Painting the House Exterior
Baton Rouge house painting contractors know that painting the exterior of your home produces instant curb appeal and greater real estate value. It is almost like having a brand new home. To achieve this beautiful lasting look it makes sense to hire a Baton Rouge house painting service. The exterior of your home should be painted every five to six years. This will preserve the siding and the trim and keep them from being damaged by the elements.
Your house painting contractor will help you pick the correct paint for your home’s exterior. They can also advise you on the best color schemes to suit the style of your home and to pleasantly blend into your neighborhood. If you have an older heritage home that needs to have special paint and colors to retain the appropriate look, these professional Baton Rouge house painters know the sources for this type of paint.
It is important to paint at the right time of day and the right time of year. Any dampness either from dew, rain, or pressure washing will interfere with the paint and ultimately cause peeling. Don’t start to paint too early in the day. Wait until the sun has dried the surface. Don’t paint in hot humid weather in temperatures above 85F, as this will cause blistering. Don’t paint when there is a large gap between the daytime and nighttime temperatures as this causes excessive dew.
The different types of paint that are used on the exterior of a home are latex, vinyl, acrylic, or alkyd. The first three are water base paints and the alkyd is oil based. When painting the exterior of a house the Baton Rouge painting contractor will take into consideration what type of paint was previously used on the house. A rule of thumb is “oil over water never water over oil”. If latex paint is to be used over an existing alkyd surface then the area will have to be primed.
The advantages of using a latex paint is because it is a water base paint it will dry quickly and clean up more easily. Because of the popularity of latex paints there is huge range of colors available. It is almost odorless and causes less allergic reactions than the alkyd paint. With latex paint the time between applying the second coat is less. The downside of using latex paint is that it tends to show the brush strokes more than an oil base paint. It should not be applied if there is any chance of a freeze.
The best type of this paint to use is 100% acrylic. Although a bit more expense it is superior in a number of ways to cheaper latex paints. This 100% acrylic paint will be long lasting, has great colors with good sheen retention. It does not easily chip and can be scrubbed to retain a fresh look every year.
Many painters prefer the use of alkyd paint as it is long lasting, resists stains, and dries to a smooth finish. Although alkyd paint is considered to be an oil base paint it has a synthetic type of resin. This allows it to be used on more surfaces than the older oil based paints. Alkyd paints tend to have very strong odors and take a much longer time to dry. Over time these paints are prone to cracking and chipping. On the plus side as they cover so well it is sometimes possible to get away with only one coat. They also won’t wash off the siding if it suddenly starts to rain.
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency has issued restrictions on the amount of the volatile organic compounds that paint can contain. This particularly has an effect on alkyd paints. The result of these guidelines has forced the paint companies to come up with new formulas and they are developing “alkyd-modified” latex. These paint formulas will combine the positive features of the alkyd paints with the easy to use and easy to clean up features of latex. For consumers this is very good news because the new paint will give outstanding finishes with friendly environmental characteristics.
One of the important things about painting is how much sheen the surface will have. These are described as flat, eggshell, pearl, satin, semi-gloss and gloss. Exterior walls are usually painted in a flat paint with the trims being done in a semi-gloss or gloss. The flat paint will hide many of the imperfections on the siding. The shinier paint the harder the finish will be. While the flat paint gives a nice soft finish on the siding, the higher gloss paints are good for trims, garage doors, and window frames that will be washed occasionally. The very high gloss paint is attractive on front doors and décor features such as light fixtures.
All these challenges in painting the exterior of your home are readily addressed by the Baton Rouge house painting services. These professional painters have years of experience and knowledge that will give your home the lovely look that you are seeking.
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