EXTERIOR PAINTING
How Important is Proper Surface Preparation During Exterior Painting?
Michael Hines, Owner
May, 11 2019
Painting the exterior of your home in Amador County, California can be quite exciting and overwhelming at the same time. It’s a chance to get rid of current paint failures, make some repairs, change the color on your exterior, protect your property and ultimately improve your home’s curb appeal. If you’re planning to sell your home soon, exterior home painting means adding value and creating outstanding first impressions.
In a bid to harness all these benefits and more, you might be tempted to hurry the painting process and skip some of the most important preparation steps. Skipping or skimping on surface preparation is essentially setting a stage for paint failure, sooner than later. The success of your paint job largely depends on how well you’ve prepared your surface.
Spoiler Alert: It’s Really Important!
What is surface prep?
Surface prep is exactly what it sounds like –it involves a series of processes required to prepare the surface before painting. For the most part, it involves cleaning, pressure washing, sanding, paint stripping, caulking, sealing, repairing, and applying a primer.
Of course, the type of preparation process required and extent of preparation will depend on the current condition of the surface, siding material, type of paint or stain to be applied, and so on. The cleaning process may consist of removing grease, dirt, mildew, mold and everything else that might have accumulated on the surface over the years.
Holes, cracks, missing siding patches and issues like water damage also need to be addressed before painting can proceed. If it’s been a while since you last painted your exterior, chances are signs of paint failure such as paint peeling, bubbling, cracking, and fading have started showing up.
Having said that, let’s take a quick look at why we should take exterior surface prep a little more seriously.
“If you’re planning to sell your home soon, exterior home painting means adding value and creating outstanding first impressions.“
Importance of Exterior Surface Prep
Paint Adhesion
This is the biggest reason why proper surface preparation is so critical to any painting project. Preparing your surface creates a clean, even and durable foundation for your paint. If you paint on a dirty surface, the paint will most likely not last long. Paints don’t bond well with grease, dirt, chemicals, and oil.
Make sure that even the residual material or water from cleaning is wiped off and the surface is completely dry before attempting to paint. Painting over dirt, loose old paint or wet surfaces will have your paint peeling, flaking, cracking or bubbling within just a year or even months after painting.
Surface and Stain Sealing
Priming is one of the most important steps of surface preparation during exterior painting. Priming seals the old paint, stains and creates a smooth surface for even paint application. This also allows the paint to dry uniformly, helping the sheen and color of your paint to come through.
Additionally, a primer creates a suitable surface for the paint to adhere to. Paints typically don’t stick well to bare surfaces, but they can stick perfectly to primed surfaces. If you’re transitioning from a dark to lighter paint color, priming and sealing the surface helps to block the old paint from bleeding through your new coat of paint.
Aesthetics and Durability
The difference between a poorly prepped surface and an excellent one comes out clearly once the paint has dried. Flaws resulting from painting over dirt, loose old paint, unprimed and uneven surface become more noticeable at the end of the paint job.
It’s worth repeating that a well-prepared surface leads to a high quality and more durable exterior paint job that will stand a chance against harsh weather elements and changing seasons.
Preparation Matters
As you can see, proper surface preparation is extremely important for an aesthetic, high-quality and durable exterior paint job. If you don’t have the skills, experience, and tools to do thorough surface preparation, we highly recommend that you hire a professional painter for your exterior home painting in Amador County, California.
Why Hire Us For Your Exterior Painting in Amador County?
At Michael Hines Painting, we believe in the value of lifetime relationships. We believe in taking the care and time to not only do the job well, but expertly. That is why we will never sacrifice the quality of our work or provide you with poor service.
Still not sure? We suggest you listen to what some of our clients have to say about us Reviews, or to read a little bit more about what makes us passionate about protecting your home check out Our Story!
If you’re looking for a painting company that can expertly prep and paint your exterior, or there is anything we can do for you- Please just let us know.
Michael Hines Painting has the knowledge and training to identify the right process and products for your exterior painting project.
We are eager to show you the quality, confidence and peace of mind our services will bring to your home. Please call us right now at 209.256.4587 to get started. We look forward to hearing from you.
For people who lives in Galt, CA. Visit us at our other website called Galt House Painter in where we provide high-quality painting to everyone!