EXTERIOR PAINTING: HOW WE SAVED $5000.00 IN ONE WEEKEND

Exterior House Painting: Learn how we saved $5000.00 in one weekend!

It has been nearly 9  years since Wayne and I bought our first home and like many new homeowners, we had no clue the amount of upkeep that would need to be done regularly or just how expensive hiring those things out could be.

Last winter we noticed how much damage the scorching Oklahoma sun had done to our exterior fascia trim, especially in the front of the house. The paint was wearing and chipped, some areas had even started to rot from all of the wood being exposed.  We knew it was time to paint the trim to protect it from even more damage. It would cost more to completely replace the trim versus repairing what we could and painting it.

Looking back there are 2 to 4 pieces of fascia that we should have replaced but it was a can of worms that we were not ready to deal with but we will talk more about that later.

Several years ago Wayne started a new job where he went from working half days to full days, around the same time my job moved locations so suddenly I was in traffic for two hours each day, and between the two it took a toll on us both.

We went from having tons of extra time to work on things at home to having none, so with this in mind we decided it would be best to hire out the exterior painting. Cue the record scratch…

We got a few recommendations from a neighbor who recently had their home painted. The painter came to look at our home and by the time he left, he had worked up a $5500.00 quote to paint our exterior trim…To say we were shocked would be an understatement, especially since our home is 90% brick.

Listen I know the professional would do a better job than we ever could have but I also know that there are A MILLION things that we can do with $5500 bucks!!! We just didn’t have it in us to pay that much for something that we could do ourselves with similar results, some things are worth splurging…… this just wasn’t one of those things.

What’s one more thing, right?

Painting the exterior wasn’t easy mostly because Wayne decided to set a nonexistent deadline for this project so we started on Friday and finished on Sunday… We busted our butts from sun up to well past sundown for two and a half days. There were moments when we were ready to throw in the towel but we pushed through.

We did get paint and overspray on more things than we had hoped, but it is still something that we would do again to save $5000 dollars! (we made it harder than it needed to be, more on that below)

One huge perk is now that we’ve done it, we can give you all of the tips and tricks to make it go much easier and faster for you!! We’ll also fill you in on where we screwed up!

Sherwin Williams Iron Ore

CHOOSING AN EXTERIOR HOUSE PAINT COLOR: 

This part was pretty easy because we had recently painted our garage door in Sherwin Williams Iron Ore which was a lot darker than the previous peach tone that had been on the garage as well as the trim of our home, so going into this project we knew we would be using the same color on our trim to give the exterior a cohesive look.

Changing the color of your home can be scary especially if you aren’t sure what color to go with.

If this is where you are right now I would recommend looking on Pinterest, magazines, and neighborhoods as you drive through town. Look not only for homes that you love but also make sure to look for homes that are similar to the style and architectural attributes of your home, I like to call these the unchangeables.

Doing this will give you a better idea of how your home will look and also allow you to work with the home that you have vs working against it.

For example, we live in an HOA and the bylaws state that 75% of the home’s exterior must be covered in brick or stone. This is something that bums me out a lot because I am pretty sure they would never be okay with us painting or limewashing our brick which is something that I’ve wanted to do since the day we moved in. I should probably just submit the plans and ask,  but for now  I consider our red brick exterior an unchangeable element, and I had to make sure that the color we chose would look good against the warm rusty red brick.

Designer Tip: One trick to ensure that the colors look good together is to match the undertones.

 Undertones are very important. 

Our red brick has very warm undertones, so I made sure that the paint color we went with also had warm undertones for the two to work well together.  You can use warm and neutral undertones together. Just avoid mixing warm and cool as they tend to clash.

This step is so important and is usually the leading cause of “the wrong paint color” so be sure to study the paint color options, read the descriptions, and look at the colors displayed next to them on the sample card, this will help you to determine the undertones of that particular paint color.

After we decided to use Sherwin Williams Iron Ore on our front door and garage door we knew we would use the same for the trim so picking a color was pretty easy this time.

Sherwin Williams Iron Ore looks so amazing on the card and it’s also a very popular color but beware that it does look very purple until it cures so don’t panic (like I did).  The color will settle down as it cures and you’ll be left with the perfect shade of dark gray.

