Sometimes relics from the past get a new lease on life. We had the pleasure of working on an old barn turned rental unit in Parker, CO, and enjoyed giving it a fresh new look with exterior paint. The barn posed a few challenges at the start of the project. The exterior wood was extremely dry and had a lot of paint flaking off. It made for a tricky application surface. With fall and winter on the horizon in Colorado, the client wanted to have the job completed before the weather turned cold and wet. Lastly, the barn is utilized as a rental unit, so coordination was needed with the renter before starting the project.
Keeping Costs Down on Residential Exterior Painting
After meeting with the homeowner it was determined that keeping the expenses down would be a priority. One way to keep the cost down on residential exterior painting is to choose just one color. No trim or accent colors were used, just red for the whole barn. The reason this saves time and money is because once the single color is applied, the whole job is finished. When you add a trim or accent color, or use multiple colors, more materials are required. Plus, more time is needed for the first color to dry to get a beautiful finish on the next color. This is because the colors need to overlap so that there are no small pieces of old color showing. To do this you paint the first color onto the trim or accent pieces to ensure all old paint is covered.
While this barn was overdue for painting, another way to keep costs down on a project is to paint an exterior before it gets too bad. When there’s a lot of flaking and failing paint it means a considerable amount of time will be spent scraping, priming, and caulking to ensure a lasting finished product. We see our work as more than just painting some walls; we improve the aesthetic of where you live with quality work.
The Right Paint for Exteriors
We recommended exterior Duration paint from Sherwin Williams to help give this barn extra life before needing to be painted again. Duration is a great choice when looking for a lasting and durable paint option. It does come with a higher cost to match the higher quality. This higher quality gives the homeowner more time before the paint fades, flakes, or needs to be repainted. We always recommend two applications of paint. Because some areas of this barn were bare wood, they required an extra coat as well as a primer coat.
The Importance of Exterior Painting and Maintenance
There are multiple reasons why addressing the exterior issues of your house, or in this case, barn, are important. There are many aspects to painting the exterior of a structures including scraping failing paint, caulking, or using an exterior primer prior to painting. These steps serve to keep your property maintained and protected. Taking care of and protecting the wood prevents moisture and things from the outside from getting into places they don’t belong. Once moisture gets past the exterior barrier of a structure it can cause mold, damage to surfaces or wood, and cause other harm to your property. With this barn for example, the wood was beginning to lose its integrity. If the exterior condition of this barn had not been addressed this year the existing damage would have worsened. As for the unseen damage, it is usually too late for repairs once you find out what is going on behind the exterior walls. This is why exterior painting and maintenance to your home is so important. Not only is it pleasing to the eye and increases your home’s value, exterior painting work is also a way to prevent unseen damage to your home or property.
How to Paint a Barn in a Day
Although this barn paint project had some factors that required a little more time, our three-person team completed the work in one day. We only spent a couple of hours pressure washing the barn the day before painting. We believe in tackling every step of the process, not skipping or skimping on any of them, and doing it right the first time.
Remember, your painter should always scrape and primer areas of flaking paint and where bare wood is exposed. For budget conscious jobs choose less colors to save time, money, and materials.
Quality work and quality products will ensure your residential painting project lasts for years to come.