BUYING GUIDES..since 1995
|
GALT HOME:
Internet Guides - Finance - Audio/Video - Travel - Household/DIY - Health - Cars - Fashion - Sports - Entertainment - Cell Phones |
| MENU: Technology and Internet Guides | Travel | Health | Household | Sports ...independent online guides since 1995 |
Painting your house exteriorFor most people, their house is their biggest investment. Not only that, but it is where they live! Taking care of a house can be alot of work. Proper maintenance is required to maintain the quality and value of your house - landscaping, roofing, yard work, painting -- it all comes with home ownership. Painting your house is one of those tasks most people hate to think about, just like replacing a roof. How often should you paint your house? It depends on where you live, the climate and conditions, the quality of paint you use. Some houses in harsh environments require repainting every 3-4 years -- in fact, we know people who paint one side of their house every year in constant rotation -- this makes the workload manageable, while the entire house gets painted every 4 years.
How much does it cost to paint a house?That's the first question most people have when it comes to painting - how much will it cost? How much does a gallon of good exterior paint cost? Plan on spending $25-$40 per gallon. For most exterior paint jobs, labor makes up about 75-85% of the cost of painting your house, while actual paint and supplies makes up only 15-25%. For this reason, it is important NOT TO SKIMP paint quality when choosing your exterior paint. Paying a few extra bucks per gallon might add $200 to the total job, but if your paint lasts for 8 years instead of 4 years, that is a pretty minor expense to incur. As a rule of thumb, a gallon of paint will cover about 400 sq. feet of wall space, and a 3000 sf house might take 15+ gallons of paint, plus 8 more gallons for trim. At $25 per gallon, that is almost $600 just for the paint. A good acrylic latex paint allows your siding to breathe, letting moisture escape from inside while forming a barrier to keep external water out. You should always get at least 3 bid for contracted work. The best source for finding a painter is to ask neighbors who have recently painted their home. If they were happy with the price and quality of the paint job and recommend the painter to you, chance are you will be happy as well. You can get an online painting cost estimate at CertaPro.com/painting-exterior-estimator. You put in the dimensions of your house, information on windows, doors, decks, etc. and it will spit out an estimated exterior painting cost. We put in the specs on a 3500 sf home and got back an estimate of just over $5500. For estimates on how many gallons of paint you need to paint your house, check out Behr.A professional painting estimate should list materials and labor separately, showing how many gallons of paint for siding and trim will be needed, type and cost per gallon of paint, and cost for labor, with an estimated duration of the job, including prep work and cleanup. Verify that the home site will be completely cleaned up after the painting job is complete. A complete painting job will include sanding or scraping any loose paint, powerwashing the entire house, recaulking all areas around doors and windows , and priming any areas that needed to be sanded. Ideally, you will want two coats of paint applied to all exterior surfaces, especially fully exposed areas. Priming allows the new coat of paint to adhere properly, unlike painting on bare wood that will lead to peeling and cracking much sooner. You'll also want to confirm that your painter is licensed, insured, and bonded - otherwise you may be responsible if an injury occurs. Best Exterior PaintsWe talked about using high quality paints above to get a longer lasting paint job. What are the best exterior paints to buy? The easiest paints to use are acrylic and water based paints. Oil based paints require special solvents for clean up and do not hold up as well in areas where moisture is a problem. The leading brands of paint are Behr, Benjamin Moore, Sherwin Williams, Ace, Dutch Boy, Pratt and Lambert, Glidden. The Glidden Endurance paints are highly rated by professional painters, as are the Behr products. We've heard some grumbling about the quality of Benjamin Moore in the last few years. Same thing for Sherwin Williams and Sears paints. Get a feel for your contractor - if he is the lowest estimate, cheapest guy in town, he probably doesn't use the very best exterior paints on his jobs. Keep in mind that you can pick what kind of paint to use - you don't have to go with what your painter suggests. Most paint brands come in a variety of prices and qualities - whichever brand you choose, pick the most expensive or second most expensive for your job (like Behr Premium Plus).Painting your own houseIf you have a one story house, painting your own house is a definite option if you have the time and patience. There is nothing overly technical or difficult about painting, especially if you are not at the point of having peeling paint and damaged wood. A paint sprayer with an air compressor makes the job go a lot faster since you cant use a roller on clapboard cedar siding. As with all paint jobs, you will first need to tape off and cover things like windows, doors, and trim. Trim and detail work should be painted last, after you have completed work on the siding (along with any associated drips, splashes, and sprays that may have landed on the trim). A 6-8 foot ladder should let you reach eaves and other high spots. If you have a two story house, things are a little more complicated. Climbing a ladder to the second story is one thing, but actually standing on it and working there for hours is something else - not everyone can or wants to do that kind of work. Everything becomes more complicated when you are 10-15 feet in the air, from handling tools and buckets to sanding to cleaning up messes. When in doubt, call in a professional painter to handle jobs that are too big for the average do it yourselfer.
Do you have a quality site or product that belongs in this guide? We are always happy to evaluate or review new products and websites. Feel free to contact us at the email address below and let us know about you. If you have a demo product you'd like us to look at, please contact us before sending anything. Thank you.
Send email to: galtemail (@) yahoo.com
|
