How to Prepare Your Home for Painting

If your house in Kansas City has to be refreshed, a fresh coat of exterior paint is a fast, affordable option to improve its appearance. So if your house is looking worn down or if you are just ready for a change, consider repainting the exterior of your house yourself or hire a professional painter to do the job for you.

Painting a house is a huge project, but it isn’t an impossible job for some homeowners. You have to do your research to know how to prepare the exterior surface by scheduling residential pressure washing, as well as which brushes and paints to use.

You can also partner with a professional painter by doing all the prep work by yourself, but then having their team come to your home and do the actual painting with their best tools, safety equipment and professionally selected paint.

Whichever choice 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 are planning to do the painting yourself, you’ll thank yourself later. Having a plan will make the actual painting go much faster once you get started. Gathering your equipment ahead of time ensures that once you begin painting, you won’t have to stop and search for needed supplies, meaning that you’ll be able to maintain a wet edge the whole time you are painting.
2. Choose good paint and brushes. The most fun part of painting your house is choosing the color or color combo. You’ll 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 is a lot less messy and easier to clean. The flat surfaces require more of a flat, or matte, finish, versus semi-gloss for the trim. You’ll want to us synthetic fiber brushes for latex paint. Rollers and sprayers are time-saving options.
3. Pressure wash. Finally, it is time to begin prepping the surface of the house for its beautiful new paint! Put time into power washing your house (or hiring a local pressure washing service) to loosen any cracked or peeling paint. The extreme pressure is the most effective way to eliminate old paint, and it cleans the exterior of your house. Some sections of paint may peel off as soon as you spray them. That’s a sure sign that the paint was deteriorating and needed 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 careful not to dig deep into the wood. Then sand bumpy surfaces for a smooth finish. It isn’t necessary to sand every surface all the way down to the bare wood. Any areas where the paint is still adhered need to be tended to and have the edges sanded so the new paint goes on the home smooth.
5. Prime. Do not skip the primer! Primer is a very important part of preparation because it covers up any previous paint (especially important with dark paint colors), results in an even color for your new paint, and a smoother surface with minimal imperfections. Let the primer dry based on the directions so that the original layer of paint won’t blend into it or result in a rough patch on the surface.
6. Plan to paint in good weather. A professional painter is able to look at the forecast and determine the most opportune day for painting a house. That’s why they’re experts! If you plan to do the painting yourself, wait for a day that is somewhere between 75 and 85 degrees, and with very low humidity. This will result in the best adhesion.

Why Painting Your Home is a Good Idea

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

Paint will help 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 won’t stick 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 have it repainted to protect the wood beneath.

Worn paint really takes a toll on your home’s appearance. If you’re concerned about curb appeal, painting your house is one of the easiest 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 exterior color makes it stand out, or if it is the opposite and you really want it to stand out, a different paint color can completely change its look.

Hiring a Local Professional Painter in Kansas City

After the prepping is done, you have the option to hand the project over to a professional painter in Kansas City (if you hadn’t already decided that from the beginning!). Hiring a painter is affordable. It also ensures that the results will exceed your expectations with less effort on your part.

Hiring a local painter to paint your home has several obvious benefits:

• A professional painter knows the best way to do the job, meaning the paint will look a lot better and the project will move a lot faster.
• Pros don’t typically make a mess. Their results will be neater, with no extra paint splattered or spilled on your home.
• Because of their skill and experience, your new exterior paint will likely last a lot longer than if you did the job yourself.
• A professional painter will already have the safety equipment needed to paint areas higher than ground level.

Based on your DIY abilities and interests, you can trust your painter to do all the pre-painting preparation, too. Most pros are prepared to take care of every part of the project, from eliminating old paint and cleaning the exterior to actually applying the paint.