How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Norfolk has to be updated, a new coat of exterior paint is a quick, inexpensive way to improve its appearance. So if your house is looking shabby or if you are just ready for something different, consider painting the outside of your house yourself or pay a professional painter to do it for you.

Painting a house is a huge project, but it isn’t an impossible job for most homeowners. You just need to do your research to know how to prep the exterior surface by scheduling residential pressure washing, as well as what type of brushes and paints you need to use.

You can even team up with a professional painter by doing all of the prep work yourself, but then having their team come to your home and do the painting with their tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

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

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Decide which parts to paint, gather the ladders and all other necessary safety equipment. If you are preparing to do the painting by yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a clear plan will make the painting project go a lot faster once you begin. Gathering your tools beforehand guarantees that once you start painting, you won’t have to stop and look for all of the supplies, meaning that you’ll be able to maintain a wet brush edge the entire time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The most fun part of painting your home’s exterior is choosing the color or color combo. You will also need to pick the right paint finishes for all parts of the house. Latex is better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It is less messy and much easier to clean up. The flat surfaces require more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss. You’ll need synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are efficient options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it is time to start prepping the surface of the house for its brand new paint! Invest time into power washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to loosen any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure is the best way to remove old paint, and it cleans the outside of your house. Some of the areas of paint may peel right off as you spray over them. That’s a sure sign that the paint was aging and needed to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the original paint has been loosened, scrape it off the house with a plastic or metal straight edge, being diligent not to dig into the wood surface. Then sand bumpy surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t necessary to sand every surface all the way down to the bare wood. Any areas where the paint is still adhered just need to be cleaned and have the edges sanded so the new paint goes on smoothly.
5. Prime. Don’t skip priming! Primer is an important part of preparation because it covers up any previous paint (especially important with dark colors), results in an even color for your new paint, and a smooth surface with less imperfections throughout. Let the primer dry according to the directions so that the first layer of paint won’t mix with it or leave behind a rough patch on the surface.
6. Plan to paint in good weather. A professional painter is able to look at the forecast and determine the most opportune day for painting a house. That’s why they’re professionals! If you want to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is somewhere between 75 and 85 degrees, with very little humidity. This will lead to the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

Not only will a new paint job make your house look several years newer, it also adds a layer of protection to the overall structure of your house.

Paint can help prevent pests from eating or clawing into your home’s exterior. It also stops wear and tear from inclement weather. High quality paint stops wood from rotting and dirt cannot adhere to paint the way it does to bare wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious signal that it is time to be replaced. If paint is peeling, you really need to have it repainted to protect the wood surface.

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

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

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Norfolk

After the prepping is finished, you might want to turn the work over to a professional painter in Norfolk (if you hadn’t already decided that from the start!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also guarantees that the results will exceed expectations with less effort on your part.

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

• A professional painter will know the best way to do the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will go a lot faster.
• Pros don’t typically make a big mess. Their results will be much neater, without extra paint splattered or spilled around home.
• Because of their skill and experience, your new exterior paint will likely last longer than if you did the job by yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment needed to paint surfaces higher than ground level.

Based on your DIY skills and interests, you can trust your painter to do all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most pros are fully prepared to handle every part of the project, from eliminating old paint and cleaning the exterior to actually applying the new paint.