How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your home in Wichita has to be refreshed, a fresh coat of paint is a fast, inexpensive option to improve its appearance. So if your home is starting to look worn down or if you’re just ready for something different, consider repainting the outside of your house yourself or hire a local painter to do it for you.

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

You can also partner with a professional painter by completing all the prep work by yourself, but then letting their team come over and do the actual painting with their tools, safety equipment and professionally selected paint.

Whichever option is right for you, you will 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. Decide which parts of the home to paint, gather the ladders and all other necessary safety equipment. If you’re preparing to complete the painting by yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a plan will help to make the actual painting go a lot faster as soon as you get started. Gathering your materials beforehand guarantees that when you begin painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and search for all of the supplies, meaning you’ll have to maintain a wet edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose good paint and brushes. The fun part of painting your home is deciding the color or color combination. You will also want to pick the right paint finishes for all parts of the house. Latex is better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It’s less messy and much easier to clean up. The flat surfaces need more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss. You’ll want to us synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are also efficient options.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to begin prepping the exterior of your house for its brand new paint! Invest time into pressure washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to wash off any cracked or peeling paint. The high pressure water is the recommended way to remove old paint, and it also cleans the outside of your house. Some sections of paint should peel off as soon as you spray them. That’s a sign that the paint was aging and had to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the original paint has been loosened, get more of it off with a plastic or metal straight edge, being diligent not to dig into the wood surface. Then sand 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 just need to be cleaned and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on the home smooth.
5. Prime. Don’t skip priming! Primer is a very important step because it conceals any prior paint (especially important with dark colors), results in even color for your new paint, and a smoother exterior with less imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original layer of paint doesn’t mix with it or create a rough patch.
6. Plan to paint on the best day. A professional painter can look at the forecast and determine the most opportune day for applying exterior paint. That’s why they’re professionals! If you plan to do the painting on your own, wait for a day that is between 75 and 85 degrees, and with little humidity. This will lead to the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

Not only will a new paint job make your home look several years newer, it also creates a layer of protection to the overall structure of your house.

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

Peeling paint is an obvious sign that it needs to be replaced. If your paint is peeling, you really need to go ahead and have it repainted to protect the wood beneath.

Aging 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 color makes it stand out too much, or if it is the opposite and you really want it to stand out, a different color can change its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Wichita

After prepping is done, you can turn the job off to a professional painter in Wichita (if you hadn’t already decided that from the start!). Hiring a painter is affordable. 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 will know the best way to complete the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will move a lot quicker.
• Pros don’t typically make a big mess. Their results will be much neater, without excess paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Due to their skill and knowledge, your new 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.

Based on your DIY abilities and desires, you can trust your painter to complete all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most services are prepared to handle each part of the job, from eliminating old paint and cleaning the exterior to applying the paint.