Who's painted their own house?

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  • atgcpaul
    Veteran Member
    • Aug 2003
    • 4055
    • Maryland
    • Grizzly 1023SLX

    Who's painted their own house?

    It took me a couple of hours to paint the back side of my garage yesterday (8' x 20') with a brush and roller. While doing it, I thought, This isn't so bad, I should just do the whole house myself. Of course, there was a nice breeze and the temps were in the mid 70s. Ask me again when it's 95deg out with high humidity.

    Anyway, there's no tricky terrain around the house but it is two stories so there'd be a lot of ladder work. I'll be painting a few hours here and there, maybe up to a day's worth of painting if the wife lets me. So I don't think it would be economical to rent/setup scaffolding.

    I rented an airless sprayer once to paint my fence but it seemed like I wasted half the paint and my neighbor walking the dog thought I was frosting the bushes for Christmas. I'm sure it didn't help that the fence was half empty with slats--unlike a house wall, but man was it fast! I think I've seen on TOH their painters use a shield towards the edges to prevent over spray. I'm still debating whether I should buy one (bummer that the Ryobi one is discontinued) or just stick with brush/roller.

    Anyway, if you have any advice (best paint/tools/method of work for the job) or want to talk me down from the edge, please let me know.

    Thanks
    Paul
  • Pappy
    The Full Monte
    • Dec 2002
    • 10453
    • San Marcos, TX, USA.
    • BT3000 (x2)

    #2
    I have an electric (Corded) cup style airless sprayer that was bought when I built the pony barn. Lays the paint fast, but a lot of time spent refilling the cup. Still faster and easier than brush/roller. To paint a house, I would want one that feeds directly from a gal can and plan to prep/paint at least one face of the house at a time.
    Don, aka Pappy,

    Wise men talk because they have something to say,
    Fools because they have to say something.
    Plato

    Comment

    • eccentrictinkerer
      Senior Member
      • Aug 2007
      • 669
      • Minneapolis, MN
      • BT-3000, 21829

      #3
      I rented an airless sprayer and painted my stucco two-story home , a one stall garage, a storage barn and my neighbors two car garage in 8 hours!

      If I'd had a helper to move the ladders, I'd have finished sooner.

      'Course, that was 20 years ago and it's time do it again. Now I'm 68 and I don't work so fast. Maybe I'll hire it done.

      BTW, I used Sherwin-Williams A-100 paint on the stucco and it still looks pretty good after 20 years in Minnesota weather!

      I've used the Home Depot sprayers, that you rent, several times in the last few years and they are the best I've ever seen. You can dial in the sprayer easily and you can spray any paint you can pour out of a can. I remodeled my neighbor's basement into a two room man-cave and sprayed sheetrock primer and two color coats in two 4 hour sessions. It's fun when you don't have to cut-in or worry about covering the floor.
      Last edited by eccentrictinkerer; 06-02-2014, 09:51 AM.
      You might think I haven't contributed much to the world, but a large number
      of the warning labels on tools can be traced back to things I've done...

      Comment

      • Black wallnut
        cycling to health
        • Jan 2003
        • 4715
        • Ellensburg, Wa, USA.
        • BT3k 1999

        #4
        I've not painted my own but have helped friends paint theirs. We found that the paint pads were the most efficient way to paint with clapboard siding. 5 of us painted a single story 3br. rancher in one day, start to finish including trim.
        Donate to my Tour de Cure


        marK in WA and Ryobi Fanatic Association State President ©

        Head servant of the forum

        ©

        Comment

        • capncarl
          Veteran Member
          • Jan 2007
          • 3564
          • Leesburg Georgia USA
          • SawStop CTS

          #5
          One of my neighbors just had his hardie-plank 1 story house repainted by a pro paint crew that used airless sprayers. It seemed like they spent a couple of days prep, redoing all caulk joints, tape/plastic on windows, tarps on shrubery and porches and moving nearly every car and boat in the neighborhood. After they painted it took the better part of the next day to paint the trim, eaves. I am not sure using a spray gun with all the prep was any faster than a good painter with a brush and roller.

