Whether you just bought a home or want to change the looks of your existing residence in Horsham, PA, painting the exterior of your home comes with a wide range of benefits. It increases the curb appeal and the value of your home prevents water and mildew damage and gives your exterior a fresh new look. In short, exterior painting is the most inexpensive and transformative renovation you can do your home.
But before those transformations happen, you have a few choices to make –and the most important decisions include picking the paint and paint color. While the color you want to use on your exterior primarily depends on your preferences, there’re a lot of considerations you should keep in mind when choosing the actual product –the paint. Here are 5 things you should consider when buying exterior paint.
1. Durability
Unlike the interiors, your home’s exterior is exposed to the most damaging factors such as rain, harsh UV rays, frost, sleet, strong winds, and insects. The durability of your exterior paint, therefore, will determine how well your paint job stands against these elements. If you’re going to spend a large amount of money painting your exterior, you want to make sure that it lasts longer.
Independent consumer testing publications perform tests that simulate years of outdoor exposure on a coating. But if you don’t have access to such results, you can always check the number of years in the warranty offered by the manufacturer. Homeowners generally, paint their homes every after 5-7 years, so you probably won’t get a 20+ year warranty. But generally the, longer the warranty, the higher the paint quality.
2. Endurance
This goes hand in hand with durability. Good quality paint should be able to endure a wide range of abuses. For instance, harsh stains such as red lipstick should be easy to clean using water and soap. Good quality paint also has high rub resistance –which means it can better withstand scratching, wiping, and friction in high-traffic areas.
You don’t want your wall looking tired and worn out after just a year or even a few months after painting. To achieve this, good paint should also have a remarkable bonding ability –Quality paint completely adheres to the wall, reducing peeling or chipping on even the most difficult surfaces.
3. Better coverage
High-quality paint offers better coverage (hide) of the previous wall color with minimal coats. Many top-of-the-line house paints even have priming qualities, which means a single coat can go a long way in hiding the previous hues. Exterior paints with great coverage are also best at disguising underlying flaws, such as small nicks or dents in the siding. With a well-prepped surface and good primer, high-quality paint should not require more than two coats to have the job done.
4. Applies evenly
Quality exterior paint is not too thin or too thick. It should flow easily and smoothly off the brush or roller and onto the walls –this makes application simple and easy. Paints that are too thin tend to run during application, and those that are too thick can dry with sagging or clumps if they don’t dry evenly and smoothly in a few brush strokes. The less paint spatters coming off the brush or roller equates to higher quality paint.
5. Price
When it comes to paints, you get what you pay for, there’re no shortcuts. Professional painting contractors and experts agree that top-quality exterior paint can save you money in the long run over cheap paint. This is because premium paint generally lasts several times longer, and you’ll have to repaint less frequently.
Some homeowners and even professional painters have had successful results with mid-priced paints and report that they perform nearly as good as the top-priced paints. But this a great option if you know your way around these brands. But if you want to be sure of the best results and reasonable durability, consider spending a little more on your paint and you will save some money in the long run.
Bottom line
While every step of painting your home’s exterior is critical, starting with the right type of high-quality paint can make your work a whole lot easier and faster. If you’re unable to wrap your head around the hundreds of paint brands available in the market, you can always let your enlisted painting contractor make the best choice for you.
Ray is an inspiring leader with a strong work ethic stemming from his exemplary upbringing in a caring and loving family environment. His parents modeled the importance of integrity and hard work to him and his siblings, values which Ray now instills in his teenage daughter. As the owner of Aspen Painting & Wallcovering, Inc., he leads by example by expecting nothing but the best from himself and his employees. His primary goal is to provide superior service and quality craftsmanship to each of his clients so that they become enthusiastic ambassadors for the company. Ray is a passionate team player who always strives to exceed expectations.