Exterior Home Painting is a Lofty Task
A fresh coat of paint can make your house stand out among the rest of the neighborhood. Something about the new, bright paint makes your house sparkle and seem like new. Such an important responsibility may sometimes be too much for individuals to handle themselves.
It’s never a bad thing when you look for outside help and exterior home painting is no exception. Don’t feel bad if you cannot accomplish this task alone, as it takes a few people to paint an entire house. Nobody has ever become less of a man because they couldn’t paint their own house, that would be ridiculous. Not only does it take manpower, exterior home painting requires skill and practice that many do not possess. Contractors and companies offering skilled teams of painters are readily available in most cities with a zip code these days so do the smart thing and open the phone book.
Make sure that you know who you are hiring, as many contractors with a number of large projects may put your exterior home painting job on the back burner before getting to it. A reliable, smaller team of painters is sometimes the way to go.
They usually have a smaller clientele and are more concerned with customer satisfaction and service than some of the larger companies who have such a vast list of huge projects. A lot of college students take up house painting as a way to earn extra money. Do not be worried about the college student image that is often portrayed in movies and the media, as most college
Increase the Selling Price of Your House with House Painting
Bob Vila of This Old House fame tells people to “…be kind to their neighbors when picking a color scheme.” His house painting advice is echoed by realtors and builders across the country. The color that you paint your house, they say, can affect the value of all the other houses in your neighborhood. That’s one of the reasons that many homeowner associations limit house painting color choices for homes in their communities.
While you might feel that house painting is a personal choice, there’s a good deal of sense to the painting restrictions that some homeowners face. A garish purple house with Halloween orange shutters on the block can effectively make it almost impossible for anyone else in the neighborhood to get full value for their home if they choose to sell. A cohesive house painting color scheme that’s carried on from property to property adds enormously to the appeal of a neighborhood.
In some cases, the house painting restrictions are based on more than just owner preference. On the West Side of one New England town, for instance, is a neighborhood of historic period houses all built in a similar Edwardian style. Owners who purchase houses in the Tatnuck community usually sign an agreement upon purchase that they will maintain a white or gray exterior with shutters in black, green or red – and that they will only use white Christmas lights at the holidays.
So what colors are good choices for exterior house painting?
According to Realty Time magazine, the choices are, in order, white, gray, blue, tan or brown, cream, beige, green, yellow and red. Of those, the overwhelmingly most popular house painting color is white, with over 37 percent of all homeowners stating that if they were repainting a house, they would choose white. While gray is the second most popular color, most realtors would recommend painting your house a pale shade if that’s your choice. The reason? Lighter colors brighten a house and make it seem more spacious.
Among the other colors, the favored shades tend to be muted tones, often in ‘historical’ themes. House paint manufacturers like Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams often name their paint colors to cater to that trend. Thousands of houses across the country are painted Williamsburg blue or Colonial green.
If you do want brighter accents in your exterior house painting scheme, advise Realtors, confine yourself to the front door and shutters. A front door that’s painted a friendly blue or warm red, they say, puts buyers in a good mood as they enter your house. And who’d know better than the guys that sell houses?
Exterior Home Windows Vinyl Versus Wood Windows
When it comes to replacing your home exterior windows, you want to make sure you choose the materials that will work best for you. If you are looking for something that will save you energy and money there are many options available to you. This article will explore two of those options, comparing and contrasting them so making your selection will be much easier.
Both vinyl and wood windows are popular for good reasons. Each type isnt for everyone, so you want to learn as much as you can before making a choice.
Vinyl replacement windows dominate the market because they are affordable and available in many markets. They also perform well which saves you money over time. The highest quality vinyl windows will feature a beveled exterior design, an equal sight line, removable screens to the inside and tremendous energy performance. This is where they really become cost-effective. As with other types of home exterior windows, it is possible to choose different types of vinyl windows, all ranging widely in terms of quality. The materials that are used and the workmanship you receive when the windows are installed will make all the difference in the world. Before allowing any company to install vinyl windows in your home, you should always check to make sure they are using the quality of materials you specify. This is extremely important as you will be the one to benefit from good quality windows.
Wood replacement windows are another choice and are beautiful when they are well maintained. This is, perhaps, one of the reasons why some people dont choose wood windows. If you live in an area where rain or extremely cold weather is prevalent, you might want to consider the vinyl windows. The reason for this is that wood warps, cracks, rots and fades. This is why it must be well maintained. Caring for wood windows takes time and must be adhered to properly in order to ensure their beauty lasts a long time.
The longevity of wood is less than that of vinyl if you base longevity on the timeframe for the warranties on each. Wood can also even become structurally unsafe over time if it is not well maintained or suffers damage due to the various elements.
There are many choices of materials when it comes to both types of windows. While wood windows may not be quite as popular as they once were, they are still widely used today. Again, the quality of the materials and workmanship of the company you choose will make a big difference in the outcome. It is important to maintain both types of windows, though those made of wood do require more attention. Aside from that, it really is just a matter of preference. There are many other factors that can play a part in your decision such as geographic location, but when it comes right down to it, different people prefer different styles of replacement windows. The choice is up to you. The more you know going into it the better off youll be in the future and in making the right decision.