          Comment

          • atgcpaul
            Veteran Member
            • Aug 2003
            • 4055
            • Maryland
            • Grizzly 1023SLX

            #6
            Originally posted by Black wallnut
            I've not painted my own but have helped friends paint theirs. We found that the paint pads were the most efficient way to paint with clapboard siding. 5 of us painted a single story 3br. rancher in one day, start to finish including trim.
            Yeah, the roller was fine as long as my arm could sweep from left to right in a horizontal line, but some positions like at the top and bottom of the wall were awkward.

            Originally posted by capncarl
            One of my neighbors just had his hardie-plank 1 story house repainted by a pro paint crew that used airless sprayers. It seemed like they spent a couple of days prep, redoing all caulk joints, tape/plastic on windows, tarps on shrubery and porches and moving nearly every car and boat in the neighborhood. After they painted it took the better part of the next day to paint the trim, eaves. I am not sure using a spray gun with all the prep was any faster than a good painter with a brush and roller.
            Protecting from overspray is my biggest concern--especially around the windows. I also don't want to PO the neighbors if I happen to get a little too happy with the sprayer. Their houses are far enough away, though.

            So what's the general consensus? Paint the entire length of the rows from top down or paint in vertical sections as far left and right as you can reach from the ladder? The latter would seem more efficient. It's pretty much what I did with my garage and I can't tell the difference from section to section.

            I don't know if the existing Masonite was factory painted or painted on site. I know the new Hardie was already factory primed. I did not prime, just painted. Is priming necessary?

            Comment

            • jdon
              Established Member
              • Feb 2010
              • 401
              • Snoqualmie, Wash.
              • BT3100

              #7
              A year ago I bought a Milwaukee M4910-21 Airless/Fine Finish Sprayer- HD had them on sale for 1/2 price. I painted my Hardie plank sided house with it, no problems. It has an air blower, which can be turned on for "fine finishes", but I used the blower all the time while painting the siding. It really cut down on over spray.

              FWIW, my pattern of painting was to reach any area I could with each ladder position. I had to go back and touch up a couple of sections. Caveat: I'm far from being a professional, the paint (Behr) dried quickly, and was the same color as the old coat, so hard to see where I'd missed/undercovered.

              On the whole, very pleased with the machine, but pretty expensive at full price.

              Comment

              • woodturner
                Veteran Member
                • Jun 2008
                • 2047
                • Western Pennsylvania
                • General, Sears 21829, BT3100

                #8
                Originally posted by atgcpaul
                Anyway, if you have any advice (best paint/tools/method of work for the job) or want to talk me down from the edge, please let me know.
                I painted a prior house by myself. Scrape, sand, prime, two coats of color. Just used a good brush. Took some time, but gave a good result and lasted quite a while.

                Neighbors had less expensive pros paint their house - after I had finished mine. The pros used a thick nap roller and extension poles to roll on the paint from the ground - both first and second story - then finished the trim with a roller, pad, and brush. Took them a day, couldn't believe it - and it didn't look too bad.

                Didn't hold up as along, needed touch up in five years or so, but given the reduced labor, I'd thick about doing it that way.
                --------------------------------------------------
                Electrical Engineer by day, Woodworker by night

                Comment

                • JR
                  The Full Monte
                  • Feb 2004
                  • 5633
                  • Eugene, OR
                  • BT3000

                  #9
                  I did the trim on my house last year. I used roller and brush. Just the trim was a fairly major endeavor on my split level house.

                  For the really high parts I used a scaffold and am happy I did. It can be a real pain to maneuver bucket, roller, and brush at the top of a long ladder. And, obviously, there's the whole going up and down thing.

                  If I had painted the walls I'd have rented an airless sprayer. You have to do a little more prep, but it goes a lot faster.

                  Be prepared for a lot of prep work. Bang and prime any loose nails. Scrape flaky paint and prime.

