How to Paint Your Home (Conclusion)

Exterior house painting is more than just picking out paint samples. In order for your paint job to last and look good at the same time, there is a lot of prep work involved.

Exterior House Painting in Tucson

As we covered previously, a local painter will have all of the skills necessary to paint your home both safely and correctly.

There are a lot of steps to paint your home yourself.  From This Old House:

"After the sanding is done, it's time to fill minor cracks and dents, repair any rot, and replace any pieces that are too far gone. (Wholesale replacement of wood siding or trim will likely require a carpenter.)

O'Neil patches shallow holes and divots with Ready Patch because it dries fast, sands smooth, and stays flexible. Deep cracks and rotten spots are best repaired with two-step epoxies, such as those made by Advanced Repair Technology. (For a step-by-step instructions, see Repairing Rot with Epoxy.) The days of using polyester auto-body fillers on wood are over. "They cure too hard," says Portland, Oregon–based painting contractor Kathleen George. "They look good at first, but then they peel away."

Hold off on caulking the cracks until everything has been primed. "Primer protects the wood when—not if—the caulk fails," says O'Neil.

Primers are formulated to penetrate, seal, and provide a good surface for the top coats to stick to. Use them over bare wood, Spackle, and epoxy, or over paint with a chalky, deteriorated surface. (If the paint surface is clean and sound, you can skip the priming step.)

Acrylic primers can be used on most surfaces, but on cedar or redwood, oil-based coatings are a must because they lock in these woods' reddish-brown "extractives," which will leach out and leave behind rusty stains if the wood is primed with a water-based product.

Painters often tint primer close to the color of the top coat, but Wallis thinks that's a recipe for "holidays," or missed spots. Instead, he tints his primer a contrasting color. "If I can see the color coming through, I know I need to apply more paint," he says. On the cottage shown in this story, he chose a gray-blue primer to go under a peach top coat. [READ SOURCE]

The Professional Touch: Why You Should Hire a Local Painter

A local painter is a professional, not a wannabe. He's going to make sure your home's paint job is going to be professionally done.

So ask yourself. Would you rather take a chance on a bad paint job, or would you rather hire a professional painter in Tucson instead?

MORE INFO

or

Ameripro of Gilbert
3037 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
tucson.ipainthomes.com

Exterior House Painting: The Insider's Guide (Contd.)

A professional house painter does more than just run a brush or a roller on the exterior or interior of your house.  There are so many jobs that he does in addition to just painting...

An Exterior House Painter in Your Area Can Give Your Home a Much Needed New Look

What You Can Expect From a House Painter in Your Area

A professional house painter is very careful with what he does. First off, before he will paint your home, one of the first things he's going to do is check the weather report. It would not be wise to paint your home when there is a chance for rain. Before he even opens the paint cans, he is most likely going to sand the surface.

As we covered previously, there are several things you need to know before you choose a professional house painter. Understanding how to choose professional house painter is all based on a collection of skills and experience.  There is a significant difference when it comes to painters' ability, knowledge, skill level and professionalism. In most cases, people remark that painter "a" is expensive whereas painter "b” might be cheaper. Repeatedly, there is a basis for the prices the painters charge in a particular type of work, normally the more costly painter is the superior painter. This is because Inexpensive painters don't have knowledge on how to adequately feature in all their prices and generally price the job too cheap.

In a case where customers pays the charges simply because the painter has to hurry off the job, the s/he will use low quality substances and/or will not call you back or ring back your phone calls neither will s/e return to the job since there might be a problem.

Reasons to Call a Professional House Painter

The basis foundation to hiring professional painter is by calling at least 3-4 competent painters; the number should not be many since that will wastes everyone's time. Take note on the type of exterior painter you desire before calling them to your house. If you fancy an inexpensive paint work, and you are enthusiastic to compromise on excellence, then frankly tell the painter that. In case you want a quality job and also willing to pay a fair value for it, then go ahead and tell the painters that as well. Becoming direct to the painter saves everyone's time and resources.

