Protecting Your Home's Exterior
Pick the right outdoor paint
Picking a paint to beautify the outside of your house? The color is a matter of preference, but the type of paint you use is important too. Latex paint is almost always the best choice for your exterior. It is easy to apply, dries quickly, and cleanup is a breeze. And because of its flexibility, latex paint is really durable. Your best choice is 100 percent acrylic latex, not vinyl latex.
The stubborn undercoat
Old oil-based and lead-based paints may bleed through the new latex paints, especially if you’re trying to cover a dark color with a light one. Test a small area and let it dry for 24 hours before you invest a lot of time in painting. If the new paint doesn’t cover well, seal the old paint with a primer before painting. Make sure you get a primer made specifically for this purpose.
Easy way to figure out your painting needs
To estimate how much paint you’ll need to paint the outside of your house, measure the perimeter and the height from the foundation to the roof line. Multiply the two figures. If your house has a triangular-shaped gable end, add two feet to the overall height of the house. If you’re painting a masonry surface, you’ll need more paint t han for wood. Take your numbers and surface conditions to your paint dealer. He or she can then determine exactly how much paint you’ll need.
Feels like paintin’ weather
The temperature can make you sweat or shiver while you are painting your house, but did you know it can also affect your paint job? Latex paints usually need about 24 hours of temperatures above 50 degrees Fahrenheit to dry properly. Walls that are exposed to a lot of sun can asbsorb heat in the summertime and cause your paint to blister. Your best bet is to paint when it is cool to warm outside, and to avoid painting during temperature extremes.
Off with the old paint
The first step in repainting your house is to wash it thoroughly. Painting over dirt will just cause the paint to peel off easily. If your house exterior is particularly dirty, you may save time and effort by renting a pressure washer. Besides leaving you with a clean surface to paint, it will help lift off old, peeling paint.
Scraping off loose paint is an important part of your preparation to paint, but don’t scrape off any paint that is still firmly attached to the surface.
An old-fashioned puncture-type can opener is ideal for scraping old paint or caulk from hard-to-reach crevices.
And on with the new
Painting clean, flat surface is pretty easy – it’s the corners and funny angles that will give you problems. A few things to remember:
- Use the correct size brush; it will take mre than one. You can’t get into every little crack and crevice with a thick, wide brush – you need a small, skinny one. For wider areas that a roller won’t paint well, use a medium or large brush.
- For a professional-looking finish, use sandpaper to smooth any rough edges that formed when you scraped.
- If you use a high-quality roller, you shouldn’t have a problem with “roller fuzz” – loose fibers from the roller that get stuck in your paint. To be sure, wrap some masking tape around your hand, sticky-side out, and dab it all over the dry roller before you paint.
How to avoid drips
To keep your painting area clean, glue a paper plate to the bottom of our paint can. It will catch stray drips and dribbles, and when you move the paint can, your splatter-catcher moves along with it.
Put paint in its place
Don’t want to go around with speckles of house paint on your hands? To make washing paint off your hands easier, try rubbing on some petroleum jelly before you start.
When you’re painting windows, don’t worry about getting paint on the glass. It will clean up easily with a razor scraper and some window cleaner. By painting along the edges between the wood and the glass, you’re more likely to seal out moisture that could damage windows over time.
Paint on the wall is better than you in the bush
Nothing ruins a nice paint job quicker than a single, arcing brushstroke all the way down the side of the house because one of your ladder’s feet sank into the soft ground and sent you flying into the bushes. It’s not good for the bushes, either. Take a couple of empty coffee cans or old paint cans and put them on the feet of your ladder like shoes. Their flat bottoms can give you a bit more stability and keep you out of the bushes.
Hosing down the hacienda
To keep your paint job bright and fresh-looking, wash your house once-a-year. Mix one cup of extra-strength detergent and one quart of chlorine bleach in three gallons of water. Use a long-handled mop to scrub the siding, and rinse well with your garden hose.
Siding style and savvy
When choosing your siding, remember that different kinds have different advantages. Wood siding looks more natural, but it must be painted regularly. Aluminum siding color is already painted on, but if it is damaged, the metal may show through. Vinyl siding is usually the same color all the way through, so scratches won’t reveal a different color. But vinyl siding may seal an exterior so tightly that moisture may build up underneath it and damage the wood. Before you choose siding, look at all the angles and decide which type will last the best on your house.
How to spruce up your siding
You chose a house with vinyl or aluminum siding because you didn’t ever want to hoist another paint can onto a ladder. However, now your siding is showing some signs of wear, or perhaps you’re just sick of the color. You don’t have to rip your siding off and start over. As much as you may hate the thought, you can paint vinyl and aluminum siding.
As with any paint job, the first step is to wash your siding. If you see signs of rust or a chalky residue, us a medium or fine grade steel wool to remove it. You only have to use a primer if the original siding is in poor condition. If you do us a primer, chosse a primer and paint from the same manufacturer, since they are designed to work together. To make sure your paint job lasts, use a top-quality acrylic exterior latex paint.
Use the right tool for fences
Ever since Tom Sawyer, people have recognized that painting fences is not a lot of fun. But using a tool that gets the paint on the fence efficiently can make the job much lesspainful. To paint a picket fence, use a paint roller. You’ll cover the surface in half the time it would take to use a brush. To paint a wire fence, use a sponge. It will put a thin layer of paint exactly where you want it.
You talk the talk, but can you caulk the caulk?
You want you house to be snug and warm in the winter and cool in the summer. You also want to pay as little as possible in energy bills. One way to help accomplish these goals is to make sure your house is tightly sealed. Caulking around windows, doors, siding, and trim will help. Here’s how to caulk your home:
- Before adding new caulk, remove as much of the old caulk as possible. Wash the area with soap and water. Use chlorine bleach if mildew is present. Rinse and let dry thoroughly. The caulk will stick much better to a clean, dry surface.
- Stuff some scraps of insulation into wide or deep cracks before caulking.
- Check the weather forecast before starting. If it rains within 24 hours after you caulk, all your hard work may be washed away.
- Cut the nozzle of your caulking tube off at a 45-degree angle, and use a coat hanger or nail to pierce the seal. Apply steady pressure, holding the caulking gun at a 45-degree angle to your work surface.
- Smooth the caulk down with a wet finger or damp sponge, but don’t push it in too far. That might cause it to shrink too much as it dries and not fill the crack.
Mildews and don’ts
Have you ever left something in the refrigerator too long, and it started to grow fuzzy green stuff? The mildew on your house is similar. It is a fungus that thrives and grows in adamp environment. Besides making your house look ugly, it can also damage the surface it grows on. Mildew needs nutrition to grow, and it can get that nutrition from the grime that accumulates on your house. So in areas that are prone to mildew, keep things clean. A little laundry detergent, a bucket of water, and a scrub brush can do wonders in thwarting mildew’s growing efforts.
Secrets of a good climb
A good ladder is an essential tool for exterior house repair and maintenance. It can also be a potential source of danger, so use good ladder sense when working on your house. If your ladder is old and rickety, invest in a new one. You may save yourself from a painful injury.
An aluminum ladder is lighter and lasts longer than a wooden one. However, keep in mind that aluminum conducts electricity, so don’t use it while doing electrical repairs or when there is lightning in the area.
Steady as she goes
Keeping your ladder level and steady is your number one priority. For added safety and steadiness, use stabilizer bars that attach to your ladder.
Put a board or other firm, flat object beneath the feet of your ladder before you climb. It will help keep the ladder level and prevent it form sinking into soft ground.
© FCA Publishing
Excerpt from FC&A's Fix It, Clean It and Make It Last
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