How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your home in Boston needs to be updated, a fresh coat of exterior paint is a fast, inexpensive way to improve its appearance. So if your home exterior is starting to look worn down or if you’re just ready for a change, consider painting the exterior of your home yourself or enlist a local painter to do it for you.

Painting a home is a huge job, but it isn’t an unreasonable job for most homeowners. You just need to do your research to understand how to prep 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 doing all the prep work on your own, but then letting their team come to your home and do the actual painting with their tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

Whichever choice is best for you, you’ll still need to know exactly 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’re preparing to complete the painting yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a clear plan will help to make the actual painting go a lot faster as soon as you get started. Gathering your equipment ahead of time guarantees that when you start painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and search for all of the supplies, meaning that you’ll be able to maintain a wet edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose the right paint and brushes. The best part of painting your home is deciding the color or color combo. You’ll also need to pick the right paint finishes for all parts of the home. Latex is better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It is less messy and much easier to clean. 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 also time-saving options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it is time to start prepping the surface of your home for its beautiful new paint! Put time into pressure washing your home (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to loosen any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure water is the best way to eliminate peeling paint, and it simultaneously cleans the exterior of your home. Some sections of paint should 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 old paint has been loosened, scrape it off with a metal or plastic straight edge, being careful not to dig 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 sections where the paint is still adhered just need to be tended to and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on smooth.
5. Prime. Do not skip the primer! Primer is a very important part of preparation because it conceals any previous paint (especially important with dark colors), results in an even color for your new coat, and a smoother surface with less imperfections throughout. Let the primer dry according to the directions so that the first layer of paint doesn’t mix with it or result in a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint on the best day. A professional painter is able to 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 on your own, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, and with low humidity. This will result in the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

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

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

Peeling paint is an obvious clue that it needs to be replaced. If your paint is peeling on your home, you need to have it repainted to protect the wood surface.

Aging paint 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 also a good idea if your home doesn’t seem 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 want it to stand out, a different color can change its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Boston

After prepping is finished, you can turn the project off to a professional painter in Boston (if you hadn’t already decided that from the start!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also guarantees that the results will exceed your expectations with little effort on your part.

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

• A professional painter knows the best way to complete the job, meaning the paint will look a lot better and the project will move a lot faster.
• Companies don’t make a mess. Their results will be much neater, with no extra paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Due to their skill and experience, your new exterior paint will likely last longer than if you painted yourself.
• A professional painter will have the safety equipment needed to paint areas higher than ground level.

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