How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Lake Forest has to be refreshed, a fresh coat of exterior paint is a fast, inexpensive way to improve its appearance. So if your home is looking shabby or if you are just ready for something different, consider painting the exterior of your house yourself or pay a local painter to do it for you.

Painting a house is a big project, but it isn’t an impossible job for some homeowners. You just have to do your research to understand how to prepare the exterior surface by scheduling residential pressure washing, as well as which brushes and paints to use.

You can also meet in the middle with a painter by completing all the prep work yourself, but then having their crew come to your home and do the painting with their tools, safety equipment and 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 remember.

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Decide which parts of the home to paint, collect the ladders and all other necessary safety equipment. If you’re preparing to do the painting by yourself, you’ll thank yourself later. Having a clear plan will make the painting go much faster as soon as you begin. Organizing your materials ahead of time guarantees that when you start painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and search for needed supplies, meaning that you’ll be able to maintain a wet edge the entire time you are painting.
2. Choose good paint and brushes. The fun part of painting your house is choosing the color or color combo. You’ll also need to choose 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 easier to clean. The flat surfaces need 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’s time to start prepping the exterior of your house for its brand new paint! Put time into pressure washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to remove any cracked or peeling paint. The high pressure water is the best way to eliminate old paint, and it cleans the exterior of your house. Some of the areas of paint may peel right off as soon 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, scrape it off with a plastic or metal straight edge, being careful not to dig deep into the wood. Then sand surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t important to sand each 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 smooth.
5. Prime. Don’t skip the primer! Primer is an important part of preparation because it conceals any prior paint (especially with dark paint colors), results in even color for your new coat, and a smooth exterior with less imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original layer of paint doesn’t mix with it or result in a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint in good weather. A professional painter is able to look at the weather forecast and find the most opportune day for painting a house. That’s why they’re professionals! If you plan to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is somewhere between 75 and 85 degrees, with very low humidity. This will result in the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

Not only does 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 can help prevent insects from eating or clawing into your home’s exterior. It also reduces wear and tear from inclement weather. Good quality paint prevents wood from rotting and dirt cannot adhere to paint the same way it does to bare wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious clue that it is time to be replaced. If paint is peeling, you need to go ahead and have it repainted in order to protect the wood beneath.

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

Painting is a good idea if your house 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 want it to stand out, a different paint color can totally update its vibe.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Lake Forest

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

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

• A professional painter knows the most efficient way to do the job, meaning the paint will look much better and the project will move a lot quicker.
• Pros don’t typically make a mess. Their results will be neater, without excess paint splattered or spilled around home.
• Because of their skill and experience, your new exterior paint will last longer than if you did the job by yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment necessary to paint anything above ground level.

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