“There is no place like home.” This is a quote that most of us love using. Without a doubt, home is the place where we are most comfortable at; our ideal place to relax and just be ourselves. Like William J. Bennett said, “Home is a shelter from storms – all sorts of storms.” Yet, if your home is to be comfortable, then you need to keep it clean and attractive. A messy home can prevent you from relaxing to the full, especially after a long day at work.
However, while most of us are keen and effective when it comes to cleaning the inside of the house, we tend to forget one major area: the outside. One way you can enhance the curb appeal of your home is by painting the exterior of your house. Painting your house exterior not only adds a bit of appeal and refresh to your outdoors, but also adds the overall value of your home.
So are you wondering how you can get the best way to paint the exterior of a house? The good news is you can actually do it yourself, and save yourself a lot of cash while you’re at it! In this article, we take you through seven simple steps in how you can transform your house exterior into a beautiful, eye-catching one. Read on!
Step 1: Prepare the Surface
Did you know that 95% of all good painting is due to having a good and well-prepared surface? So unless you want your house exterior paint job coming out too messy and uneven, you need to prepare the surface first. Going straight to the painting is not recommended, as it doesn’t promote a professional-looking finish.
The first step to preparing your house’s surface is giving it a good general cleaning. Remove all the dirt, dust, mold and mildew from the walls, windows and the roof. You can remove all mold and mildew by spraying with chlorine bleach solution. Such good preparation ensures even distribution of the paint and prime.
Step 2: Remove Flaking or Chipping Paint
Before you can start painting your house, check for any areas where the existing paint is curling up, chipping or peeling. Then, using a wire brush and a paint scraper, scrape off all the loose paint to create a smooth surface. Also, look for any cracks or joints, especially in areas where an exterior material type meets another. Such areas include the window frames, fascia boards and door frames. Patch up these chips with new stucco and recaulk all seals.
Step 3: Prime the Surface
The main purpose of applying a primer is to ensure that the paint adheres properly to the exterior of your house. Paint experts recommend using quality sealers to prime the surface of a house. Compared with most primes, sealers have a higher resin content. Hence, they go perfectly over old paint, locking everything well and creating a smooth surface where the new paint can adhere to.
For painted walls that are dusty or chalky, you would do well to use a chalky wall sealer. On the other hand, for new walls that have never been painted, use latex primers. Also, remember to check the label on the sealer or primer for information on how long you should wait after priming, so you can start painting.
Step 4: Use a Good Exterior Paint
There are hundreds of exterior paints sold in the market today. Yet, not all of these are guaranteed to create an attractive appearance for your home exterior. Therefore, it is crucial that you choose a quality exterior paint. A good paint should contain the following three components:
- Solvents – These make it easy to spread the paint
- Pigments – They provide the paint color
- Binders – These adhere the pigments to the exterior walls.
Also, you would do well to choose paints with higher volume solids; the binders and pigments that are left when the paint dries off. Such paints have better binders, which means better durability and longevity of the paint.
Step 5: Choose Your Paint Colors
When it comes to choosing the right paint color for your home, the decision can be quite overwhelming. I mean, there is such a wide range of color selection to choose from. To make it easier to choose your paint color, try setting aside some time to drive around your neighborhood and see what color choices appeal most to you.
It is advisable that you go for paint colors that complement the bricks (or stone accents) and roofing material of your house. Still, you can match the painting with your personality, as long as it matches with the surface of your house. However, note that while vibrant colors tend to appear attractive, these fade much sooner than other muted colors.
Step 6: Start Painting
After preparing the surface and choosing your ideal paint color, you can now begin painting your house exterior. The best method for painting exterior walls is by spraying and back-rolling. It is the most recommended method since it provides an even finish, especially on rough and textured surfaces. However, for this painting technique, you will require two people; the first person sprays the paint on the surface and spreads it, while the second person rolling over the paint to adhere it to the surface.
When using the spray and back-roll method, remember to protect your windows. Before you start spraying, cover them well with plastic. Also, for better final results, you can apply a second paint coat once the initial coat has dried out.
Step 7: Finishing Touches
After painting the exterior walls, you can then proceed to painting the shutters, doors, molding, fascia, or other home decorative details. All you need to complete these finishing touches is a good brush and a steady hand. However, to get a professional finishing, you need to be willing to put in the extra effort and time. Also, once you are completely done, clean up everything: remove the painter’s tape, clean all the brushes and tools used, seal paint cans and scrape off any residual paint from the windows.
Indeed, there are few things that can give your home a perfect makeover than painting the exterior of your home. Paint that has been applied superbly at a house exterior helps to define its personality, give it a good curb appeal and make it very refreshing. So if you are looking for the kind of home that supports the belief that ‘there is no place like home,’ then start applying the above steps on the best way to paint the exterior of a house.