The Process of Painting Your Exterior Walls

You took a close look at that old paint on the exterior walls of your house and decided it needs a fresh paint job. Great idea! There is nothing like a fresh coat of paint to make a house look brand-new. Now, you can either decide to paint the house yourself or call the professionals. Chances are that you are going to call the professionals. Even then, it helps to have some idea about the paint job before the work starts. So, here you go!

[lwptoc]

Washing the exterior paint

The exterior of your home needs a thorough wash before you start painting because fresh paint will not stick well on a wall that is full of grime, dirt, and spores. A nice, mild cleanser and water can do the job of cleaning the exteriors of your house. You can definitely take up the cleaning job yourself, but remember that you will have to take several trips to completely wash the exteriors. So, you can hire other professionals to do the job in order to save both time and effort.

Scraping and sanding the walls

Before a fresh coat of exterior paint goes on, the old paint has to be scraped off. Flaking and loose paint will affect the finish of the surface. So, the paint has to be scrapped off and removed before the sanding begins. The rest of the rough spots can be smoothed out with a bit of pushing through sandpaper. But this step is tricky because going in too hard with the sandpaper will leave deep marks on the surface that might affect the finish as well.

A process of patching and repairing

After all the scraping and sanding are done, you will have to start patching and repairing. At this point, you will find maybe a few chips or crevasses on the surface. A bit of putty or any such compound is sufficient in filling those holes and leaving a smooth surface for the primer.

The primer goes over the exterior

You need a primer for the exterior walls so that the topcoat of fresh exterior wall paint has something to hold on to. Moreover, primers help in making the surface uniform and even make the topcoat glide smoothly. Though there are different types of primers available in the market nowadays, a good choice would be an oil-based primer. These primers cover up the stains on the exterior walls to make sure nothing peaks through that topcoat of paint.

Select the right kind of paint

Choosing the paint for your exterior walls is not just about the colour. In fact, you might even have a colour in your mind already. It is about selecting the right type of paint because the exteriors of your home have to face a lot more than the interiors. The last thing you want is paint that fades or cracks due to high heat and rains.

One of the best choices for exterior walls is emulsion paints. These are the types of paints that can withstand the harsh conditions of the weather for years without showing signs of wearing out.

Here’s the fun part finally! You have selected the paint type and colour already. So, now start painting the outer walls with fresh paint. Keep in mind that when it comes to painting the exterior walls – less is always more. If you apply too many layers, the paint will start flaking off sooner than usual. Therefore, it is better not to go over two coats for the exteriors. In fact, even a single coat suffices at times if you are going from a light to a darker shade.