Homeowners want their homes to look fresh and clean for as long as possible before repainting. Leaving it without proper maintenance for too long could cause the paint to spoil, and the walls can get highly expensive to maintain. This is why exterior paint maintenance is so essential.
Proper exterior paint maintenance can enhance the look of your home, even if it has been quite some time since you last painted it. Furthermore, maintenance can prolong the life of your exterior home paint, saving you time and money from repainting now and then.
Below are some exterior paint maintenance tips that can extend the lifespan of your paintwork.
1. Touch-Up Painting
Different corners of your house are exposed to specific conditions that affect the speed at which the paint deteriorates. Some parts are exposed to more sunlight or wind, while others aren’t. Others have distinct backings underneath them, like wood or metal. This means that some areas of your home exterior may need repainting earlier than others.
The best time to do touch-up painting on your home exterior is every one or two years. Doing so can significantly add life to your exterior home paint. Hence, it’s best to hire Home Painters in Newcastle if you’re in the area to save time and money and get professional outcomes.
2. House Washing
Your house exterior is subjected to a broad range of weather elements. With time, dirt and dust will accumulate on the sidings. Washing your home’s exterior walls frequently keeps them clean and extends the paint’s durability. Moreover, cleaning your home’s exterior can eliminate all surface impurities, including mildew, molds, dirt, air pollutants, and pollen.
You can wash your home’s exterior using a long-handled, gentle-bristled brush and mild detergent with water. Begin by gently scrubbing the surface. Then, quickly rinse using your garden hose pipe. This will give your house exterior a fresh look. However, the downside of this method is that it can be slow and exhausting. If you prefer a faster way, you may opt for pressure washing.
A pressure washer is one of the fastest and best ways to clean. It saves you time and water. Just be sure to balance the pressure and distance to clean the house to avoid damaging the surfaces. Then make back-and-forth movements while spraying, and avoid spraying in one place for a long time. If this is something you haven’t done before, it would be best to enlist help from a professional. Doing it yourself can be dangerous to you and your house exterior, especially if not appropriately handled.
3. Clean And Repair Faulty Gutters
Another great tip for protecting your exterior home paint is getting your gutters inspected and cleaned up. Without proper cleaning and upkeep, gutters will clog and look toned down on the outside, coated with smears of algae, moss, and other organic matter run over.
Blocked gutters prevent water from flowing continuously, damaging the roofing materials and system in the long run. In addition, jammed channels contort your wall paints and degrade the house’s general look. With a professional’s assistance, you can get your drains adequately checked and fixed. If the channels have already left stains and strains on your exterior walls, these are signs that your house exterior needs new paint.
4. Remove Mold And Mildew
Lack of appropriate outside paint maintenance raises the risk of mold, moisture invasion, and other issues like condensation, dampness, and defective piping system. To prevent exterior walls from mildew and mold, you must clear away all the existing apertures. Use protective equipment such as a mask and long synthetic rubber gloves to clean the affected areas with water and borax—an alkaline cleaning chemical. Once you’re done, wipe off the overspills with a cloth soaked in soap solution and let the spot dry. To keep off your exterior walls from mold build-up, ensure you inspect your home’s humidity and airing system frequently.
5. Inspect Caulking And Sealants
You should often check out your home sealants and caulking, especially if your house is new. The adhesives and caulking can hold on longer if your home is somewhat older. If you find any peels or cracks, remove the caulk using a scalpel and chemical caulk to remove the old fill-ups. After that, clean the area using viscid cleaning fluid and apply a new seal. Re-caulking can be a complicated job to do by yourself. Therefore, consider delegating the task to a professional painter to help with the correct caulking application and a slick finish.
6. Trim The Greenery Around The House
As much as you love the natural touch that vines, trees, and flowers add to your home’s exterior environment, they’re relatively accountable for water damage on your walls. Moisture causes concrete damage, discoloration, and plaque. So, if tree branches, vines, or other plants are grown near your house or walls, you can trim them from time to time so they don’t touch the walls.
Conclusion
Maintaining your home’s exterior paint might be challenging. Fortunately, the tips mentioned above can help you sustain your outside paint for an extended period. However, if you discover vast indications of paint deterioration like cracking, paint peeling, fading, too much chalking, and extensive mildew and mold build-up, it’d be best to repaint.
