What experienced exterior painters know (and why it matters for your home)

When you hire someone to paint the outside of your home, you are paying for a lot more than paint on a wall. You are paying for everything they have learned about what makes a finish actually hold up in Central Oregon weather.

Wade has been doing this for over 40 years. After that much time on homes all over Central Oregon, you pick up a lot. Here are five of the biggest things experienced exterior painters bring to a job, and why they matter for how long your paint lasts.

Experienced painters know that prep is most of the job.

What separates a finish that looks great for 10 years from one that starts failing in 2 is almost entirely about what happens before the paint comes out. Pressure washing at the right pressure with the right tip. Letting the house fully dry. Scraping and feathering loose paint. Setting popped nails. The day a house is painted is just the reward for days of prep done right.

Experienced painters know what to caulk and what to leave alone.

Not every gap on your house is supposed to be caulked. The overlap seams on horizontal lap siding, for example, are designed to breathe. Caulking them shut traps moisture and causes siding to fail. Experience teaches you which joints need caulk and which ones need to stay open, and it teaches you to use the right caulk for the job. Cheap caulk fails in a year or two. A good 50-year caulk is what actually holds up in Central Oregon’s temperature swings.

Experienced painters know how to keep a wet edge.

Those long horizontal streaks you sometimes see across a painted house when the sun hits it right? Those are lap lines, and they happen when one section of wall dries before it gets joined up to the next wet section. Avoiding them takes knowing how far you can push a wall before you have to stop at a natural break like a corner or a window. It takes knowing how the shade is moving across the house through the day. None of that is written down anywhere. You learn it by painting hundreds of homes.

Experienced painters know how to read the weather.

Paint has a temperature window where it actually cures correctly. Too hot, it flashes off before it can level out. Too cold, it does not bond. A dark color on a sunny wall can push the siding temperature well past what the paint is rated for, even on a mild day. Experienced painters watch the shade move across your house and paint the right walls at the right times. New painters tend to just paint whatever wall is next on the list.

Experienced painters know what to look for before they ever open a can.

One of the most valuable things a veteran painter brings to your home is the ability to walk your property slowly and see the problems. Soft wood under the trim. Failing flashing above a window. A popped piece of siding. A rotten spot at the base of a column. These need to be handled before paint goes on, not covered up by it. Experienced painters catch that stuff up front. It saves you money and it saves your paint job.

Why it matters for you

If you are getting ready to paint the outside of your home, the difference between a bid that is thousands of dollars and a bid that is a bit more is almost always in the details above. An experienced painter costs what they cost because they know what holds up and what does not. You are paying for the years they have already put in.

If you are thinking about an exterior project in Central Oregon this year, we would love to come take a look. Call or text us anytime at (541) 948-7420.