Your House Exterior: Paint it Yourself or Hire a Pro?
If your home is on the market, painting is one of the most inexpensive investments you can make to add value and appeal. If you’ve just bought a home, painting it is a low-cost, high-impact way to make it your own. Once you’ve decided to give your home’s exterior a fresh look with paint, the next question is whether to paint it yourself or hire a professional. It’s a personal decision. Painting a house is one of the easier do-it-yourself improvements to make, but depending on your circumstances, it could be safer, simpler, and even more cost effective to hire a pro. Before you decide, ask yourself these questions:
Do you have any painting experience?
Bob Vila’s home repair web site points out that, if you haven’t painted any part of a home before, exterior painting is not the best way to start. Try a simpler project first, like a single interior room. If you have some painting experience, though, and are up for an added challenge, this may be the perfect DIY project for you.
How big is the painting job you’re planning?
Take an honest assessment of the scope of this project. How tall is your house? Multi-story houses will require tall ladders and the skills to use them safely. Does your house have intricate details that may be difficult to reach? How much prep will be involved? Do the previous layers of paint contain lead?
Do you have the fitness and knowledge to do the job safely?
This is the most important question, and it can only be answered once you know the scope of the project. As this post from DIY Chatroom explains, if your house was built before 1978, there is a good chance that the earliest layers of paint contain lead. In that case, it’s best to find a professional painter who is certified by the EPA to deal with potentially poisonous lead paint flakes safely. Also consider your home’s size, and whether you really have the equipment and knowledge of ladder safety techniques to reach every area you’ll need to reach. Finally, consider your own fitness and health. Painting a house is a physically demanding job, so there’s no shame in hiring someone else to do it if you have any physical limitations or health concerns.
How much time do you have?
This is another excellent question from Bob Vila’s post. If you plan to put your home on the market soon, you may need the paint job done fast—and so you should hire an experienced professional with a multi-person team. In any case, decide how much time you can devote to the project, and how often. Think about how long you’re willing to let your house sit, partially prepped or partially painted. A good painting contractor will get your home prepped, primed, and painted in just a few days. A DIY project could take much, much longer, especially if you’re learning as you go.
What equipment will you need, and how will you get it?
Another post on Bob Vila’s site lists the types of brushes, rollers, pads, and sprayers typically needed for an exterior painting project. Add in any ladders and scaffolding you’ll need to reach every part of your house’s exterior. Figure what it will cost to buy or rent anything you don’t already have on hand. Some would-be DIY painters discover that it would be cheaper or similarly affordable to hire a pro, instead.
If you decide hiring a professional is the best plan for you, the Benjamin Moore paint company’s web site can help you with its excellent guide to finding and hiring the right painting contractor.
The Staff at San Juan Realty, Inc.
