Exterior Paint Provides Good Looks and Protection

It doesn't take long after one of the neighbors springs for a new exterior paint job that everybody else can soon be seen standing out in front of their homes with paint brochures and color swatches. Why? The answer is simple. A good exterior paint job transforms the appearance of your residence. It's like getting a new home almost overnight.

Why Is Home Painting So Important?
House painting is important for many reasons. Obviously, a good paint job beautifies and adds character and personality to your home. Just for that reason it's important to take sufficient time planning which colors, shades, and paint styles you want to decorate your home with. But paint also serves as one of your home's primary lines of defense against weather, insects and other damage, so it's an important aspect of home maintenance to keep up on as well.

When to Paint
There isn't any set timeline when you should plan to re-paint your home. It varies depending on climate, the quality of paint that was previously applied, how thoroughly your home was prepped beforehand, and whether you hired a good painter. A poor paint job can last as little 3 years before it needs attention, and a good one can last for upwards of 20. The most important determining factor is the condition of home's current coat. Is the paint chipped, cracked, flaking, or peeling anywhere? Are there areas of exposed wood or is there sign of water damage to either your siding or the paint itself? Finally, how does your home look? If you see any of the signs mentioned above, a new paint job is probably in order, but even if you don't, you might still be ready for a change.

Which Color to Choose
Once you've decided on a house painting project, you'll need to choose your color. There's no set rule here to guide you. The wide variety of colors to choose from, and the combinations that are available when it comes to trim, doors, and other extras, make this choice mostly a personal one. One of the best ways to get pointed in the right direction is to drive around your town and neighborhood looking for homes that catch your eye. Try to figure out what it is about them that turned your head. Maybe they did something you didn't like (i.e. stay away from that color, style, look, etc.), maybe the color combinations really speak to you (a light body with dark trim or vice versa), and maybe it's just how they accented certain parts of the house that you like. Make note of all these things so that you can keep them in mind as you get your own house painting project underway.

Testing, Testing 123
Another good rule of thumb is to test out colors on your home before you start. Once you've noted what others have done, and have visited a paint supply retailer to get some more ideas, test out a few potential colors on a non-descript part of your home just to make sure it's what you expect. Colors that look fantastic on a tiny brochure can strike you a lot differently when they're covering an area of a couple square feet. Try out a few options so you can compare them, and give yourself a few days to mull over your impressions. Taking this advice can save you the dilemma of what to do those 20 gallon buckets of "Green Myth" that you quickly realized looked more like split pea soup once you started slopping it on.

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