                  Check out YouTube. There are several really good vids on painting.
                  JR

                  Comment

                  • tfischer
                    Veteran Member
                    • Jul 2003
                    • 2343
                    • Plymouth (Minneapolis), MN, USA.
                    • BT3100

                    #10
                    Painted my old house before we sold it. Used an airless sprayer (Wagner) with a backpack gallon paint container for most of it - the backpack kept me from constantly refilling, although I did go through a lot of paint. I used a roller or brush on places where the overspray was a problem.

                    Comment

                    • capncarl
                      Veteran Member
                      • Jan 2007
                      • 3564
                      • Leesburg Georgia USA
                      • SawStop CTS

                      #11
                      The neighbor that I mentioned in my previous comment had painted his house himself about 4 years earlier. It had faded badly. His comment was several nasty words box store paint. I believe the brand of paint was what jdon mentioned. Everything in this thread so far is about the equipment and prep and has failed to mention the most important ingredent, the paint itself. All the time saving equipment in the world and a great prep job is useless if you smear on a coat of paint that is going to fade in 4 years. Coughing up a couple hundred bucks for better paint would not have seemed like much when looking back. For something this expensive and labor intensive I go to a real paint store and get professional advice, explain it is not going to be used on rental or re-sale property, and buy the best I can afford.

                      Comment

                      • woodturner
                        Veteran Member
                        • Jun 2008
                        • 2047
                        • Western Pennsylvania
                        • General, Sears 21829, BT3100

                        #12
                        Originally posted by capncarl
                        It had faded badly. His comment was several nasty words box store paint. I believe the brand of paint was what jdon mentioned.
                        If you mean the HD Behr brand, it has consistently scored very well on the CR tests, including the long term tests. People complain about it because they can't believe it outperforms paint that costs multiple times more, but it works well.

                        Keep in mind price is no longer a good indicator of quality - pricing is set based on what they thing the market will bear and doesn't always relate to manufacturing cost. Perhaps this is why so many people are complaining about SW and BM paints - they have apparently changed their formulations to reduce cost.

                        FWIW, I usually use Glidden - it has been a consistent performer for me, and cost is moderate.
                        --------------------------------------------------
                        Electrical Engineer by day, Woodworker by night

                        Comment

                        • Mr__Bill
                          Veteran Member
                          • May 2007
                          • 2096
                          • Tacoma, WA
                          • BT3000

                          #13
                          Paint with UV protection tends to fade less. Dark colors fade more, at least for me.
                          Ladder, 2 gal paint pail with roller grid, 4" wide 2" diameter roller and brush. I put the brush on a string so when I dropped it I could retrieve it without climbing down the ladder. Shoes with a steel shank in the sole made standing on the ladder easier on the feet.
                          The roller puts the paint on and the brush evens it out and gets into the small places and the bottom of the lap joint.
                          I did the trim first so the ladder did not mar the fresh paint on the siding. I kept working around the house to keep to the shade.
                          The real trick is in the prep work, the part I hate, I do everything in a small area rather than doing all the scraping, then all the joints etc.. I'll do everything up to the color coat and then move on. The house looks real messy in the process but it sure cuts down on moving the ladder.
                          I also accepted that two coats would be necessary and layed the paint on fast and never went back to catch a holiday, the paint starts to dry too fast to go back and futs with it.

                          Bill
                          that's my opinion and I'm sticking with it until I change my mind.

                          Comment

                          • atgcpaul
                            Veteran Member
                            • Aug 2003
                            • 4055
                            • Maryland
                            • Grizzly 1023SLX

                            #14
                            I get access to CR online through our public library. I just pulled up the June 2014 paint review and Behr is on top. I've used them indoors and it's always been good. The bonus is that their top rated paint also has a built in primer so one less step for me.

                            Comment

                            • capncarl
                              Veteran Member
                              • Jan 2007
                              • 3564
                              • Leesburg Georgia USA
                              • SawStop CTS

                              #15
                              I'm sure my neighbor will be pleased to hear about the CR on his paint! I aint telling him, and he may have said nasty word, nasty word, Lowes instead of Behr. His 4 year old paint job looked like a faded t shirt. It started out about army green and ended up looking like marine cammo. There is a lot to be said about using a paint indoors vrs outdoors. Some colors just do not handle the sun as well.

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