Painting Vinyl Siding
Simon Harris asked:
As the executer of my father’s estate it fell upon me to sell their home. As I wanted to obtain the best price possible to help support my mother in her declining years I decided to do a few cosmetic fixes to the home. One way to do this was by painting the vinyl siding that had been installed about 7 years ago. In that time it has become slightly the worse for wear. The color had changed from off white to a mixture of pink and brown.
Initially, power washing appeared to be the best way to clean it in preparation for painting the vinyl siding. Luckily I checked with the company that had installed the siding originally. They explained that the power washer could actually do more damage than good. Forcing the water through the cracks and openings in the siding could cause hidden damage beneath the siding. If you decide to do an initial power wash first, use reduced pressure and make all the strokes going down. Upward movement can force the water where you do not want it to go.
The installers’ recommendation to clean prior to painting the vinyl siding was to use soap, water, a bucket, and a sponge. I soon discovered they had failed to mention the key ingredient, elbow grease. To expedite the timing between cleaning and painting I decided to do only one side of the house at a time. Two sides of the house had patches of mold and we were able to remove them with an oxygen bleach. It will not harm the siding or your vegetation while chlorine bleach will. Wear gloves when you apply the bleach. Finally, vinyl siding will oxidize over time. We found a few spots and carefully removed them with steel wool. These spots needed to be primed with a vinyl primer before painting.
I then discovered that once the cleaning was complete, so was most of the work. Between advice from the siding installer and the local paint store clerks, I was able to pick the right paint and tint for painting the vinyl siding. Both said to get the best grade of paint possible and to use a tint that was as near to the original as possible. The paint needs to be a mixture of urethane and acrylic resins that will expand and contract with the siding.
Paint needs to be applied to a clean, dry and cool surface. I choose to paint early in the morning before the sun had made it’s full appearance and the breezes had picked up. This added a little to the days required to finish the job, but made up for it in the smooth professional finish I obtained.
As the executer of my father’s estate it fell upon me to sell their home. As I wanted to obtain the best price possible to help support my mother in her declining years I decided to do a few cosmetic fixes to the home. One way to do this was by painting the vinyl siding that had been installed about 7 years ago. In that time it has become slightly the worse for wear. The color had changed from off white to a mixture of pink and brown.
Initially, power washing appeared to be the best way to clean it in preparation for painting the vinyl siding. Luckily I checked with the company that had installed the siding originally. They explained that the power washer could actually do more damage than good. Forcing the water through the cracks and openings in the siding could cause hidden damage beneath the siding. If you decide to do an initial power wash first, use reduced pressure and make all the strokes going down. Upward movement can force the water where you do not want it to go.
The installers’ recommendation to clean prior to painting the vinyl siding was to use soap, water, a bucket, and a sponge. I soon discovered they had failed to mention the key ingredient, elbow grease. To expedite the timing between cleaning and painting I decided to do only one side of the house at a time. Two sides of the house had patches of mold and we were able to remove them with an oxygen bleach. It will not harm the siding or your vegetation while chlorine bleach will. Wear gloves when you apply the bleach. Finally, vinyl siding will oxidize over time. We found a few spots and carefully removed them with steel wool. These spots needed to be primed with a vinyl primer before painting.
I then discovered that once the cleaning was complete, so was most of the work. Between advice from the siding installer and the local paint store clerks, I was able to pick the right paint and tint for painting the vinyl siding. Both said to get the best grade of paint possible and to use a tint that was as near to the original as possible. The paint needs to be a mixture of urethane and acrylic resins that will expand and contract with the siding.
Paint needs to be applied to a clean, dry and cool surface. I choose to paint early in the morning before the sun had made it’s full appearance and the breezes had picked up. This added a little to the days required to finish the job, but made up for it in the smooth professional finish I obtained.