However, it is good to ask for a painter approval from your common local paint store. Hence a great place to inquire for painter suggestions is at your local paint store shop. Definitely paint store supervisors know their professional painters. They also know about the painter's skill, quality level and professionalism.

Thirdly, take care never to use low-end paint which are from cheap painters; in most cases, cheap painters exercise low-grade products and paints in people's residences and it is here where the client has got no way to verify this.

Important questions to ask exterior house painter; The number of man power needed in the premises and that for how many days, whether the painter is insured and licensed, how long s/he has been working with his/ her painting crew. How many coats s/he will be applying and how s/he’ll manage to clean the house before painting among others.

Conclusion

Each homeowner must know the proper way to paint or hire qualified painter a house before hiring a painting contractor. Hence, it is advisable to stand away from this type of project when you have got no idea on exterior house painting and other paintings as well. It should be kept in mind that a proper exterior house painting undergoes the following significant steps; surface preparation, painting, cleaning and inspecting.

For more information on house painters in your area, please click here.  

Find the Right Painter for Exterior House Painting (Contd.)

There is a lot that you need to be aware of when you want to pick a house painter in your area.  There is also a question of your health and safety.  Why?  Well, older homes have an extra risk that may not have occurred to you.

Call a House Painter in Your Area

Older Homes and House Painting

Be aware that if you have an older home there is a chance that the house has lead based paint. A seasoned exterior house painter will have the knowledge of how to proceed and the best way to dispose of substances to minimize danger.  A painter will also know the best way to prevent risks to maintain safety while finishing a quality paint job. The professional painter will have tools and materials unique to painting an older house with lead based paint. After gathering estimates and interviewing, choose the most suitable professional painter for the job. Pick the painter that has the most effective mix of pricing as well as experience. You are going to work closely with this particular individual to convey specs and color selection, so make sure to decide on someone you're comfortable speaking with. An excellent painter can be sure that the job is completed correctly. However, don't get locked on someone right away either.

House Painters: Shop Around

Asking around is another way to get an excellent painter. There are a wide variety of resources that you can use, such as review sites, word of mouth from friends and family and more.  Those who are satisfied using a specific painter will likely be ready to refer them to others. If you are pleased with the painter’s work, be sure to keep their contact info handy in the event you have another job or know someone else who is looking for a good painter.

After selecting a professional painter, determine if you'd like your home to be hand sprayed or brushed. If left up to the painting company, many will choose to spray the house due to it being quicker and simpler. However, if you have wood siding or an older home, you might want to think about asking to get a quote that includes brush painting. Remember that painting by brush is time intensive and can cost additional money.

It's vital to seek out the appropriate painter for the job whether you should paint the inside or outside of your house. Having an experienced house painter will make sure that the work your house painter does is of high quality and performed in a timely manner.

Read more on this subject here.

Pick a Painter Near You

More Tips from Your Local House Painter

Continuing on our topic, here are some more painting tips from your local house painter.

Paint your Door Red with The Help of Your Local House Painter

Painting Tips from The Old World

Areas that are often overlooked with homes are the doors and window trim.  For this painting tip, it's a good idea to go on a bit of a field trip to Europe.  Why Europe?  Because in Europe, they always paint their doors and windowsills to either complement each other or match one another.  And colors have a lot to say.

A red door sends a "welcome" message to  the world. Red is vibrant, and you can find red doors all over Europe.  They look good on a posh London townhouse, on a villa in Barcelona, or a sleepy farmhouse in Marseilles.  Ireland has them too.  But another color that may or may not surprise you that is really popular as a front door color in Ireland is emerald green.  The use of color always sends a message, but sometimes, some colors convey a contrary message. Black for example is often regarded as a grim color, but it may surprise you. A black door with polished brass fittings or maybe a window at the top doesn't say "spooky" it says "elegant." If you match your window trim to your door, it ties your home together aesthetically. Do all door colors go well everywhere? Of course not. The color of your door and/or window trim should never detract from the rest of your home or clash. If your home is painted in earth tones, adding purple doors and trims will cause most people to wince. Going the other way to bright oranges yellows and reds will make people think that you're opening a fast food restaurant. When in doubt, ask your local painter for advice. Most of the time, these professionals will have a great eye for color and where and how to use it.