Sheen:

Choosing the appropriate sheen of paint is also very important, a flat sheen is going to reflect less light vs an eggshell or gloss sheen.

Our garage door paint was made specifically for garage doors and it ended up being a flat sheen once it dried. For exterior trim paint, it is best to use an eggshell or semi-gloss to help with durability,  this was especially important for us so it would hold up to the blistering Oklahoma sun.

We painted our garage several months before we decided we were going to paint the trim, so the colors read completely different to me, I loved the flat garage door much more than the shinier trim but once wepaint the garage door in the same sheen  it will match and will probably look better.

For now, it isn’t super noticeable so I’m not too concerned about it.

Note: If you intend to match the trim and garage door on your home I would recommend painting them at the same time so the colors match up correctly and can fade/settle in together as one.

Brand And Type Of Paint:

If you had asked me years ago if the brand and type of paint mattered I probably would have said not much,  but today I have way more experience with using different brands and types of paint, and depending on the application and the surface type, I have to be honest with you, IT MATTERS…

Choosing the correct paint for each job is vital to a good finish, especially if you want it to last. Because let’s be honest, nobody wants to do a job this size a second time because the wrong type of paint was used and the paint failed.

Finding the right brand and type of paint for the material being painted is key, as well as the location  (interior/exterior paint) Following these steps and prep is the key to getting a professional look.

For instance, paint that is made for exterior wood trim will be different than Interior wood trim paint, as well as paint for a metal door will be different than wood trim paint. Researching what works best is super important and if you are still undecided you can test two brands against each other and see which result you like best.

For this, Sherwin Williams Pro Classic Exterior Paint In Semi Gloss won! Sherwin Williams paint is expensive and I do not use it for everything… I prefer Behrs Ultra Pure White when it comes to white paint colors since Behr has the cleanest purest aka whitest white but we have had two big projects and  Sherwin Williams Paint has outperformed every other paint brand I have ever used, this project included. 

Yes it is expensive and that is a bummer but it is 100% worth the money in my opinion, especially when you want professional results, and don’t want to end up repeating the project anytime soon. 

MAKE A PLAN

Grab a pen and paper to jot down any areas that need extra attention and detail what needs to be done in those particular spots. This will make it easier once you get ready to go buy supplies since you will have a better idea of what to buy.

For this step, you will need to access the entirety of the project. Examine the entire exterior of your home and look for problem areas where the paint has chipped, any spots where weather rot has occurred, or where the caulking has come apart, leaving a gap between your home and the trim.

NOTE: If any areas are damaged beyond repair that will need to be replaced BEFORE you begin painting. Write that on your list in detail.

Look at the materials used then measure the area and list the type of material or supplies and qanity needed for repairs.

Once you have the scope of work down it is time to create a supply list starting with any special repair supplies you wrote down and then add in the paint supplies.

TO ROLL OR TO SPRAY, THAT IS THE QUESTION:

My husband is one of those people who thinks spraying is faster than rolling….. So anytime there is an option, he always wants to spray.

In theory, this would have been true if not for the fact that we were not replacing our gutters. We tried to tape off and spray around the gutters but also paint the small strip of trim right behind the gutters that would have been very visible had we not painted it. To get the small strip, we used a tiny roller behind the gutter and rolled the area.

Once we were done with one coat of primer we realized that we should have just rolled the entire thing which would have made for a much cleaner job.. Because using a paint sprayer is MESSY!!!

But at that point, he was committed to using the sprayer.

If you won’t be replacing the gutters and don’t want to change the color of your gutters then we 1000% recommend that you just bite the bullet and roll it….. This will be faster in the end because you won’t be trying to maneuver the sprayer into all of those little areas, plus you won’t have to worry and deal with the mess-ups from overspray.

If your home has less brick, and more area requiring paint then I would recommend using a sprayer.

As well as those of you that will be replacing your gutters the sprayer wins out.

If you are planning to replace your gutters I would recommend making sure you know when the gutters will be replaced and wait to remove them as close as possible to the replacements being installed so there is no worry of rain causing issues around your property while the gutters are off.

You’ll be able to just go to town with the paint sprayer.

We ended up doing more research after we started this project and toward the end I realized that you can paint your gutters and wish we would have just done that. It would have made life so much easier.

