Exterior painting
Siding, stucco, brick, trim, soffits and doors: everything the weather gets at. I wash it, scrape it, prime what’s bare and put two coats on a dry wall. Halton, the GTA and Hamilton.
What I paint outside
Each surface wants its own prep and its own paint. The quote names every one.
Siding
Wood, aluminum, vinyl and fibre cement. Chalky aluminum is washed and primed so the coat grips. Vinyl gets a colour that won’t warp it.
Stucco
Washed, cracks filled, primed, then a coating that moves with the wall instead of cracking.
Brick
Brick has to breathe. Ordinary paint traps moisture and blisters off, so brick gets a breathable masonry coating or a stain. I’ll say which at the walkthrough.
Trim, soffit & fascia
The edges that peel first, because they take the sun and the run-off. Scraped, primed where bare, caulked, two coats.
Front & garage doors
The surface every visitor touches. Sanded smooth, primed if needed, finished in a hard-wearing enamel. Garage doors too, panel by panel.
Porches & railings
Wood posts and rails prepped like trim. Metal railings wire-brushed, rust treated and primed before any colour.
Sheds
Garden sheds and outbuildings, prepped like the house. Primer on the bare bits, two coats.
Something else?
Shutters, window frames, a gate, a mailbox post. If it takes paint, send me a photo.
Prep is the job
Paint doesn’t fail because of the paint. It fails because of what was under it.
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Wash
Dirt, chalk, mildew and loose paint come off first, so the new coat sticks to the wall and not the grime.
then it dries. properly. -
Scrape & sand
Anything loose is scraped back to a sound edge, then feathered so old and new paint don’t show a line.
back to a sound edge -
Repair & caulk
Rotten trim gets a line in the quote, not paint over it. Small repairs, then fresh caulk wherever water gets in.
no paint over rot -
Prime bare wood & metal
Bare wood peels. Bare metal rusts from underneath. Both get primer, and the primer gets time to cure.
primer wherever it’s bare -
Two coats, right weather
Two full coats on a dry wall, inside the temperature window on the tin. If the forecast turns, I stop and come back.
a dry wall, a dry day
Ontario weather
Paint cures by the weather, not the calendar.
The season
Exterior work here runs roughly May to October. Late spring and early fall are the best of it: warm days, mild nights, less humidity. The good weeks go first; ask in spring.
The rules I go by
- Warm enough, day and night. Every paint has a minimum temperature on the tin and I go by it, overnight included.
- Dry enough. Nothing goes on while dew is still on the wall, or late in the day when it’s coming back.
- No rain the day before, and none forecast for a couple of days after.
Why I won’t paint a wet wall
Paint over damp wood or masonry and the water has nowhere to go but out through the new coat. It blisters, then peels. After the wash, the wall gets a day or more to dry.
Booking around the forecast
Exterior dates are pencilled, not inked. I watch the forecast the week before and the morning of. If rain moves in, I switch to an interior job and come back when the wall is dry. You’ll hear it from me first.
Exterior questions
How long does exterior paint last?
It depends on the prep and the exposure. A south- or west-facing wall takes the most sun and goes first; a shaded north wall lasts longest. What I control is the prep, and that decides how long it holds.
Can you paint vinyl siding?
Yes, if it’s sound. Vinyl takes a paint made for it and a colour no darker than the original, because dark colours hold heat and can warp the panels. Brittle or cracked vinyl isn’t a candidate.
Do you do the whole house or just the trim?
Either. Plenty of jobs are trim, soffit, fascia and the front door while the brick stays as it is. Others are every board and every edge. The quote lists each surface, so nothing is assumed.
Ladders or a lift?
Most houses are ladder and plank work, with drop sheets over the garden. For tall gables, a steep lot or anything over two storeys, I price a lift or scaffolding into the quote rather than overreach.
Ready before the weather turns?
Send a couple of photos and roughly when you’d like it done. I’ll reply within one business day and set up a walkthrough.