How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your home in Lexington has to be refreshed, a fresh coat of exterior paint is a quick, affordable option to improve its appearance. So if your house is starting to look worn down or if you are simply ready for something different, consider repainting the exterior of your house yourself or hire a local painter to do it for you.

Painting a home is a big job, but it isn’t an impossible job for most homeowners. You just need to do your research to understand how to prepare the exterior surface by scheduling residential pressure washing, as well as what brushes and paints you need to use.

You can partner with a painter by completing all of the prep work on your own, but then having their team come to your home and do the actual painting with their tools, safety equipment and professionally selected paint.

Whichever direction is right for you, you will still want to know how to prepare your home for painting. Here are the most important things to remember.

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Choose which parts of the home to paint, gather the ladders and all other necessary safety equipment. If you are preparing to do the painting yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a plan will make the actual painting go much faster as soon as you begin. Gathering your tools ahead of time ensures that when you begin painting, you won’t have to stop and search for all of the supplies, meaning you’ll be able to maintain a wet edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The fun part of painting your home’s exterior is choosing the color or color combination. You’ll also want to choose the right paint finishes for all parts of the house. Latex is a lot better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It’s a lot less messy and much easier to clean up. The flat surfaces need more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss. You’ll want synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are also efficient options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it is time to begin prepping the surface of your house for its brand new paint! Put time into pressure washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to wash off any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure water is the best way to eliminate peeling paint, and it also cleans the exterior of your house. Some of the areas of paint may peel right off as you spray them. That’s a sign that the paint was deteriorating and needed to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the original paint has been loosened, get more of it off the house with a metal or plastic straight edge, being careful not to dig deep into the wood surface. Then sand bumpy surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t necessary to sand each surface down to the bare wood. Any sections where the paint is still adhered just need to be tended to and have the edges sanded so the new paint goes on the home smoothly.
5. Prime. Don’t skip priming! Primer is an important step because it conceals any previous paint (especially important with dark colors), results in an even color for your new paint, and a smoother surface with less imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the first layer of paint won’t mix with it or leave behind a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint on the best day. A professional painter can look at the forecast and tell you the most opportune day for applying exterior paint. That’s why they’re professionals! If you plan to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, and with very little humidity. This will lead to the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

Not only can a brand new paint job make your home look several years newer, it also creates a layer of protection to the overall exterior of your house.

Paint can help prevent insects from eating or clawing into your home’s exterior. It also prevents wear and tear from the elements. High quality paint prevents wood from rotting and dirt won’t stick to paint the way it does to wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious sign that it is time to be replaced. If your paint is peeling, you need to have it repainted in order to protect the wood surface.

Worn paint takes a toll on your home’s appearance. If you’re concerned about curb appeal, painting your house is one of the simplest things you can do.

Painting is also a good idea if your house doesn’t seem to “fit in” in the neighborhood (but you want it to). If your home’s exterior color makes it stand out, or if the opposite is true and you want it to stand out, a different color can completely change its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Lexington

After the prepping is done, you have the option to hand the project over to a professional painter in Lexington (if you hadn’t already decided that from the start!). Hiring a painter is cost effective. It also ensures that the results will exceed your expectations with minimal effort on your part.

Hiring a local painter to paint your home has several obvious benefits:

• A professional painter knows the optimal way to do the job, which means the paint will look much better and the project will be done a lot faster.
• Pros don’t make a mess. Their results will be much neater, with no excess paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Because of their skill and knowledge, your new exterior paint will probably last a lot longer than if you painted yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment required to paint areas above ground level.

Depending on your DIY skills and interests, you can trust your painter to do all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most pros are prepared to take care of each part of the job, from eliminating old paint and pressure washing the exterior to applying the new paint.