How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Oklahoma City has to be updated, a fresh coat of paint is a quick, affordable way to improve its curb appeal. So if your home exterior is starting to look shabby or if you’re simply ready for something different, consider repainting the outside of your house yourself or pay a local painter to do the job for you.

Painting a house is a huge job, but it isn’t an impossible job for some homeowners. You just have to do your research to understand 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 painter by doing all the prep work by yourself, but then having their crew come to your home and do the actual painting with their best tools, safety equipment and professionally selected paint.

Whichever direction is right for you, you’ll still want to know how to prepare your home for painting. Here are the most important things to remember.

6 House Painting Preparation Tips

1. Decide which parts of the home to paint, gather the ladders and all other safety equipment. If you’re preparing to complete the painting yourself, you’ll be glad you did. Having a plan will make the actual painting go a lot faster as soon as you get started. Gathering your materials ahead of time guarantees that when you begin painting, you shouldn’t have to stop and look for needed supplies, meaning you’ll have to maintain a wet edge the entire time you are painting.
2. Choose paint and brushes. The best part of painting your home’s exterior is choosing the color or color combo. You will also want to pick the right paint finishes for all parts of the house. Latex is a lot better than oil-based paint for home exteriors. It’s a lot less messy and easier to clean. 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 efficient options if possible.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it’s time to begin prepping the exterior of the house for its beautiful new paint! Invest time into power washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to remove any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure is the best way to remove old paint, and it cleans the outside of your house. Some of the areas of paint should peel right off as soon as you spray over them. That’s a sign that the paint was deteriorating and needed to be replaced!
4. Remove peeling paint. Now that the old paint has been loosened, get more of it off the house with a plastic or metal straight edge, being diligent not to dig into the wood. 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 tended to and have the edges sanded so the new coat of paint goes on the home smooth.
5. Prime. Don’t skip the primer! Primer is a very important part of preparation because it covers up any prior paint (especially important with dark paint colors), results in even color for your new coat, and a smoother exterior with less imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original 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 applying exterior paint. That’s why they’re experts! If you want to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is somewhere between 75 and 85 degrees, and with little humidity. This will result in the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

Not only will a brand new paint job make your house look years newer, it also adds a layer of protection for the overall exterior of your house.

Paint helps prevent pests from eating or boring into your home’s exterior. It also prevents wear and tear from the elements. Good quality paint prevents wood from rotting and dirt doesn’t adhere to paint the same way it does to wood.

Peeling paint is an obvious sign that it needs to be replaced. If paint is peeling on your home, you really need to have it repainted to protect the wood surface.

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

Painting is a good idea if your house 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 completely update its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Oklahoma City

After prepping is complete, you can turn the job off to a professional painter in Oklahoma City (if you hadn’t already decided that from the beginning!). Hiring a painter is cost effective. It also guarantees that the results will exceed 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 complete the job, which means the paint will look a lot better and the project will move a lot faster.
• Pros don’t typically make a big mess. Their results will be neater, without excess paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Because of their skill and knowledge, your new paint will probably last a lot longer than if you painted yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment required to paint anything higher than ground level.

Depending on your DIY abilities and interests, you can trust your painter to complete all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most services are fully prepared to handle each part of the job, from eliminating old paint and pressure washing the exterior to applying the new paint.