Painting Tips for The Outside of Your Home

Remember, that when you're dealing with exterior house painting, less is more. Unlike your home's interior where you can play with color a lot more, if you paint too many colors on the outside of your home, most people are going to think it will be too garish. A good rule of thumb is 2, maybe 3 colors, all of which should complement one another.

So remember, when you want a new paint job for your home, you should consider painting both your home's outside as well as its interiors. And make sure you call a professional house painter.

ipainthomes.com

House Painting: FAQs and Fun Facts

When you're looking to paint your home, you probably have a lot of questions.

Frequently Asked Questions about Professional House Painting

Call a professional house painter in Gilbert | (480) 232-5474

How do I get an estimate to paint my home?  First off, you need to call a painter.  Once you've got them on the phone, they often do an on site estimate which should include your parts and labor.  The key to getting the correct amount on your estimate is to prepare beforehand by making of list of what needs to be painted.  Whether you need external house painting or you want to paint a room or rooms on the inside.  You want to have picked your colors and finishes as well as what budget you have to work with.   You also want to decide if you want to split up the job and do it all at once.

What will a painter use to paint my home?  It depends on the job.  Walls, ceilings, and trims are usually painted with a combination of brushes and rolls.  Exterior paint is a combination of rollers and sprayers.

How to Prepare for Internal Painting

How do I prepare for internal painting?  Move anything fragile or breakable, or anything such as electronic equipment.  Make sure that all areas that need to be painted are accessible by the contractor.  Do you need to put down plastic tarps?  It depends on the job, and as a rule, we do that.  You want to make sure that you are present for the painter for any questions, and to make sure that the areas are unlocked and easy to get to.

How fast does paint dry?  It depends on the paint.  Some paints dry in mere minutes, while others take a few hours.  You want to make sure that you don't touch the paint for a day to be sure, however.  Particularly if you are using a low gloss finish.  So remember, that painting is more than just picking the color and the finish, it is knowing what to do before  you call a painting contractor.

Ameripro of Gilbert
3037 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
ameripro.ipainthomes.com

Exterior Paint Colors: Know Your Palette Part 3

Part three of our series on exterior house painting explores using the Southwestern color palette correctly.

Use the Colors of the Southwest for your Exterior Paint Colors (480) 232-5474

Exterior House Painting and The Colors of the West

It used to be that southwestern paint color schemes were gaudy, and gauche.  Look at the 80's for example.  Bright turquoise mixed with hot pink.  Maybe a super tacky touch like buying a cow skull, painting it pink and putting it in your front yard.  However, the west is full of colors.  Look at the deep red of a Navajo rug, or the pale blue of a desert sky.  The pale olive green of a yucca plant, and the vibrant orange of a summer sunset.  All of these can be used in exterior paint colors.  In fact one of the biggest trend in house painting is not confining your home to two colors, namely the paint and the trim, but to use three colors.

A southwestern casita can be painted with a center section a deep loam brown.  Each wing of the house can be painted an off-white with the one wing being painted beige, and the trim can be a coral pink.  Why such a wide range of colors?  It ties in perfectly with terra cotta roof tiles found in a lot of casita style homes. And tri-color paint schemes are extremely popular nowadays and are one of the hottest trends with exterior house painting.  However, there are even more color choices connected with the Southwest.

Southwestern Paint Colors

How about a rich amber brown color that calls to mind a jar of sun tea? Or maybe a vibrant saffron gold color that evokes images of California poppies? Or maybe you want a pale yellow color that looks like your home is originally from the Chiricahua mountains? Need some more inspiration?

The desert floor is pale pink or taupe. The foothills around Phoenix are olive mixed with a hint of brown. The superstitions are purple and blue. The cliffs of canyon lake are salmon, with vibrant shades of yellow lichen. Sedona has so many different colors that simply calling it red rock country isn't entirely true. All of these and so many more can be used in your color palette.

