Exterior painting
Exterior painting that holds up, because of what happens before the paint.
An exterior finish fails at the surface, not in the can. Most of what decides how long it looks right is the assessment and the preparation — this page covers both, and what they mean for your scope.
The assessment
Exterior painting: the building tells you what the job is.
Two houses the same size can be very different projects. What separates them is almost always condition, not square footage.
What the existing finish is doing
Chalking, peeling, blistering, cracking and bare patches each mean something different about what will bond to the surface and what has to come off first. This is what the walkthrough is looking at, and it is the single biggest influence on the scope.
The substrate underneath
Wood, fiber cement, stucco, masonry, vinyl and metal do not take the same preparation or the same coating. Where a building mixes them — and most do, across siding, trim, soffits and fascia — each one is specified separately.
What is found once we look closely
Soft wood, failed caulk joints, damaged boards and moisture staining are common and are often not visible from the ground. Anything found is raised with you and priced before it is dealt with, not absorbed quietly or discovered at the end.
Preparation
Surface preparation is the part that decides the outcome.
Preparation is also the part that is easiest to compress when someone is competing on price, and the part you cannot inspect once the finish coat is on. So it is written into the scope surface by surface, and priced as work.
Washing
Surfaces are cleaned so the coating meets the substrate rather than what has settled on it. Nothing is painted over dirt, chalk or mildew.
Scraping and sanding
Loose and failing material is removed and edges are feathered back, so the new finish does not telegraph what was under it.
Repairs and caulking
Filling, and caulking where a joint is meant to be sealed. Repairs identified at assessment are done before coating, not painted over.
Priming where it is required
Bare, repaired, stained or previously failing surfaces are primed. Priming is specified where the surface needs it rather than applied everywhere as a default.
Access and conditions
Two things outside anyone’s control, planned for anyway.
Weather
Coatings have conditions they need in order to cure properly, and surfaces have to be dry before they are painted. Rain, damp and temperature can move a working day, and we would rather move it than coat a surface that is not ready. Where weather affects the schedule you hear about it, rather than finding out from an empty driveway.
Access and height
How a surface is reached changes what the work takes — ladders, scaffolding or a lift, and what has to be moved, protected or kept clear on the ground. Access is worked out at the walkthrough, because discovering it later changes both the schedule and the scope.
What is in the scope
“Painting the outside” is not a scope.
An exterior is a set of separate surfaces, and each is its own decision: siding, trim, soffits, fascia, shutters, doors, railings, porch ceilings, foundation. Some are painted, some are deliberately left, and the difference has to be written down.
Your scope lists what is included, what preparation each surface gets, and what product and finish is specified for it. If something is not in the scope it is not in the price — which works in both directions, and is the reason it is itemised rather than described as a house.