The Role of Weather in Exterior House Painting
Is your home due for a fresh coat of exterior paint? If so, you probably noticed unsightly flaking or chipping, making your property seem shabby and unkempt. However, any professional painter knows you need optimal weather before starting an outdoor paint project.
At Benchmark Painting & Carpentry of Boynton, the exterior house painting services depend on the season and weather forecast. We’ve seen how painting during rainy, humid, or hot weather can destroy paint projects. Examine how temperature and weather can impact your next outdoor paint job below.
How Temperature Influences Paint
First, professional painters prefer mild temperatures when painting a house. Hot or cold weather has some surprising effects on an exterior cure, including:
- Color changes: After purchasing a particular paint color, you expect your exterior walls to reflect that chosen pigment. However, fluctuating temperatures may cause chemical reactions that change the final shade.
- Drying times: Paint takes longer to dry in cool weather, resulting in lengthy waits between each coat.
- Damaged paint coats: Paint dries quickly in hot weather, especially on materials that absorb heat, like metal siding. If a product dries too fast, it will bubble up.
Painters must also consider other weather factors when they paint your home exterior.
The Impact of Humidity
Intense heat often brings high humidity levels. Humidity reflects the amount of moisture in the atmosphere. You can probably guess that a moist environment won’t deliver a quality paint job.
For example, water or oil-based paint cures best in 40 to 50% humidity. When the humidity rises, the moisture weighs down the product, resulting in sagging. On the other hand, low humidity prevents each coat from adhering to the surface appropriately.
The Price of Precipitation
You likely already know that heavy rain can turn your exterior house painting project into a mess. Your paint crew will protect painted surfaces with tarps if an impromptu rainstorm occurs. Waterproof coverings prevent excess moisture from interfering with the drying process.
Snow and sleet can impact the project’s progress in similar ways. Plus, many products have a temperature limit. Temperatures that facilitate frozen precipitation can negatively affect even the most high-quality paint.
What Wind Can Do
Finally, many homeowners rarely consider how wind can influence their paint job. In fact, they often mistakenly believe wind will speed up the drying process. While most professional painters welcome a gentle breeze, they avoid gusty winds.
Like high temperatures, strong winds will dry the paint too quickly, resulting in weak adhesion. This effect significantly shortens the paint’s lifespan. You’ll need more maintenance and a new paint job much sooner.
Plus, wind can kick up dirt, grime, and dead leaves. This debris sticks to wet paint surfaces and makes the exterior paint color look dirty and flawed. You want a clean, bright finish, not a grimy result with pieces of dirt trapped in each coat.
The Ideal Forecast for Exterior House Painting Projects
When should you schedule your outdoor paint project to avoid these weather catastrophes? Winter often brings low temperatures and unpredictable precipitation. Summer often brings too hot and humid conditions.
The ideal forecast for an outdoor painting service includes:
- Steady temperatures between 40 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit
- No persistent, gusty winds
- Humidity levels ranging from 40% to 50%
- Clear, sunny skies
Therefore, you should speak with your preferred painting company about starting your project in the spring or fall.
Hire Benchmark Painting & Carpentry To Ensure a Proper, Clean Cure
The professional painters at Benchmark Painting & Carpentry of Boynton know how to plan and conduct a successful exterior house painting project. We’re passionate about helping our clients find the perfect color to make their properties stand out. Call 561-375-6249 to schedule a consultation with your preferred neighborhood contractor.
