Any tips on exterior paint for house

[BigE]

I just purchased a home that will need a lot of paint inside and out. Any recommendations on a good paint sprayer?

The Graco series is good enough for a lot of pro painters. Focus on the ones that work with 5 gallon buckets of paint, and the sprayer is good enough to do most things. Need to maintain it and clean it. The X5 is the smallest I'd suggest. There are others that are good too.

 

[Smallie]

The Graco series is good enough for a lot of pro painters. Focus on the ones that work with 5 gallon buckets of paint, and the sprayer is good enough to do most things. Need to maintain it and clean it. The X5 is the smallest I'd suggest. There are others that are good too.

Thank you that is exactly the sprayer I was looking at. I will probably go that route

 

[CHSD]

Do NOT pressure wash unless you don't plan on painting for a month or two! If you are hitting your siding with water at 2500 psi it invariably goes in and then has to come out. As well as if you aren't careful, you can ruin your siding. I watched some "college pro" painter destroy the siding on a house.

Preparation is the real key. If your house has peeling paint, scrape everything that is loose and then scrape some more. If the siding has dust or dirt build up, wash it down with a garden hose with a little pressure and wait several days before painting.

I spend my working days painting and have for the last 40 years. I consider myself a full-time scraper and part time painter. Today's paints are "environmentally friendly" but to say it politely, they all suck! Buy a name brand like Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, California, etc. and buy their top-of-the-line paint. Do NOT buy Behr paint or any other less expensive ("cheap") paint. The expense of painting is mostly in labor. The SW "Emerald" line, the BM "Moore Guard/Glo" line or the "2010 Ultra" from California are all very good products and will last the longest. Remember to "chase the shade" and do not paint in the sun.

Good luck and have fun. The one nice thing about painting is at the end of the day you can really see what you have accomplished.

I already pressure washed my house...is there anything I should do now? Should I wait to paint for a few weeks in hopes it dries everything out? Or is the cat already out of the bag?

 

[Venom One]

I'd recommend googling paint ratings and making an informed decision for yourself. You definitely don't need $90/gal paint just because someone else thinks you do.

Also, make sure you buy the mesh strainers for your sprayer. It sucks getting clogs in the sprayer tip.

 

[elkguide]

I already pressure washed my house...is there anything I should do now? Should I wait to paint for a few weeks in hopes it dries everything out? Or is the cat already out of the bag?

Without using a moisture meter, there isn't much to do but wait. I only pressure wash as a last resort. With the high humidity that we have here in the northeast, I usually plan on waiting 4 to 6 weeks before painting after pressure washing to allow the injected water to escape.

 

[*zap*]

pressure wash does not clean well enough. I always washed by hand and then rinsed it off.

csr wanted house cleaned and I explained it is better to do by hand. He said power wash it. I did. Collected my $.
Then I washed a 10'x10' piece by hand....got paid to rewash the whole house by hand.

Sherwin williams top grade paint and brush/roll. Prep well first after washing.

 

[CHSD]

pressure wash does not clean well enough. I always washed by hand and then rinsed it off.

csr wanted house cleaned and I explained it is better to do by hand. He said power wash it. I did. Collected my $.
Then I washed a 10'x10' piece by hand....got paid to rewash the whole house by hand.

Sherwin williams top grade paint and brush/roll. Prep well first after washing.

Dumb question, but what type of soap did you use to wash by hand? I've got enough time to go back and wash by hand.

 

[*zap*]

Go to your local Sherwin Williams store and buy soap for exterior wood. Then buy the paint there

 

[Sapcut]

In December 2002, we painted our KDAT (kiln dried after treatment) treated pine lap siding house with Sherwin Williams Super Paint. I have no idea if they make or any longer or not but it still looks brand new each time I bleach and rinse the dirt off.

 

[*zap*]

The other thing worth mentioning is the higher the gloss of the paint the longer it will last.

 

[7mm-08]

We started painting a side of the house every year. Not sure I'd be up for painting the whole house ever again. Wife and I can prep and paint the one side in two days and it's not nearly as intimidating as doing the whole place at once. We're big S W fans as well. Good paint is expensive.

 

[Holeintheheadgang]

I have used BEHR MARQUEE before and was very satisfied with the longevity and results.
One of the things that got my attention was it resists rain shortly after applying. And I had a chance to test that point. The paint is thick. and gets a dry tat coat in 10 minutes. The rain beaded up and dried with no negative results.
I brushed and rolled the paint on and used an oil base primer beforehand. for me, one-gallon
cans worked best. I didn't have enough time to complete it in a couple of days. Had to stop and clean up several times. No significant cost difference between 1 - 5 gallon cans.
I was painting already painted T 1-11 siding in South Central Alaska.
I used TSP Trisodium Phosphate in a 3-gallon pump sprayer and a long-handle carwash brush to clean the building before painting the day before.
6 years later and is still holding up well.

 

[Doc Holliday]

In the process of painting our house now. For the exterior, we used Valspar Stainblocking Bonding Primer sold at Lowes. For paint we used the SW Latitude for areas that don't get alot of direct sun, and SW Duration for the areas that do

 

[Beendare]

People are different - but I have never sprayed a house - I always roll and back brush. I also paint the edges of window and corner trim - most people only paint the face. It makes a difference.

Good advice. If they are adamant in spraying- back brushing or rolling improves the process exponentially.
Example: I’ve seen the new homes where there spray prime then spray pant SW facing facia boards and they typically make it only 2-3 years. If they roll them they last 15 years.

 

[Forestryguy]

Do NOT pressure wash unless you don't plan on painting for a month or two! If you are hitting your siding with water at 2500 psi it invariably goes in and then has to come out. As well as if you aren't careful, you can ruin your siding. I watched some "college pro" painter destroy the siding on a house.

Preparation is the real key. If your house has peeling paint, scrape everything that is loose and then scrape some more. If the siding has dust or dirt build up, wash it down with a garden hose with a little pressure and wait several days before painting.

I spend my working days painting and have for the last 40 years. I consider myself a full-time scraper and part time painter. Today's paints are "environmentally friendly" but to say it politely, they all suck! Buy a name brand like Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, California, etc. and buy their top-of-the-line paint. Do NOT buy Behr paint or any other less expensive ("cheap") paint. The expense of painting is mostly in labor. The SW "Emerald" line, the BM "Moore Guard/Glo" line or the "2010 Ultra" from California are all very good products and will last the longest. Remember to "chase the shade" and do not paint in the sun.

Good luck and have fun. The one nice thing about painting is at the end of the day you can really see what you have accomplished.

Glad someone said it. You also run the risk of injecting water through the vapor barrier on the house. Then you are dealing with excess water on the sheathing or potentially in the insulation. Fine Home Building had a pretty good podcast about this last year if I remember right.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

One gallon of paint in a five gallon bucket with a roller screen is far superior to using a paint tray.

If going over gloss or semigloss, the surface needs to be scuffed. A drywall sanding pole is much faster than doing it by hand.

 

[49ereric]

We are planning on repainting our house in the few weeks. Does anyone have any tips to help the process? Tips on which paint to buy? The siding is lap siding. I would appreciate any tips.

Consumer reports should have info