Painting your home’s exterior is a huge undertaking, but unfortunately, exterior paint doesn’t last forever. With rain, sun damage, and time, the paint on your home can become damaged. To protect your home and keep it looking beautiful for a long time to come, you must take the time to maintain it. Keep reading to learn how to care for the paint on your home’s exterior.
Prevent Rot
The paint on your house does more than just boost its curb appeal; it actually protects the surfaces underneath and prevents rotting and other damage. In order to maximize the protection paint provides, you must make sure that every surface is painted. Check commonly forgotten places like the undersides of corner boards and the sides and backs of wood shutters. If any surface on a board is unpainted, it is exposed to water damage, which will lead to rot.
Avoid Chalking Paint
When you use cheap paint on your home, it will break down more quickly and become chalky. In turn, this will cause it to flake off without difficulty when you touch the surface of the house. If the paint has become severely chalky, you may need to hire professionals who specialize in house painting in Atlanta. This is the only solution to protect your home’s surfaces and make sure it continues to look great for a long time to come. If you do decide to repaint the home, make sure you use high-quality paint to prevent any more chalking down the road.
Address Mold and Mildew
In areas of the home that don’t get a lot of sunlight, mold and mildew can flourish. Over time, this will damage the paint and, in more serious cases, harm the inside of your house, too. At the first sign of mold or mildew growth, apply a paint-friendly bleach. This will kill the existing spores and remove the mold completely.
Pressure Wash the House
Over time, dirt and grime can build up on the exterior of your home. This is entirely normal and can be easily solved through pressure washing. You should pressure wash your home about five or six years after your most recent exterior paint job, or sooner if you notice a lot of dirt build-up. Once a year, you should use your garden hose to rinse off your porches and the underside of any overhangs. This can help to remove any atmospheric salts that build up on surfaces where rain cannot wash them away. The salts damage new paint, so it is best to wash them away by hand with your hose.
How Often Should You Perform Maintenance?
On average, homeowners will need to repaint their home every six to ten years. There are a few factors that will impact how often you need to perform maintenance on the exterior of your house. Paint on stucco, for example, lasts longer than paint on wood. So, people with wood siding will need to repaint their homes more often than those with stucco. The environment where you live will also have an impact. Those who live in harsher climates will need to perform more maintenance than those who live in milder ones.
If the paint on your home needs professional repair, contact us at Fillo Painting to schedule an appointment today.