Everyone wants a longer lasting paint job, few know how to achieve it. Here are a few tips for how to extend the life of an exterior paint job.

1. Make sure surfaces are clean – power washing is a must on exterior jobs, paint will stick to dirt but dirt will not bind to the surface being painted.
2. Make sure surfaces are dry – wood should be thoroughly dry before applying any paint or primer, in Calgary this requires patience.
3. Make sure bare wood is primed – prime with an oil-based primer to prevent tannin bleed, an acrylic bonding primer for adhesion.
4. Some surfaces should be painted, others should be stained – Do not paint rough cut siding, the film build means that paint failure will be difficult to prepare in the future; Instead use an exterior wood stain.
5. Make sure temperatures remain above 10 degrees – If not wait until temperatures maintain above 10 degrees Celsius.
6. Use caulking and filler sparingly – These materials are the first to fail on exterior projects, some gaps are not meant to be caulked.
7. Sometimes you should wait until the paint is failing – Painting to soon is sometimes a recipe for disaster, if paint is on the verge of cracking, adding a new coat will only speed the process up.
8. Have exterior millwork repaired – If it is rotten, replace it.
9. De-gloss paint prior to recoating – If it is shiny, sand it until it isn’t.
10. Respect recoat times – Follow manufacturer specifications for application.

That’s all I’ve got for now, the rest will remain trade secrets.