Ten Exterior House Painting Tips

Painting the exterior of the house requires proper planning and preparation for obtaining best results and a long lasting painted exterior surface. Here are ten exterior painting tips:

1. You can prevent the rot of sidings with aluminum wedges. Using the aluminum wedges under the sidings of the house will enable air circulation in areas where there are moisture problems.

2. Always paint in dry weather, at a time of the year when rains are not expected in the near future, so that the paint gets enough time to get cured. The biggest enemy of paint that has not had enough time to cure is rain. Too much humidity can cause it to get under the paint surface and make it bubble.

3. Paint cannot adhere to siding where it is rotten. If you find that paint is peeling off the siding surface, the most probable reason is rotten wood. If you find any rot then you can scrape out the rotten portion and pour wood petrifier into the portion scraped. The wood petrifier will make the wood very hard. Then you can fill the gaps with an epoxy resin.

4. Before attempting to paint the exterior surface of the house you must first wash and sand it. First give the exterior a power wash to remove any dirt, grease, mildew or loose material. This is a very important step because it improves surface adhesion and ensures long life for the painted surface. Next comes a thorough sanding of the exterior surfaces to be painted. This will improve surface adhesion even further.

5. Don't try to save on the cost of the paint. Paints of low quality cannot stand up against constant weathering. Good quality paints have ingredients that protect them from the adverse effects of sunlight and bad weather conditions. Low quality paint will tend to crack when exposed to weathering.

6. Don't skimp on primer. A good primer will provide better adhesion of the paint. Start with an oil based primer and top that off with acrylic or latex for better sealing.

7. Working from the bottom up will leave a lot of streaks, giving the surface an ugly look when the paint has dried up. When you start painting, start from the top and work down the surface to prevent streaks.

8. To enhance the grip of a painted floor you can use some grit. Add a little sand to the paint before you start painting your floor.

9. Most paints are manufactured in batches and using paint from different cans will leave blotches. To prevent this thoroughly mix all the paints of the same color in a large bucket. This will ensure that there are no blotches and paint touchups in the future will ensure uniform color.

10. It is important to make sure that the leftover paint remains fully usable when the can is opened later. If you want to save leftover paint for future use, then you have to seal the can using vegetable oil and a plastic wrap so that it does not come in contact with air. To ensure this cover the open top of the can with a plastic wrap, spray vegetable over it and then secure its lid tightly. On turning the can upside down and storing it away you have ensured an air tight seal that will keep the pain fresh for a long time.