Exterior Paint Tips - How To Guide

There are many benefits that come along with a good exterior painting job, among these rewards are maintaining your exterior render/plaster, increasing the value of your house. We must admit, a DIY exterior painting project is a huge job! However, the rewards are exceptional & you will save a lot of money with a minimum investment in tools and materials. A professional painter could easily cost twice the amount. One of the best things about this project is that your house will look new again.  Completing a top-quality exterior paint job not only requires patience & dedication but attention to detail, the strength to move & set up tall ladders (depending on the height of your house) & the confidence that you can work safely from heights. Our exterior paint tips and how to guide will ensure you are confident and able to take on the job.

Guide To Starting Your Exterior Paint Job

For any of you beginners, it is important to know that in order for the new paint to be applied perfectly to the surface, you must clean down the house’s exterior of all grime, mildew & chalky residue. This can be done by hand scrubbing with a stiff-bristle brush which is just as effective as using a power sprayer. However, a power sprayer would be the easier option.  We would recommend using Sandtex Fungicidal wash for this job, check out this product here - https://www.sandtextrade.co.uk/product/sandtex-trade-fungicide/

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How Much Does It Cost To Paint A House?

Firstly, we recommend buying quality painting tools. It is extremely important to purchase paint brushes and rollers which are designed to use on exterior surfaces. For the first few applications of paint to large areas of different types we would recommend you buy a high quality roller set which would consist of a sturdy roller cage (handle part of the roller). However, when applying your topcoats (final paint coats) this will not require as much high-quality equipment. The tools you have invested in for scrapping & priming should be fine for this. Furthermore you do not want to run out of paint halfway through the job, we recommend checking out Dulux’s handy paint calculation tips to see how much paint is required for your house – Dulux Calculation Tips

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#TipTopTips - You do not want to run out of paint halfway through the job, we recommend checking out Dulux’s handy paint calculation tips to see how much paint is required for your house – Dulux Calculation Tips. Crown and other paint brands also have these tools.

Roller Technique & Prep – 3 Step Rule 

Fill In Those Cracks  

Remember, small holes, hairline cracks and minor damages should be filled in by using a filler with a knife or scrapper before starting your exterior paint job. Sand down these areas after the filling is complete & apply the fresh paint.

Load The Roller

Pour 4 litres of paint into a large bucket, hang a roller screen within the bucket. Soak the roller nap in the bucket & squeeze off the excess paint on the screen. 

Paint Rolling

When applying the paint with the roller use mild pressure & reload the roller when the paint is no longer rolling easily 

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#TipTopTips - Small holes, hairline cracks and minor damages should be filled in by using a filler with a knife or scrapper before starting your exterior paint job. Sand down these areas after the filling is complete & apply the fresh paint.

Applying Your Exterior Paint Guide: Take It From The Top 

Always start painting near the top of your house and work your way down, this is to avoid any paint drips falling onto freshly painted areas.We advise that you apply paint to all edges firstly, then address the broad surfaces. Applying the paint from one wet surface to another as soon as possible will avoid lap marks. However, this may not always be possible and you sometimes will have to apply the paint to a dry surface. When doing this be sure to overlap onto the dried paint surface by several inches. Consider rewording this sentence also I am fairly sure siding is an American term. One of the most important aspects of this point is to remember basic ladder safety. Avoid overreaching too far to one side as you might fall over, also try to keep your hips within the horizontal rails of the ladder. 

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 #TipTopTip - One of the most important aspects of this point is to remember basic ladder safety. When painting your house avoid overreaching too far to the side or you might fall over.  Try to keep your hips within the horizontal rails of the ladder.

Choose The right Paint!

Above all else, make sure you choose the right exterior paint for your home. One piece of advice we would provide here is that the exterior paint scheme should feel appropriate to the style of the house. It is important to consider your home’s architectural style in order to achieve the most of your paint job. For example a very large house in a very dark colour may look too imposing. Also as a final touch, to prevent the front door from getting lost, consider painting it in a warm, rich colour.  See link here to Sandtex Masonry colour guide - https://www.sandtex.co.uk/myhomeincolour/

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#TipTopTip - The exterior paint scheme should feel appropriate to the style of the house. It is important to consider your home’s architectural style in order to achieve the most of your paint job

The Goods - Required Tools & Materials For The Job 

• Extension ladder
• Paint roller
• Paint tray
• Paintbrush
• Dust sheets
• Roller sleeve
• Bucket
• Paint (of course) – consider the size of the paint job here. A useful tool for this is the Dulux Calculation Tips
• Protective clothes
• Pressure washer 
• Fungicidal wash
• Paint scrapper
• Filler