Putting a fresh coat of paint on your home is a great way to provide it with a much needed face lift. Just in the way that making your bed can make your bedroom suddenly look clean, a fresh coat of paint on the exterior of a house can breathe new life into a shabby and drab home. Spring time is considered the best time to paint the exterior of your home, but how often should you do it? That depends on what materials your exterior is made of, how well the previous job was done, the climate you live in, and how well you’ve maintained that previous paint job.
If your home is made with wood siding, be prepared to repaint as early as every three years, though if the paint job is well maintained you could push that as far as every seven years. If your siding is stained, however, plan to re-stain every four years to make sure the wood stays sealed and sturdy. Homes made with aluminum siding should have a bit more life to their paint and can go about five years between paint jobs; if they are stuccoed then every five to six years should be just about right. Brick should not need to be painted, just cleaned, though your trim will need to be painted depending on what material it is made out of. If you have chosen to paint your brick work, then you can probably go fifteen years without needing to look at it again. Newer types of exterior materials have a longer life and need touch-ups far less frequently; for example, if your home has cement-board siding you can go ten to fifteen years without having to worry about touching up or repainting. Be aware, you don’t want to put off Chester county residential painting if you see definite signs of wear and tear on your paint job. Leaving your homes exterior unprotected can lead to serious damage such as rot!
How long your paint job lasts is also determined by the previous paint job. If your previous paint job was done well, a high quality paint, light colored paint was used and at least two coats were applied your paint job will last longer. It will last longest if it was applied while the house was in the shade and you will want to make sure that any paint that is applied to your house is 100% acrylic paint as it is the most durable and least likely to fade. Climate affects the life of your paint job as well. If your house is in the sun and not sheltered, you’ll begin to see bubbling early and the color will fade more quickly than homes that are in the shade. This is especially true if your paint was dark, used synthetic pigments or is oil based. Harsh winters can cause early cracking, places with lots of blowing sand and salty ocean breezes act as sand paper and simply wear the paint away, and extreme humidity can alter the drying of your paint. Once your home is painted, you can make that paint job last longest by keeping it well maintained and treating dampness, rot, mold and infestations quickly.