Important Reminder: For those of you who will be using the sprayer please please please keep any vehicles in the vicinity in mind before you begin spraying so you don’t accidentally end up with overspray on your vehicle or heaven forbid your neighbor’s….. If you have to question it just move it out of the way, better safe than sorry when it comes to paint overspray.

 

 

SUPPLY LIST:

HAND MASKER (YOU CAN FIND THEM WITH THE TAPE AND PLASTIC ATTACHED)

6 -ROLLS OF TAPE (2000 SQ FT HOME)

3-4 ROLLS OF PLASTIC

PAINT SHIELD IF YOU ARE USING A SPRAYER

CARDBOARD SHIELDS (WE USED A TON OF THESE TO TAPE OFF CERTAIN AREAS AND BLOCK OTHERS FROM OVERSPRAY)

PAINT SPRAYER

SKINNY ROLLER + ROLLER COVER

1- CHEAP PAINT KIT 

1-ROLLER EXTENSION POLE

1- CAN OF MINERAL SPIRITS

1- LARGE WIRE BRUSH

1- SMALL WIRE BRUSH

1- METAL PAINT SCRAPER

1- TUB OF EXTERIOR WOOD FILLER

1- PACK OF RAGS

1-2 RAZOR KNIVES

EXTRA RAZOR BLADES

4-5 TUBES OF EXTERIOR SILICONE CAULK OF YOUR CHOICE

2- GALLONS ZINNSER COVER ALL OIL-BASED PRIMER (WE DID ONE COAT)

4-GALLONS OF SHERWIN WILLIAMS IRON ORE EXTERIOR PAINT IN EGGSHELL

3- FIVE GALLON BUCKETS WITH LID

(THE AMOUNT OF PAINT YOU WILL NEED IS DEPENDENT ON THE SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE AREA YOU’ll BE PAINTING, KEEP IN MIND USING A SPRAYER WASTES A LOT OF PAINT SO ACCOUNT FOR THAT AS WELL. YOU CAN MEASURE AND CALCULATE THE SQUARE FOOTAGE OR YOU CAN GUESS, THAT IS WHAT WE DID. OUR HOME IS 1975 SQ FT AND WE USED RIGHT AT 4 GALLONS OF PAINT WITH THE SPRAYER FOR 2 COATS AND WE ONLY PAINTED THE TRIM AND FACIA) 

1- BOX OF DISPOSABLE GLOVES

1-LADDER TALL ENOUGH TO REACH THE HIGHEST POINT

1-SCAFFOLD OPTIONAL (Having this scaffold made the job so much easier)

3- 5 GAL BUCKET TO MIX ALL OF THE PAINT IN BEFORE STARTING.

1- PACK OF MULTI-GRIT SANDPAPER FOR ORBITAL SANDER

IF YOU DON’T HAVE AN ORBITAL SANDER YOU CAN USE ANY POWER SANDER THAT YOU HAVE OTHERWISE YOU CAN USE SANDING SPONGES. IF YOU WANT TO BUY A SANDER, WE HAVE HAD THIS ONE FOR SEVERAL YEARS AND HAVEN’T HAD ANY ISSUES.

1-3 PACKS OF SANDING SPONGES 80-120 GRIT

STEP 1

Clean any wood that you will be painting with a wire brush, and chip away any paint that may be peeling or chipping. Do not skip this step… It is very important and can screw up the entire project if it isn’t done BEFORE YOU PAINT.

Using the the wire brush and scraper, chip off the old paint, and get the wood as clean as possible.

Look back at your list for any problem areas that need to be repaired. Repair the area and fill any major chips or rotted areas with wood filler if it can be repaired. If it is beyond repair then remove the bad piece and replace it with the appropriate material.

When using wood filler use very thin coats otherwise the filler won’t dry and you could end up with a huge wad of filler that takes forever to sand off. 

We had to replace the flashing in a few places underneath our porch. It wasn’t the easiest thing to do but we managed and are ultimately glad we did.

In this step, you will also want to tear off any old caulk and clean the area well, then re-apply the new caulk to the surface.

Go around the entire perimeter of your home until complete.

Note: It may take multiple coats of wood filler depending on how deep the cracks are. 

STEP 2

Once all the problem areas have been repaired it’s time to start taping everything off. A tape gun that has paper attached is the easiest way to mask off the areas around the trim. Use the cardboard pieces to tape over any areas that may need something more than paper for extra coverage.

