How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Reno needs to be updated, a fresh coat of exterior paint is a quick, affordable option to improve its appearance. So if your house is looking worn down or if you’re just ready for something different, consider repainting the exterior of your house yourself or pay a professional painter to do the job for you.

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

You can also team up with a painter by doing all of the prep work on your own, but then having their team come over and do the painting with their best tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

Whichever direction is right for you, you’ll still want to know how to prepare your home for painting. Here are some of the most important things to remember.

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Choose which parts to paint, gather the ladders and other safety equipment. If you are planning to complete the painting by yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a clear plan will make the painting project go much faster once you begin. Gathering your materials ahead of time ensures that once you start painting, you won’t have to stop and look for needed supplies, meaning you’ll be able to maintain a wet edge the entire time you are painting.
2. Choose good paint and brushes. The best part of painting your home’s exterior is deciding the color or color combo. You’ll also want 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 much easier to clean up. The flat surfaces require more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss. You’ll want synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are also efficient options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to start prepping the exterior of the house for its beautiful new paint! Invest time into power washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to wash off any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure water is the recommended way to remove peeling paint, and it simultaneously cleans the exterior of your house. Some of the sections of paint may peel off as soon as you spray over them. That’s a sure sign that the paint was deteriorating and had 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 diligent not to dig into the wood surface. Then sand bumpy 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 need to be tended to and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on the home smoothly.
5. Prime. Do not skip priming! Primer is a very important step because it conceals any prior paint (especially with dark colors), results in an 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 blend into it or leave behind a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint in good weather. A professional painter is able to look at the forecast and tell you the most opportune day for painting a house. That’s why they’re experts! If you want to do the painting on your own, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, with little 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 years newer, it also creates a layer of protection to the overall exterior of your house.

Paint can help prevent pests from eating or boring into your home’s exterior. It also reduces wear and tear from inclement weather. Good quality paint stops wood from rotting and dirt doesn’t stick to paint the way it does to wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious signal that it is time to be replaced. If paint is peeling on your home, you really need to go ahead and have it repainted to protect the wood surface.

Deteriorating paint really takes a toll on your home’s exterior. 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 exterior color makes it stand out too much, 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 Reno

After prepping is over, you might want to hand the work off to a professional painter in Reno (if you hadn’t already chosen that from the beginning!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also ensures that the results will exceed expectations with less 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 complete the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will be done a lot faster.
• Pros don’t make a mess. Their results will be much neater, with no extra 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 needed to paint surfaces higher than ground level.

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