How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Berkeley needs to be refreshed, a fresh coat of paint is an easy, inexpensive way to improve its curb appeal. So if your house is looking worn down or if you are just ready for something different, consider repainting the exterior of your home yourself or hire a local painter to do it for you.

Painting a house is a big project, but it isn’t an unreasonable job for most homeowners. You need to do your research to understand how to prepare the surface by scheduling residential pressure washing, as well as which brushes and paints to use.

You can also partner with a professional painter by completing all the prep work on your own, but then letting their team come to your home and do the painting with their tools, safety equipment and selected paint.

Whichever option is best for you, you will 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, collect the ladders and all other safety equipment. If you are preparing to do the painting by yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a plan will help to make the painting project go much faster once you begin. Collecting your materials beforehand guarantees that once you start painting, you won’t have to stop and look for needed supplies, meaning that you’ll have to maintain a wet brush edge the entire time you are painting.
2. Choose the right paint and brushes. The fun part of painting your house is choosing the color or color combo. You’ll also want to pick the right paint finishes for each part of the home. 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 time-saving options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to start prepping the exterior of the home for its brand new paint! Invest time into power washing your home (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to wash off any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure is the most effective way to remove peeling paint, and it simultaneously cleans the exterior of your home. Some of the sections of paint will 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 the house with a metal or plastic straight edge, being diligent not to dig into the wood. Then sand surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t important to sand every surface down to the bare wood. Any areas where the paint is still adhered need to be cleaned and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on smoothly.
5. Prime. Do not skip the primer! Primer is an important step because it conceals any prior paint (especially important with dark paint colors), results in even color for your new paint, and a smooth exterior with minimal imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the first layer of paint won’t blend into it or create a rough patch on the surface.
6. Plan to paint on the best day. A professional painter can look at the weather forecast and tell you the most opportune day for painting a home. 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 very little 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 several years newer, it also provides a layer of protection to the overall exterior of your home.

Paint helps prevent pests from eating or boring into your home’s exterior. It also reduces wear and tear from the elements. High quality paint prevents wood from rotting and dirt won’t 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 really need to have it repainted in order to protect the wood surface.

Aging paint really takes a toll on your home’s exterior. If you’re concerned about curb appeal, painting your home is one of the simplest things you can do.

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

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Berkeley

After the prepping is finished, you can hand the work off to a professional painter in Berkeley (if you hadn’t already chosen that from the start!). Hiring a painter is cost effective. It also guarantees that the results will exceed your expectations with minimal effort on your part.

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

• A professional painter knows the best way to do the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will be done a lot quicker.
• Companies don’t make a mess. Their results will be much neater, with no excess paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Because of their skill and knowledge, your new paint will last longer than if you did the job by yourself.
• A professional painter will have the safety equipment required to paint anything higher than ground level.

Depending on your DIY skills and interests, you can trust your painter to do all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most companies are fully prepared to handle every part of the project, from removing old paint and pressure washing the exterior to actually applying the paint.