You Know It’s Time to Paint Your House if…
There are many contributing factors when it comes to how long exterior house paint lasts. In general, expect to paint your Reno home every 5 – 8 years. Factors that affect repainting are: quality of the paint, color of the paint, climate, surrounding environment, sunlight exposure, exterior siding material, etc.
Factors
Quality of the Paint - The quality of the paint used is of the utmost importance.
Climate - In harsh climate conditions, houses need repainting every 3-4 years. Some people paint one side of their house every year to make this repainting workload manageable where the entire house gets painted every 4 years. In milder environments, exterior painting can last longer, such as 8-10 years with top-quality paint.
Color of the Paint - Darker colors typically fade faster and might need repainting more frequently to retain their original brilliance.
Surrounding Environment - Nearby trees, shrubbery and automatic sprinkler systems help to keep the house or nearby greenery constantly damp or moist. Rotted wood is a common consequence of moisture.
Sunlight Exposure - More sunlight exposure makes the color fade quicker. Southern exposures will not last as long as northern exposures.
Exterior Siding Material
- Longest lasting surface — Aluminum siding or stucco
- Shortest lasting surface — Plywood siding
It’s not true that aluminum siding never has to be repainted. The paint on aluminum siding will last a long time, but eventually it will fail and have to be redone.
Vinyl siding cannot be painted. However, its drawback is that tastes in colors change over time. Popular colors many years ago may look outdated now. The key is to paint before it’s really bad. You could always consult your Reno painting contractor for a free evaluation and estimate. Maintaining your paint job will not only keep your Reno home always looking its best, it will also reduce the risk of dry-rot, termites and other costly problems that come from neglect.
