Author: Brian January 26, 2022

Guest Post by Sherazi Khan

Painting your home should be a positive experience.

Whether you’re getting it prepared before you sell it, you want to give it a whole new look, or you just want to give it a quick refresh, it’s a reason to get excited.

However, that excitement can quickly dull if your project doesn’t turn out how you expect it to.

Instead of a slick new coat of paint that rejuvenates your home’s aesthetic, you can end up with a haphazardly painted mess, or just something lackluster in general.

In fact, DIY painting can be a major pain if not done correctly, but you still need your house painted.

So here are some tips to get the best results possible for your next house painting project.

1: Get High-Quality Paint

The paint you use has a lot to do with the overall result you get from your project.

If you use the cheapest paint you can find, it might not dry properly and leave streaks or visible blemishes on your home. . . and, it won’t provide the same protection as a high-quality paint.

Instead, shell out a bit more for a higher quality paint from a reputable source.

It’ll look better with less effort, and it will help protect the underlying materials of your home.

Whatever you do, try to stay away from marketing fads such as anti-bacterial paint.

2: Use Proper Technique

Painting a house isn’t the same as trying to create some abstract painting you’d find in a traveling exhibit, but there is a proper technique to use.

You can’t just flop a brush across your home sporadically and expect it to look good.

Instead, follow this base process:

• • Prep: Remove furniture if painting indoors or shrubs and other items that are against your home’s exterior when painting outside.
  • Clean: Remove dirt, mildew, and build-up from the walls and sills.
  • Scrape: Using a paint scraper, remove any loose flakey paint.
  • Prime: Applying a primer will provide extra protection and ensure your paint’s pigment shines through.
  • Paint: Using a roller or a high-quality spray apparatus makes this easier, but use broad, long, straight strokes in the same direction to avoid streaks, and paint multiple thinner layers to avoid clumping.

3: Check the Weather

Painting the exterior of your home obviously leaves it open to the elements.

That can greatly affect your paint job. If it’s raining, even just a little, the paint can be washed off, or the moving water can leave unsightly streaks on your home.

If it’s cold, it can take far longer for the paint to dry.

It’s best to paint the exterior of your home when a reliable forecast predicts at least a week of dry, warm weather.

Interior painting offers more flexibility, but you should still avoid painting during the cold season so that the paint dries quicker.

4: Always Prime

Primer is often substituted with a two-in-one paint or left out altogether, but that’s not the most ideal way to do it.

Primer adds an extra layer of protection, corrects minor defects to create a smooth painting surface, and helps with the pigment of your paint.

A high-quality combo paint might be a decent option, but it’s best to put a separate primer down whenever possible.

5: Leverage Experience

If you have never performed house painting before it is always best to seek the advice of someone who has. The most obvious solution here would be to leave it all to professional painters.

But if you are determined to follow the DIY route, just make sure to at least speak with a friend or contact who can provide some helpful tips.

Better yet, try to rope them into doing the painting with you.

This will help you resolve any unforeseen issues that may pop up during the project.