DIY house painting?
daniel_dickson
writes:
>I'm thinking of repainting my house. I got some estimates, but I must
>admit I'm not that impressed with the prices.
>
>What are the problems you face when you do it yourself?
>
>I considered a couple of senarios:
> 1. hire a power washer and get a power roller.
> 2. have a painting party and buy hand rollers and brushes.
> 3. bag it and hire a professional.
>
>The job entails changing the color from mustard yellow to periwinkle
>blue and applying another white coat over the trim. The house is a
>1500sqft ranch.
>
>Suggestions?
>
Yes, you can do it yourself. Rent a power washer and clean the exterior. Wait
a week before painting. In the meantime, rent scaffolding because it makes
painting SO MUCH easier. For the best job, hand paint with brushes.
Now, if your rich, let a pro do it, but I prefer to do these things myself
because its a proud accomplishment when you can stand back and look at your
newly painted house and know that you were the one who did it.
Dan
Edward Rice
cho...@bryant.unx.sas.com (Sidd Chopra) wrote:
> I'm thinking of repainting my house. I got some estimates, but I must
> admit I'm not that impressed with the prices.
>
> What are the problems you face when you do it yourself?
>
> I considered a couple of senarios:
> 1. hire a power washer and get a power roller.
> 2. have a painting party and buy hand rollers and brushes.
> 3. bag it and hire a professional.
>
> The job entails changing the color from mustard yellow to periwinkle
> blue and applying another white coat over the trim. The house is a
> 1500sqft ranch.
Well, around here, that would run you about $1500, plus maybe a few new
bushes to replace the ones that get broken. You need to get the place
power-washed and then dried out completely, then two coats of the new
siding paint, then probably two coats of the trim paint. If you lived in
Northern Virginia, I'd even tell you the woman to call to get the job done
-- she'd be over in the morning to check on the job, she'd come by two
times during each session the painters were actually working on the house,
and she'd ask you for the final payment while they were still packing the
gear into the truck. Lady's incredible. Paint job was pretty good,
although I had to do a REALLY detailed walk-around to spot all the places
they'd missed (on reverse board&batten siding, it's hard not to).
Having seen it done professionally, and having done a fair bit of painting
myself, I'd never do that job myself. (It was a 3-story townhouse, full
three stories in back, so a lot more of the work was higher up on ladders,
too.)
Eric Gunnerson
>
>>I'm thinking of repainting my house. I got some estimates, but I must
>>admit I'm not that impressed with the prices.
>>
>>What are the problems you face when you do it yourself?
>>
>>I considered a couple of senarios:
>> 1. hire a power washer and get a power roller.
>> 2. have a painting party and buy hand rollers and brushes.
>> 3. bag it and hire a professional.
>>
>>The job entails changing the color from mustard yellow to periwinkle
>>blue and applying another white coat over the trim. The house is a
>>1500sqft ranch.
>>
>>
>
>Yes, you can do it yourself. Rent a power washer and clean the exterior. Wait
>a week before painting. In the meantime, rent scaffolding because it makes
>painting SO MUCH easier. For the best job, hand paint with brushes.
>
>Now, if your rich, let a pro do it, but I prefer to do these things myself
>because its a proud accomplishment when you can stand back and look at your
>newly painted house and know that you were the one who did it.
Option 4:
Rent a power washer, and then rent a sprayer. Buy the best latex paint you can get - you'll
need it to cover that yellow, and you'll probably need two coats, which you can probably put
on in a single day. I've been really happy with Sherwin-Williams, and their people know
paint. You may choose to backbrush the paint after you've sprayed it - some people do, I
wouldn't bother, but even then it's very quick if the paint is already on the house. If your
house is fairly close to the ground and/or you're reasonably tall, you may be able to paint
most of the house from the ground, except for any peaks, which will take a ladder.
Last time I did my house with a Wagner Power Painter (not recommended for that big of a job),
and it took about 4 hours per coat. With a rental system, I'd guess I could do a coat in 2
hours or less. My house is a 1200 sq.ft. ranch.
Don't scrimp on preparation - scrape any flaking paint and prime any bare wood.
--
The opinions expressed in this message are my own personal views
and do not reflect the official views of Microsoft Corporation.
Ed Dorroh
Rice) wrote:
> In article <DLEGG...@unx.sas.com>,
> cho...@bryant.unx.sas.com (Sidd Chopra) wrote:
>
> > I'm thinking of repainting my house. I got some estimates, but I must
> > admit I'm not that impressed with the prices.
> >
> > What are the problems you face when you do it yourself?
(snip) The house is a 1500sqft ranch.
>
> Well, around here, that would run you about $1500,
(snip)
>
> Having seen it done professionally, and having done a fair bit of painting
> myself, I'd never do that job myself. (It was a 3-story townhouse, full
> three stories in back, so a lot more of the work was higher up on ladders,
> too.)
Obviously, *it depends*. I have painted a tri-level with siding. Just
washed it down, bought the paint at Sears, and did it with a roller
(brushed on the trim). It was a bit of a problem at the peak (long reach
with the ladder I had). I didn't have any real problems other that the
time it took (didn't have power rollers in those days). My only cost was
for the paint.
My son has worked for a professional painter. From that I know that
they will scrape it well (a lot better than I probably did), and will use
better paint (read $35/gal) that I bought at Sears, and they will do it
fast (more than one person working at it).
So, it depends - do you have the time? enjoy doing it? or enjoy being
able to pay someone else to do it? Your ranch sounds easy to me. ;-) Ed
--
Ed Dorroh
Martin Marietta Corp
ed.e....@den.mmc.com