How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your home in San Leandro needs to be updated, a new coat of exterior paint is a fast, affordable option to improve its curb appeal. So if your house is starting to look worn down or if you’re simply ready for something different, consider painting the exterior of your home yourself or enlist a professional painter to do the job for you.

Painting a home is a huge project, but it isn’t an unreasonable job for some homeowners. You have to do your research to know how to prepare 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 painter by doing all the prep work yourself, but then having their crew come in and do the painting with their best tools, safety equipment and professionally selected paint.

Whichever choice is best for you, you’ll still need to know how to prepare your home for painting. Here are the most important things to consider.

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Decide which parts of the home to paint, gather the ladders and other necessary safety equipment. If you are preparing to complete the painting by yourself, you’ll thank yourself later. Having a clear plan will help to make the painting project go much faster once you begin. Collecting your materials ahead of time ensures that once you start 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 entire time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The fun part of painting your home’s exterior is deciding the color or color combo. You will also need to choose the right paint finishes for each part of the home. Latex is better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It’s less messy and much easier to clean. The flat surfaces need more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss for the trim. You’ll need to us synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are efficient options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to start prepping the surface of the home for its beautiful new paint! Put time into power washing your home (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to remove any cracked or peeling paint. The high pressure water is the recommended way to eliminate old paint, and it cleans the exterior of your home. Some of the sections of paint should peel right off as you spray over them. That’s a sign that the paint was deteriorating 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 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 need to be cleaned and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on the home smoothly.
5. Prime. Don’t skip priming! Primer is an important step because it covers up any prior paint (especially with dark paint colors), results in even color for your new paint, and a smooth 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 weather forecast and determine the most opportune day for painting a home. That’s why they’re experts! If you plan to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, with very low humidity. This will lead to the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

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

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

Peeling paint is an obvious sign that it is time to be replaced. If your paint is peeling on your home, 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 exterior. If you’re concerned about curb appeal, painting your home is one of the best things you can do.

Painting is a good idea if your home doesn’t to “fit in” in the neighborhood. 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 paint color can change its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in San Leandro

After the prepping is over, you have the option to turn the job over to a professional painter in San Leandro (if you hadn’t already decided that from the beginning!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also ensures that the results will exceed your expectations with less effort from you.

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

• A professional painter knows the best way to complete the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will go a lot quicker.
• Companies don’t make a big mess. Their results will be much neater, with no excess paint splattered or spilled around home.
• Because of their skill and experience, your new exterior paint will likely last longer than if you painted by yourself.
• A professional painter will have the safety equipment necessary to paint surfaces higher than ground level.

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