How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Augusta has to be updated, a fresh coat of paint is an easy, inexpensive option to improve its appearance. So if your house is starting to look worn down or if you’re simply ready for something different, consider repainting the exterior of your house yourself or hire a professional painter to do it for you.

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

You can meet in the middle with a painter by completing all the prep work yourself, but then letting their crew come to your home and do the actual painting with their best tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

Whichever option is best 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 to paint, collect the ladders and other safety equipment. If you are planning to do the painting yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a clear plan will help to make the actual painting project go much faster as soon as you begin. Collecting your tools beforehand guarantees that once you start painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and search for needed supplies, meaning you’ll be able to maintain a wet brush edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The most fun part of painting your house is deciding the color or color combination. You will also want to pick the right paint finishes for each part of the house. Latex is better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It is less messy and much easier to clean. The flat surfaces need more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss. You’ll want to us synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are also efficient options.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it is time to start prepping the exterior of your house for its brand new paint! Invest time into pressure washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to loosen any cracked or peeling paint. The high pressure is the recommended way to eliminate old paint, and it cleans the exterior of your house. Some of the sections of paint should peel off as you spray them. That’s a sign that the paint was aging and had to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the original paint has been loosened, scrape it off with a metal or plastic straight edge, being careful not to dig deep into the wood surface. Then sand surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t important to sand each surface down to the bare wood. Any areas 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 part of preparation because it conceals any previous paint (especially important with dark colors), results in even color for your new paint, and a smoother exterior with less imperfections throughout. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original layer of paint won’t mix with it or produce a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint in good weather. A professional painter is able to look at the forecast and determine the most opportune day for applying exterior paint. That’s why they’re experts! If you want to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, and with very low humidity. This will lead to the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

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

Paint helps prevent insects from eating or boring into your home’s exterior. It also stops wear and tear from inclement weather. High quality paint prevents wood from rotting and dirt cannot adhere to paint the same way it does to wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious indication that it needs to be replaced. If your paint is peeling, you really need to go ahead and have it repainted to protect the wood beneath.

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

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

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Augusta

After the prepping is done, you might want to turn the project off to a professional painter in Augusta (if you hadn’t already chosen that from the beginning!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also guarantees that the results will exceed your expectations with little effort from you.

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

• A professional painter will know the most efficient way to do the job, meaning the paint will look much better and the project will move a lot faster.
• Pros don’t make a big mess. Their results will be much neater, with no excess paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Because of their skill and experience, your new paint will probably last longer than if you did the job yourself.
• A professional painter will have the safety equipment needed 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 project, from eliminating old paint and pressure washing the exterior to actually applying the paint.