Save a Bundle on Exterior Painting

Some homeowners try to save money on an exterior painting job by choosing a lesser quality of paint. This is a mistake. It just means that the job will need to be done again sooner. Since much of the cost of a painting job is the labour, the cost of painting more frequently ends up being far higher over time than the additional cost of a good quality paint.

Other homeowners try to do the job themselves, thinking they'll save money in that way. Unfortunately, by the time they buy the tools, put in the time, and possibly have to do the job again sooner because they didn't do it well enough (see above), the savings can be negligible.

You can certainly save money, however, by doing the preparation.

• Clear away any debris around the house.
• Move furniture or decorations that might interfere with the painting.
• Check for any boards that need to be replaced.
• Hammer in any protruding nailheads.
• Clean the building exterior.
• Cover and protect anything that can't be moved, such as plants (don't forget your neighbor's trees if they come within reach) and statuary.
• Remove the old paint.
• Remove any crumbling caulking, too. 
• Do any patching or caulking that needs doing.
• Sand the surfaces. 
• Prime all the surfaces, including the patches.

Many of these tasks can be done by people with very little skill or experience. Take the time to do some of these jobs yourself, and you can cut the time your professionals painters need to spend on the job.