Maintenance Tips for Your Exterior Paint Job

After a massive and involving exterior paint job, you can sit back and enjoy the new and refreshing look of your house. As you’ve probably already found out, painting the exterior of your home is a huge investment, whether you went DIY or hired a professional painting contractor.

Your exterior paint job is exposed to a myriad of damaging elements including rain, sunlight, frost, sleet, humidity, moisture, dirt, organic growth, and fluctuating temperatures. If you want your paint job to last, here are a few maintenance tips you should practice.

1. Regular Inspection

Regular inspection is one of the best ways to catch paint failures, mold growth and damages on the siding in good time before the damage advances. Inspect your home’s exterior at least once every six months to see if any trouble is brewing up. You will typically want to check for signs of paint failure such as paint fading, chalking, peeling, and blistering.

2. Mold and Mildew

Mold and mildew might look innocent, but they’re incredibly damaging when not controlled in good time. They are living fungi that grow and spread pretty fast. They prefer growing on damp areas of the siding that doesn’t receive much sunlight. Mold can be seen as greyish to whitish patches while mildew can be identified as blackish to yellowish patches.

To get rid of mold and mildew, make a mixture of 3-parts water to 1-part household bleach. Spray a little bit of the mixture on a small patch on the exterior and observe to see that the paint doesn’t fade, if all is well, use a brush or sprayer to coat over the affected area, extending up to a foot beyond.

3. Dirt and Chalk

Airborne dust and debris can accumulate on your paint over time and make your house look old and tired. Also, it forms the growth medium for mold and mildew as soon as moisture is available. As your paint ages, it can break down to release paint pigments in the form of fine chalk which results to paint fading. You can get rid of both the chalk and dirt by either pressure washing or scrubbing.

If you have a relatively small surface area to clean, you can scrub it using a soft scrub brush and mild detergent, followed by rinsing using plain water. Don’t use harsh chemicals such as TSP because this can reduce the gloss of some paints. But perhaps the easiest and most effective way to clean your home’s exterior is by power washing. But, since it’s an aggressive method, it should be used cautiously and sparingly.

4. Cracking and Peeling

Paint cracking and peeling should be identified and addressed early to minimize subsequent greater damages on the paint job. As you do your inspection, check for any signs of cracks around the windows and doors and fill them with a high-quality caulking product.

Paint peeling often starts on window sills, caps and surfaces painted in dark paint colors. It can also occur as a result of poor paint adhesion which is commonly caused by painting on a dirty, uneven surface, skipping the primer and painting on wet sidings. To correct this, sand off the loose paint material, apply a primer and touch up using high-quality paint in a similar color.

Bottom Line
With the above four tips, you can make your exterior paint to last longer and save the money that you would have otherwise spent on costly repairs. Once the paint has been applied, you have limited options to extend its durability, however, you can make your exterior paint job to last even longer by a hiring professional painting contractor like Aspen Painting.

If you need exterior or interior painting services in Horsham, PA, Ambler, Dresher, Ft. Washington, or Blue Bell, our painting crew can help. Simply give us a call today and we will be more than happy to come and issue a free estimate.