The most important thing you can do however, is get a professional's take on it.  You want to call in a decorator or a professional house painter to help you narrow down your choices.

For more information on exterior painting and colors, be sure to read part one and part two as well.

Ameripro of Gilbert
3038 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
See Our Work

Exterior Paint Colors: Know Your Palette

Part two of a series on exterior house painting focuses on color trends.

Olive is a popular exterior paint color nowadays | (480) 232-5474

House Paint Color Trends

It used to be that exterior house paint colors were  limited to an incredibly narrow range of colors.  There used to be a family of white shades and different shades of tan and that was essentially it.  Interior paint colors were even more limited.  You usually had whites, tans, and pastel colors.  That was it.  Nowadays, however, there are literally millions of color choices to consider, as well as painting finishes that weren't available even a few years ago.  There are so many colors that paint companies have entire departments of people that come up with new names for them! The days of paint names such as Red #23 and Yellow-12 are fading.  Instead, we have colors such as Hawaiian Hibiscus and Saffron Gold.  And in some areas you are starting to see HOAs relaxing some of their limits on what colors can be used.

For example, why not paint your home a combination of colors.  If you have a southwestern style home, maybe paint the bulk of your home a pale gold color, with a brick red upper portion and an olive entryway.  Tri-color exterior house paint colors for homes are in style nowadays.  But it isn't just exterior walls that could do with a coat of paint.

A New Paint Job For Your Home Can Say Welcome

Painting your home is a great way to improve your home's look and style.  However, something as simple as painting your home's doors can radically change your home from drab to fab overnight.  The color that you pick for your door should be all about saying welcome.  Let's say you have a wooden panel door, no window in it.  Your home is white.  You've got a wide open palette of choices for your door color.   You could paint it a glossy black,or bright red and add some polished brass fittings to it for a clean British look.  Or you could paint your door an emerald green and give the illusion of a visit to Ireland.  Or maybe you want to go south.  Maybe you want to go with a brick red color to go with the Southwest and make your home a nice taupe color.

So, all you need is a few things.  You need to know your tastes, and what you can and can't paint with.  And most of all you need the advice, and the assistance of a professional house painter in Gilbert or wherever you call home.

For more information on exterior painting and colors, be sure to read part one and part three as well.

Ameripro of Gilbert
3038 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
See Our Work

House Painting and Happy Customers

House painting in Gilbert, like all businesses depends on something intangible but vital for business success: namely customer satisfaction.

Call your Professional House Painter | (480) 232-5474

Why Customer Satisfaction Matters to a House Painter

A lot of times, there is an air of entitlement when someone deals with a painting contractor. Some contractors believe that their customers need them, however, the opposite is true. We need our customers. Without customers, who will we paint for? Ourselves?
That's why it matters to us that you not only like the job we did on your interior or exterior house painting, but that you love it. What's the difference? Well the level of satisfaction you have will be the key factor in you recommending us to someone else. A curious thing about bad service is that it is one of those things that can cause a bad reputation. One unhappy customer often equals fifty. Most people know someone. And that someone knows someone else. A totally satisfied customer brings almost twenty times the business than one who is somewhat dissatisfied. As for a customer who doesn't like the work a contractor does, it can be a major loss of business. All it takes is a few complaints online to influence other potential customers.

Why Hiring a Professional House Painter is Key

Hiring a professional house painter is the key to loving your paint job. The reason is, that to stay in business, they have to be a registered contractor. Any registered contractor can have complaints against them in a database. So, that's why it is crucial for us to always do the best we can on painting your home. It is a constant cycle. Happy customers mean that there will be more business from those customers. More business from our customers means we stay in business longer. It really is as simple as that.
So remember, when you want to hire someone, you always want to get someone who knows what they're doing. You wouldn't go to a doctor without a license to practice medicine, and nor would you take your car to someone who didn't know the first thing about working on cars. The same care applies to when you are looking for a home improvement. So remember, do a bit of research, and trust your instincts. That way you can hire a house painter that's right for your painting project without worry or fuss.
Ameripro of Gilbert
3038 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
http://ameripro.ipainthomes.com/video-testimonials/

