Painting the exterior of your house can be a huge job and take a lot of effort, but the results really do speak for themselves, with your house looking cleaner and fresher after you finish. While painting your house is not an easy job, there are plenty of professionals that you can hire to complete this for you, using their years of experience, however, if you want to do it yourself, we have collated some important tips and tricks that will help make the process easier. Make sure that you read them all before you get started.
1. Plan Before You Start Painting
Before you start the process of painting the outside of your house, it is important to plan the process, so you know exactly what the job entails. Write down what you plan to do – is it just a simple paint job, or do you have to list any repairs that you need to make while painting the house. More important write down a list of what you need to buy to start the process and calculate how much paint you will need to coat your building.
2. Gather Your Materials
The last thing that you want to be doing is running to the local DIY store in the middle of your painting. If you need to go and get more paint, the first batch of paint will have tried before you finish the job, meaning that there may be a contrast between the two batches. Make sure that you have everything that you need before you start to avoid this. To help, we have put together a rough guide of basic materials that you will need, however, every job will be different so this is not exhaustive.
- Paint – Masonry paint that is damp/weather resistant
- Paint sprayer/brushes/rollers
- Dust Sheets
- Brush cleaner
- Paint Scrapers
- Masking tape and masking paper (to cover up features like windows)
- Sandpaper – for sanding down any existing flaky paint
- Ladder
3. Prepare to Paint
Painting the exterior of a house requires a lot more effort than putting a coat of paint on your kitchen walls. On the day that you are planning to paint, make sure that you have enough dust sheets, newspaper or old pieces of material that can cover your garden and pathways, to ensure that you don’t cover them with paint too. Locate a ladder that you can climb to reach the higher parts of the building and ensure that you wear old clothes or overalls as most outdoor paint will not wash out.
4. Clean The Walls You Want To Paint
Your home’s walls will be covered in outside pollutants, dirt and dust. It is important to clean your walls as much as possible instead of simply painting over them. The finish of your paint will be better if applied to clean walls. A power washer is a great way to blast off any dirt and grime, leaving your walls clear and ready to paint.
If you can see mould on the outside of your walls, there may be a damp problem somewhere in your home, so it is worth calling in the experts to take a look before you paint. If your walls have larger cracks, they may need re-rendered – check out our blog on rendering here for some more information.
5. Spray The Paint Instead Of Brushing
If you are looking to paint a larger surface area like an exterior wall, consider spraying it instead of using smaller paintbrushes as this can really quicken up the process. Masonry paint can be used with paint sprayers and cover a large area in a small amount of time. It is important however to mask or cover any areas that you do not want to be painted as using a paint sprayer can be less accurate than using a brush. Mask up any windows, doors and gutters, and well as covering the surrounding area with dust sheets for easy cleanup.
6. Start At The Top, And Work Down, For A Great Finish.
The best way to approach painting your house is to start from the top and work your way downwards. This will give you the opportunity to cover up any splashes of paint that drop downwards onto lower parts of the wall.
7. Spend Time Focusing On Detail
To ensure that your painting is finished well, make sure that you focus on the details after coating the majority of the wall area. Make sure that you use a more precise brush to cut-in corners, alcoves or window sills. This will ensure that your lines are neat and straight – making them look professional.
8. Paint When It Is Cloudy
Some novice DIY painters wrongly assume that the best time to paint your house is in the middle of summer when there is a low chance of rain and high temperatures. However, if the sun is too bright, it will lead to glare coming off the wet paint, impairing your ability to see properly and potentially leading to eye strain. The optimal conditions for exterior painting are no sun, and mild temperatures – not too warm and not too cold.
If you are using emulsion or gloss paint, then make sure that there is no rain forecasted as if these types of paint are exposed to water, it can lead to surfactant leaking leading to the paint drying with a waxy coating. Make sure you also leave enough time to do a second coat of paint, as a lot of exterior walls need two coats.
9. Complete Any Odd Jobs At The Same Time
If you are already working outside and trying to improve the look or your home, you might as well lump this in together with other jobs that need doing. If you already have the ladder out, for example, it might be worth cleaning out the gutters at the same time.
This will finish the job off nicely, making your home look even better.
10. If In Doubt, Hire A Professional
Painting the exterior of your home can be a huge undertaking. If you worried about the process, even after all our tips above, there is another option – hiring a professional. Professional painters know exactly how to finish your home to the highest of standards and are experienced in this field. It might be worth getting a few quotes and seeing if it is worth hiring an expert to do the job well.
