Any tips for painting the outside of the house?

PeteW

Hiya,

The render on our house is looking a bit knackered, so I think it's about time I repainted it. Really can't afford to pay a professional, so thinking about doing it myself - never done anything like that before, so wondering if anyone has any advice before I get cracking?

Cheers

Pete

keystone

Is it rendered or is it pebble / spar dashed? Has it been painted before? Are there any large cracks in it or any areas that are blown?

Cheers

nickj_2

preparation is king , if you can't be bothered to do it , you might as well save your money and either not bother or save up and get a decorator

SailorSam

If you're going to go up a ladder and spend a long time leaning out with one hand, be careful. What i did when i was working outside was got a load of eyelets that i could screw into the wall every 3 or 4 foot., then you've got something to tie the top of the ladder to. If you wanted to leave them in (i did) dab a bit of paint on and they want be seen from the ground.

Procrastinator333

Painting the outside of the house is fairly time consuming, but doesn't really require any special skills.

I did the following when painting up the external walls on our house:

1) Check the render. Need to go up and down and tap the wall in numerous places to be sure it isn't blown. You will know it is blown if it is coming off the wall, or if when you tap it (use back end of a screwdriver), it sounds hollow. If it is blown, it has to come off and be re-done. Rendering is a bit more tricky, so you might need to get a hand if any has blown. But do take the time to do this as not a lot of point in painting it for the render and your paint to fall off a few months later. Plus if it is blown, it will just get worse.

2) Once all the render was sound, I went over the whole wall with a stiff bristled brush, run it all down, get off any flakes, and as much dust and rubbish as possible.

3) When done, rub your hand over the wall, does your hand look chalky? If yes, then get some stabilising solution. That needs brushing over the whole wall and leaving to dry. On a sunny day, that dries really quickly.

4) Is any of your wall green - e.g. fungus? If so, you need to rub it down hard and get some anti fungus treatment. Do whatever it says on the product.

5) Then finally, once the wall is clean, fungus free, solid rendering and no chalk, get painting.

My suggestion - On brushes, buy a few, buy cheap, external walls don't matter for brushes, but cheap ones and just bin them after each day. On paint, buy quality - you don't want to be painting again next year.

The ladder is the most expensive part of the whole thing. But bearing in mind you will be trusting your life to the ladder, don't buy cheap. And then follow the instructions - secure footing, correct ratio, don't over-reach etc etc.

nickj_2

Procrastinator333 wrote: »

Painting the outside of the house is fairly time consuming, but doesn't really require any special skills.

I did the following when painting up the external walls on our house:

1) Check the render. Need to go up and down and tap the wall in numerous places to be sure it isn't blown. You will know it is blown if it is coming off the wall, or if when you tap it (use back end of a screwdriver), it sounds hollow. If it is blown, it has to come off and be re-done. Rendering is a bit more tricky, so you might need to get a hand if any has blown. But do take the time to do this as not a lot of point in painting it for the render and your paint to fall off a few months later. Plus if it is blown, it will just get worse.

2) Once all the render was sound, I went over the whole wall with a stiff bristled brush, run it all down, get off any flakes, and as much dust and rubbish as possible.

3) When done, rub your hand over the wall, does your hand look chalky? If yes, then get some stabilising solution. That needs brushing over the whole wall and leaving to dry. On a sunny day, that dries really quickly.

4) Is any of your wall green - e.g. fungus? If so, you need to rub it down hard and get some anti fungus treatment. Do whatever it says on the product.

5) Then finally, once the wall is clean, fungus free, solid rendering and no chalk, get painting.

My suggestion - On brushes, buy a few, buy cheap, external walls don't matter for brushes, but cheap ones and just bin them after each day. On paint, buy quality - you don't want to be painting again next year.

The ladder is the most expensive part of the whole thing. But bearing in mind you will be trusting your life to the ladder, don't buy cheap. And then follow the instructions - secure footing, correct ratio, don't over-reach etc etc.

unfortunately the average joe public won't bother with 1-4 they'll just pop down to homebase get a couple of tins and get painting , then in six months time they wonder why all the paint is falling off

chiefgoobster

maybe consider one of these...

http://www.screwfix.com/p/lyte-ladder-stand-off-bracket/76557

or similar types sold in the big DIY sheds

They really are useful.

missindecisive

its worth paying for a good brand of paint rather than the value stuff. Definately use a thick pile roller and you will have the job done in a few hours.(rather than a brush) If you don't fancy climbing a ladder you could get your roller on the end of a long extendable pole, then just get someone to cut in for you at the top.

rustyboy21

All I can say is do what I have done. I gave a pleading' puppy dog' eyes look to my neighbour who is a DIY freak and he is doing it for me next week ! lol

And this is coming from a man ! :rotfl:

Suzy_M

and mask off EVERYTHING that isn't to be painted, including paved areas etc!

mandragora_2

Suzy_M wrote: »

and mask off EVERYTHING that isn't to be painted, including paved areas etc!

and the caravan in the driveway (learned that one the hard way!)

Also, try not to step back off the ladder and into the paint tray. Single white footprints in balck tarmac aren't as amusing as you might think.