How to Paint Your Home Exterior like a Pro

Our Home Exterior has made a pretty amazing transformation in the last couple months. I have been wanting to update it since we moved in but we’ve spent most of our time working on the inside up until now. When we decided to build a deck for the Spring 2020 One Room Challenge, I started daydreaming about painting the house too. I reached out to Valspar Paint and was so humbled that they would take a chance on me. The Paint for this project was gifted by Valspar.

I have never painted an exterior before but I like to jump into DIY projects headfirst with my eyes closed. This is not a beginner project, due to the size of it but at the same time its a fairly straight forward process. It just takes a bit of prep work and patience with your paint tools. I learned a lot in the process so I wanted to share it.

Here are my steps to painting your house like a pro:

1. Choose a color – Then select the appropriate paint for your climate and project

I went back and forth about paint colors for a bit trying to decide between a light exterior or a dark moody one, but after reviewing exterior pinboards I had had for years I knew that light and bright exterior already had my heart. If you’re unsure about the color you want to paint your home spend some time on Pinterest saving images of home exteriors that you like or look around your neighborhood for inspiration. A good rule of thumb is to stick to 2-3 colors between the body of your house, accents, and trim.

Once you have chosen a color palette make sure you choose the appropriate paint for the job.

I went with the Valspar Duramax Exterior paint. It is specially formulated for extreme weather climates. It goes on thick to create an impervious layer that won’t crack or peel even in intense climates. Since Canada gets such crazy weather I trust this product to hold up for years to come!

Another feature of this paint is the ‘high-hiding’ technology – which means it has really good coverage and I can attest to this! I was so impressed with the coverage on the old wooden trim boards and metal gutters. I thought it would take more coats but it had flawless coverage in only 2 coats.

2. Prep work! – Pressure Washing and Sanding

I learned through this process that painting an exterior is about 80% prep work! We spent several days prepping for the actual painting. The first step is to pressure wash. I found the most dirt build-up was in the soffits and underhang, but be sure to give every inch a good rinse.

The pressure washer will take most of the old paint off, but there still may be some stubborn old paint that needs rough sanding or scraping.

This prep work is quite tedious but it is crucial for getting a smooth finish on your exterior!

3. Make Necessary Repairs

Check your exterior for rotten siding and recaulk old seams and cracks.

Once we pressure washed the house, we discovered that some of the panel molding and the fascia boards were rotten. Replacing them was not in the original plan but it was necessary. If you’re going to take the time to paint something, make sure it will last for years to come.

Even before we painted it already looked fantastic having fresh boards up there.

I was also pretty proud of myself for learning how to cut 45 degree angles on the miter saw and attached the box trim using a nail gun for the first time!

4. Mask off Windows and Doors

You are almost ready to paint – Just a bit more prep work!

Tape off all your windows and doors with plastic. Lay drop cloths or plastic along the base of the foundation and move them with you as you work.

This step is crucial if you are using a paint sprayer so that there is no overspray on things you don’t want to be painted. It’s also a good idea to watch the wind direction as you work so that it’s not blowing paint onto your neighbors’ house or car.

Here are some quick links to the masking tools I used: dropcloth, masking plastic, and painters tape.

5. Paint!

Finally, time to paint! Make sure you have all the appropriate tools to make this process efficient.

For painting the body of the house I recommend buying or renting a professional paint sprayer. I rented one from Home Depot for $150 for the day. My particular rental had some issues but all in all, I painted my entire exterior in a few hours! If I was hand-rolling this would have taken days! It was so efficient! If you do a lot of paint projects I recommend buying a sprayer like this one. The body of our house is painted in ‘Ultra White’ by Valspar.

Once you have finished the body of the house come back and hand paint the trim. I recommend using a short-handled trim brush and a small roller. This part was a bit more tedious than I thought it would be because some of our rooflines required a lot of ladder work, but the trim really brought it all together! I love the black accent! The trim color is ‘Dark kettle black’ by Valspar.