Painting your home is hard work, but any homeowner who has done it will agree that it’s an exciting moment when the job is done and the place you’ve called home looks brand new after years of being the same-old-same-old.
However, it has to be done right to finally get that “Aha!” moment at the end of the project. If you go in blind and have no idea what you’re doing, it can easily turn your home into an eyesore.
Luckily, it’s not too difficult if you take some things into consideration while planning and tackling the project.
To help you get those mind-blowing results every homeowner strives for, we’ve put together this list of the 7 critical considerations you need to make while giving your home a fresh coat of paint.
Let’s get started.
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Interior or Exterior
Are you painting the interior or exterior of your home, or both? The exterior doesn’t have as many transitions to paint over, but there’s more prep work, more hard-to-reach spots, and you have to consider whether or not your paint can withstand the elements.
Interiors are easier to prep and paint, but you have more transitions to paint over, and you have to protect your flooring and belongings.
Color Considerations and Your Neighborhood
First and foremost, the color scheme you choose is absolutely critical. It can determine the complexity of the job, how your home fits in or stands out, and whether or not you’re going to get yourself into a bit of trouble.
First, the more colors you choose, the more you’ll have to switch between paints, and take caution not to let the different colors mix in spots that are difficult to control. This can be time-consuming, and if you can’t keep the colors separated properly, it can create an eyesore.
Then you have to consider whether you want to stand out or fit in. Look around at the rest of the homes in your area. Are they all grey, white, or some grey-blue shade? Painting your house barn red will definitely make you stand out, and that may or may not be a good thing. This leads to the final consideration: HOA.
As we said, you can make your house stand out dramatically, but if you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, it might be best to ask about approved color choices or simply match your neighbors. They may fine you, demand the paint be changed, or pressure you out of the community if you refuse to comply.
Material Quality
Painting your home can be a little expensive. Even if you do it all on your own and just have to buy the supplies, you’ll likely need quite a bit of paint, plenty of tools, and of course, protective sheeting and painter’s tape to keep from messing up your porches, lawn, or flooring in the case of interior painting.
All of that adds up, but trust us, you want to shell out for the best painting supplies you can get.
While your project costs will increase somewhat, you can actually save money. Better supplies will make the job easier, ensure the paint is layered evenly and properly, and provide high-end results the first time around. This can prevent you from having to reinvest in supplies just to redo a job you already did.
The Cleanliness of Your Home’s Exterior
This is important for your interior walls, too, but you can tackle those with a few sponges and soapy water. For exteriors, it’s a bit more complicated.
Over time, vegetation can grow on parts of your home, the wood might become damaged along with the trim or other damage-prone spots, and dirt builds up quickly. All these things need to be washed off or fixed before you paint. Even a chipped or flaking trim board needs to at least have the damaged wood removed before you paint. Otherwise, the paint won’t go on evenly, or you might just paint over thin sheets of dirt that ruin your paint job.
We recommend hiring a pressure washing service to get this knocked out quickly. Here’s a guide to help you find the right one without breaking the bank.
The Size of Your Home
The size of your home not only determines how much paint you’ll need, but it can also determine how difficult the job is.
A small home with one floor can be painted fairly cheaply and safely. However, two-story homes with a lot of square footage will be time-consuming, expensive, and require the use of ladders. Consider if you’re willing to deal with all that.
Project Planning
Residential painting isn’t something you do on a whim. You need appropriate weather, the time available to complete the project without gaps for work and other time-consuming responsibilities, and more.
Take time about a month before you want to start painting to decide what you’re painting, the color scheme, and what all will be required. Check weather forecasts and your work schedule for a time period that gives you a couple of days to complete the project and plan out what you’ll be doing in what order.
This will make the project go much more smoothly.
Consider a Professional Service
As you’ve probably figured out from a few of the other considerations on this list, residential painting isn’t easy. In fact, it can be extremely difficult and perhaps even dangerous if you have an exterior project requiring ladders, heights, and a lot of difficult-to-reach spots.
So, it’s worth considering the best residential painter in your area to save you the hassle. Considering the steep costs of purchasing all the highest quality supplies, and the time commitment it requires, it may even be cheaper to hire a professional team.
Tackle Your Residential Painting Project with Confidence
Whether you choose to tackle your residential painting project on your own, or you aim to take the easy route and hire professionals, you now know the seven most crucial considerations you need to make to get the best results possible.
Get out there, start painting, and reinvigorate your home’s aesthetic with confidence.
