Exterior painting is a significant investment of both time and money. There’s nothing more frustrating than seeing your investment peeling, cracking and deteriorating after just a few short years. A quality paint job should last for close to a decade, especially when the home has regular maintenance.
What goes wrong to cause premature paint failure? And more importantly, how can you protect your home against this damage?
5 Common Causes of Premature Paint Failure
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Poor surface preparation: This may come as a surprise, but 80% of a paint job’s success is determined before the paint can is even open. Thorough preparation is crucial to extending the life of your exterior paint. Cleaning, repairs, sanding, patching and caulking are all ways to make sure that the surface is ready for paint.
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Poor quality paint: Using quality paint will cost more up front, but it is absolutely worth the additional investment. Not only does it provide superior color retention, it also adheres to the surface better. This increases the longevity of the paint while keeping your home looking its best. It also protects your home against water damage, rot, mold and mildew, and insects.
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Rushing the job: Uneducated DIY jobs (and unfortunately shoddy painting contractors) tend to rush jobs. Painting over a surface that has not been fully dried, or skipping steps can seriously impact the finished product.
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Working in the wrong conditions: although everyone knows that you shouldn’t work in the rain, painting in extremely hot sun can be just as damaging. A quality company with a thorough understanding of best painting practices is an essential part of the process. If they think it’s best, they will put the job on hold until the weather is better.
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Using the wrong kind of paint: This is less of an issue than it used to be, but you should always know what type of paint you are painting over. For instance, if you try to layer new latex paint over old oil based paint without proper preparation… their incompatibility will become apparent quickly.
Hire The Right Pro
These five common mistakes can cause your investment to literally fall off your house. There is some good news though! A quality painter is skilled at painting and will do everything possible to provide you with a long-lasting paint job.
Sundeleaf Painting has been Portland’s painter of choice for more than 3 generations. When it comes time to repaint your house, you will want the best painter for the job. Reach out to us for an estimate. We would love to serve you!