Exterior House Painting: Which Colors to Choose

A a professional house painter, I often get asked, which colors should I choose? Well, that depends on a number of things

Hire a Exterior House Painter | (480) 232-5474

Exterior House Painting and Your HOA

Like them or not, homeowners associations are all part and parcel to a great many housing tracts in the Phoenix area. To keep up property values, a homeowner has to agree to a lot of caveats such as what plants they can plant and what landscaping is and is not acceptable, whether or not any flags can be displayed, and even what color to paint a home. However, before you get too upset with a HOA, some of their rules make sense. With some colors after all, less is more, and there is no nice way to say it, but some people have rather questionable taste.

The reason color wheels exist is to help you to avoid picking colors that clash with one another. Most people wouldn't want to live next to a house that was painted with orange and green vertical stripes, or a bright magenta house with fluorescent lime green trim and a yellow roof. That's where a house painter can help. A professional painter can look over your existing paint job as well as any rules that your HOA may have regarding exterior paint color schemes and pick an appropriate color, trim, and finish for your home. But what if you don't live in a neighborhood with an HOA?

Exterior Painting and Your Neighborhood

There is still a real need for professional house painting even in an non-HOA neighborhood. Why? Well, you want your home to fit into the aesthetics of the rest of the neighborhood. The reason that a lot of paint colors are used repetitively in the southwest is the fact that there are certain colors you don't want to use. Darker colors, for example, draw heat, and make your home a lot more expensive to cool down in the summer. With some color choices, less is more. if you paint your home lavender with purple trim, people are going to wonder when the clown car is going to pull out of the garage or carport. Pink and white belong in an ice cream parlor or at a tea party house that you can take your daughter to.
So remember, you want to make sure that your home looks its best. Keep up your house and yard, and make sure that you have a paint job that adds to and doesn't take away from your neighborhood. And to help with this, hire a exterior house painter
Ameripro of Gilbert
3038 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
http://ameripro.ipainthomes.com/see-our-work/

Exterior House Painting: What it Entails

Exterior house painting isn't just for a great look, it also helps to protect a building from insects, mold, and other damage.

Call your Professional House Painter | (480) 232-5474

Painting Your Home and the Tools of the Trade

House painters need to know more than you might think. According to Wikipedia: Professional painters need to have keen knowledge of tools of the trade, including sanders, scrapers, paint sprayers,brushes, paint rollers, ladders and scaffolding, in addition to just the paint in order to correctly complete work. Much preparation needs to be considered before simply applying paint. For instance, taping and dropcloth techniques, sizes of brushes or rollers, material types or dimensions of rollers or brushes (there are different sizes or types of brushes and rollers for different paints), amount of paint, number of paint coats, amount of primer, types of primers and paints, certain grits and cuts of sandpaper, trim cutting (the act of painting with a brush on the outline of baseboard, mouldings and other trim work), wallpaper removal, and nail-hole filling techniques. [READ MORE]

And while some people claim that paint is paint, sometimes, it isn't.  For example, while you may find a color that you like in a type or brand of paint, and at several million colors, the odds are great, how do you know if the paint is durable?  We had a customer once who found an acrylic color that she really loved.  It would have worked fine in an indoor setting, but even with a clear coat, after just about a year, the paint starting flaking and chipping.  As a result, what was a pretty red trim soon became an eyesore.  And sometimes, people make a lot of mistakes with the trim of their house.

Trim Painting Do's and Don'ts

Trim should highlight and complement the paint job of your home or business, not draw focus from it. For example, if you have a white home, painting your trim in a garish color will cause people to wince. One client liked olive green for his exterior color, but he went with a carnation pink trim. This color combination only works in flower beds, not in house paint choices.

So remember, painting is more than matching colors and getting samples. You have to pick paint that will work for outdoors and indoors, and color choices that work well together. And uou want a professional's help in painting your home.

Ameripro of Gilbert
3038 East Des Moines St
Mesa, AZ 85213
(480) 232-5474 
http://www.ipainthomes.com