How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Greenville has to be refreshed, a new coat of exterior paint is a quick, inexpensive option to improve its curb appeal. So if your home exterior is looking worn down or if you’re just ready for something different, consider painting the exterior of your house yourself or pay a professional painter to do it for you.

Painting a house is a big job, but it isn’t an unreasonable job for most homeowners. You just have to do your research to understand 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 even partner with a professional painter by completing all the prep work by yourself, but then having their crew come to your home and do the painting with their tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

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

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Choose which parts to paint, gather the ladders and other necessary safety equipment. If you are planning to complete the painting by yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a clear plan will help to make the painting project go a lot faster once you begin. Organizing your equipment beforehand guarantees that when you start painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and search for all of the supplies, meaning you’ll be able to maintain a wet brush edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The best part of painting your home 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 a lot better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It’s a lot less messy and easier to clean. The flat surfaces require more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss for the trim. You’ll want synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are also time-saving options.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to start prepping the surface of the house for its beautiful new paint! Invest time into power washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to remove any cracked or peeling paint. The high pressure water is the recommended way to remove old paint, and it also cleans the exterior of your house. Some of the areas of paint will peel right off as you spray over them. That’s a sign that the paint was deteriorating and needed to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the old 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 bumpy surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t necessary to sand every surface 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 the home smooth.
5. Prime. Don’t skip priming! Primer is an important part of preparation because it covers up any prior paint (especially with dark paint colors), results in even color for your new coat, and a smooth surface with less imperfections throughout. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original layer of paint doesn’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 find the most opportune day for painting a house. That’s why they’re experts! If you want to do the painting yourself, 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 new paint job make your house look years newer, it also provides a layer of protection for the overall structure of your house.

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

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

Worn paint really takes a toll on your home’s appearance. If you’re worried about curb appeal, painting your house is one of the simplest things you can do.

Painting is also a good idea if your house doesn’t to “fit in” in the neighborhood. If your home’s exterior color makes it stand out, or if it is the opposite and you really want it to stand out, a different paint color can completely update its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Greenville

After the prepping is complete, you have the option to hand the project over to a professional painter in Greenville (if you hadn’t already decided that from the start!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also guarantees that the results will exceed expectations with little effort from you.

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

• A professional painter knows the optimal way to complete the job, which means the paint will look much better and the project will move a lot faster.
• Pros don’t make a big mess. Their results will be neater, with no excess paint splattered or spilled around home.
• Because of their skill and knowledge, your new exterior paint will likely last a lot longer than if you painted by yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment necessary to paint anything above ground level.

Based on your DIY skills and desires, you can trust your painter to complete all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most services are fully prepared to take care of every part of the job, from removing old paint and pressure washing the exterior to applying the new paint.