How to Paint the Exterior of Your House Quickly and Efficiently

Is it time to paint the outside of your house again? I have painted the outside of house as a profession and would like to share some tips with you. I'll tell you what supplies you'll need, ways to estimate how long the job will take, and tips to help you paint like the pros!

First you need to figure out how long it will take to paint the exterior of your house. The average house takes about 60 hours to paint. This isn't a small time commitment! Granted this is also why the average house costs about $3,000.00 if you have it done professionally. If your house has lots of windows it will take much longer to paint. This is because of all the detail work involved with painting around windows. Also if your house has places where the old paint has come off you'll need to prep these areas. This prep time is also a good time to fill any Woodpecker holes or any other small cosmetic problems with the outside of the house.

Supplies you'll need:

1. Paint- I highly recommend latex paint because it cleans up easily and isn't nearly as runny as oil based paints

2. Paint brush- You'll only need one brush but make sure its of high quality. Nothing will slow you down more than using a poor quality brush

3. 5-gallon paint can- You'll want to get one with a lid so you can cover your leftover paint at night or when you take a break

4. A brush grid - this is a grid that is usually metallic and is designed to give you a surface to run your roller on to get an even coat on it

5. A large roller nap and roller frame- Rollers come in all shapes and sizes. The larger the roller the heavier it will be to move around. This is because paint can weigh quite a bit once you get a roller soaked in it. This large roller should usually be a 1/4 inch nap. The nap is the width of the roller

6. A small roller and roller frame usually referred to as a mini-roller. This roller will be used primarily for the trim or upper edge of most houses.

7. An Extension ladder. As a homeowner you should already own a ladder that is as tall as your house. You'll want to find a ladder that will reach the top of your house but you obviously don't want one that is too large otherwise you'll be carrying more ladder around than you need.