or peeling.
Proper priming is key to achieving a result that not only looks brilliant but also withstands the tests of time and weather.
Choose Sucro Painting For Exterior Painting in Torrance, California
With our expertise in both interior and exterior painting, Sucro Painting Contractors is a trusted and reputable painting company in Torrance, California.
We are more than just a painting contractor; we are seasoned specialists investing time and skills in preparing your house for painting. So, whether it’s your weather-worn exterior needing a fresh coat, or your interiors requiring a pop of color, Sucro Painting has got it covered.