Cover or take down light fixtures and anything that you do not want to be covered in overspray.

Move your vehicles out of the driveway and have rags and a small bucket of clean water ready for any mess-ups.

STEP 3

Before you open any paint or primer make sure you have the area the paint sprayer will be sitting covered with cardboard or something to prevent any spills from seeping through. Combine all of your primer cans into one bucket, for example, if you have 3 gallons of primer combine those 3 cans into one 5-gallon bucket then mix well. Do the same thing with your paint cans. This will ensure that the color is consistent throughout the project because using one gallon at a time can sometimes end with one of the gallons not matching up perfectly.

The best way to avoid this is to mix all the paint in one bucket and then all  the primer in one bucket.

Prep the paint sprayer by following the manufacturer’s guidelines.

STEP 4

Time to Prime, using primer on an exterior project will make the finish look professional. We only did one coat of primer and probably should have done two which may have saved us from having to buy 4 gallons of paint but you live and learn, right?

CLEAN THE SPRAYER BEFORE SWITCHING OVER FROM PRIMER TO PAINT. YOU ABSOLUTELY CANNOT SKIP THIS STEP. 

STEP 5

Since we used an oil-based primer you’ll need to clean the paint sprayer very well with mineral spirits. Whenever you think it is clean go ahead and do a little more to ensure that all of the oil-based primer is out of the sprayer and the hose. If you try to skip this step and switch to the Sherwin Williams paint without cleaning the paint sprayer you will end up with contaminated paint and it will be an expensive mistake, so please make sure you don’t skip this step.

We have this Graco paint sprayer and I have included the cleaning instructions below.

Once finished cleaning the sprayer place the fluid intake hose into the paint bucket.

FLUSHING PAINT SPRAYER 
Remove the spray tip and tip guard from the gun
Remove the fluid intake and drain tube from the paint and wipe any excess paint off the outside
Place the fluid intake into the flushing fluid (Mineral spirits for cleaning oil-based paint)
Place the drain tube into a waste pail
Turn the prime valve to spray
With the gun pointed into the paint bucket, pull the trigger then turn the on/off switch to On
Increase pressure while continuing to pull the gun trigger
When the paint flow ends and you see flushing fluid appear, turn the on/off switch to off and release the trigger.

STEP 6

Look for the manufacturer’s recommendation on the primer for the recoat time  (usually on the paint can itself). When the primer has dried you can then move on to Paint!

Hang in there, this part is tedious but try to remember how much money you’re saving by doing this yourself!

Take it slow and clean up any mistakes right away to prevent having to go back after the paint dries and is harder to get off.

As you work around the house watch for any drips/runs of paint and brush/roll them out as soon as possible. Most of the time you can fix them before the paint dries.

If you miss a run that won’t brush or roll away don’t freak out, just let it finish drying and cut out the excess paint with a razor knife, sand the area, and then hit it again with the paint.

STEP 7

Look for the recoat time on the back of the paint can and once the appropriate amount of time has passed continue with the second coat of paint. This time around be sure to look for any spots you may have missed or spots that need extra paint.

STEP 8

After the final coat allow the paint to dry. We left ours overnight. Some people like to take the tape off while the paint is partially tacky, which is great in most situations. At the same time, the paint was still wet, so we erred on the side of caution and just waited for the paint to dry completely and paying extra attention while pulling the tape off in case we needed to score the tape with a razor blade first to keep any of the paint from coming off with it.

Once all of the paper was off, I hated it!!!  The color looked way too purple…. I was in tears, and being as stubborn as the day is long I convinced myself and my husband that I was going to repaint it…

Wayne may have had a few choice words to say about that after painting for 3 days straight but he is used to my irrational thought process when it comes to our house and luckily he doesn’t pay much attention to my meltdowns anymore.

For some reason, every time we change something at our house I almost always hate it at first. It doesn’t matter what it is, things just look weird to me. Typically I  have to live with something for a week or two before I decide if my brain is playing tricks on me or if it is time for it to go.

Luckily after the paint cured for a week, it changed!! The purple tones went away as it cured and we were left with a gorgeous color that looked amazing against our red brick house!

It feels good knowing that we saved $5000 bucks!!