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Art Gallery
Art Galleries are generally known for art that highlights the natural beauty
all around the world. Everyday there are people creating entirely new
works of art, and placing them in art galleries all over the world.
The type of art included in...
Art Schools, The Artist's Choice!
Is Art School necessary to be a good artist?
Being creative or artistic is truly a gift, a talent. But as with any talent, it needs to be tempered, honed, and optimized. Without proper training, one might never achieve the potential he or she was...
Book Review: Signorelli. The Complete Paintings. by Tom Henry and Lawrence B. Korner
Signorelli seems to have picked up the reputation of being one of the more eccentric artists in the history of Renaissance Italian art. This may well be because his major public commission, although well-known (indeed who could ignore it) is...
Car Ground Effects : Should You Install Yourself ??
To make your car handle and look better you need the right car ground effects. Use aero-dynamic wings, spoilers, dams or skirts to get the down force plus the stylish look you have been looking for. These car ground effects features are not just...
Choosing The Right Retirement Community
There are many retirement communities available everywhere in the country. There are retirement communities who may offer the world to you and those who would provide you with the best comfort you need.
But how do you choose which retirement...
Home Improvements - Expressing an Attitude
There are many issues to address when doing major home
improvements. The overall atmosphere and attitude of the
improvements can be a key issue.
Degree of Formality
Certain things tend to go with each other. Silk, silver,
crystal,...
How To Write A Killer Sales Letter
I sit down and look at my notebook. Then, I put myself into the ‘zone’. That’s how I start to write web copy that sells. Whether you agree with me or not, your web copy will determine whether your product’s going to sell online or not. ...
Spring Cleaning Teaching Tip
Okay! It's Spring! Time for cleaning! Along with painting the house, planting new flowers, and/or cleaning out the garage; get children involved in cleaning their rooms, closets, classrooms, or anything else that is pertinent to your situation. Here...
Titanic Anecdotes
Studio executives in High Concept Hollywood have very short attention spans. When pitching a film idea, many believe if you can't do it in one sentence it is an unmarketable product. For example Planet Of the Apes (1968) starring Charlton Heston...
Why Do We Publish?
A major "character" in Mark Salzman's first autobiography is his father. Sometimes his father paints. But his father hates painting. He likes it when his painting is done. He likes having painted. But the act of painting itself is, in his...
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Avoid Problems Painting Aluminum and Vinyl Siding
Anyone with older aluminum siding is well aware of the paint chalking problem. Just rub your hand along the old siding and the chalky old paint will be all over your palm. Trying to get paint to stick to this could be a real problem. This is due to oxidation of the paint. Siding manufacturers originally referred to this problem as a “benefit”. They called it, “self cleaning”, as the paint literally washed off the house.
Older vinyl siding is also a problem. UV light fades vinyl siding over time and the siding becomes very unsightly.
Many unfortunate homeowners and contractors have experienced the dismay, when they repainted their homes, only to find the new paint peeling off a few months later. Both problems with older aluminum and vinyl siding can be overcome with proper cleaning, surface preparation and re-painting.
Cleaning
You will need to rent a powerful pressure washer with at least 3000 psi. You will want a pressure washer powerful enough to remove most of the old chalky paint off the aluminum siding or, to remove any dirt buildup on the old vinyl siding.
Start at the top course of siding and work your way down. You will need to keep the pressure wand fairly close to the siding surface to effectively remove the old paint. In some areas, you may find that the paint comes off to the bare metal. Be careful near windows, corners, soffits and doorways. The water under pressure, can be forced behind these areas causing damage. You can add TSP or other cleaning solutions to the reservoir for mildew, algae or other grime built up. If you do use a cleaning solution, be sure to completely rinse it off with your pressure washer. You should allow your home to dry for several days in dry, sunny weather before proceeding to the painting process.
If you are repainting vinyl siding or vinyl coated aluminum siding, you may need a surface de-glosser. This is a solvent type product used to remove any shine on the surface and to help your first coat to adhere better. You will have no trouble finding a good de-glosser at your local paint supply store.
Application
I like a commercial type airless sprayer. It will draw the paint directly out of your 5 gallon paint pails, through the hose and into your spray gun. These are available to rent at many tool rental locations and even some paint supply stores that supply contractors. If your paint is real high quality latex, it will be thicker than regular latex paint and will
require a more powerful airless sprayer.
Priming
This step is equally as critical as the step above. Actually, the cleaning and surface preparation phases will make or break the results of your project.
I like a latex paint additive called emulsa-bond for the first coat. Emulsa-bond is a bonding agent you will add to the first coat of paint or primer, to help it to bond to the old siding.
I buy the best grade exterior latex paint, rather than oil or other solvent based paint. Latex paint seems to keep up with the expansion and contraction of the siding very well. The high quality latex paint I buy needs no primer. I add the bonding agent directly into the first color coat. Check with your paint supplier whether or not to use a primer. The rule of thumb is, when in doubt, use a primer. If you use a primer, add the bonding agent into it before applying. There are also bonding agents available for oil or other solvent based paints. One type is called penetrol. These are usually available at a painting contractor supply store.
Many contractors will spot prime areas, especially where bare metal is exposed. I don’t like spot priming because it can lead to an uneven looking top coat. When I put a primer coat on, I prime the entire home. This gives a uniform surface finish later on.
Finish Coat
Your top coat will be color only. You should check with your paint manufacturer to see if you need one or two top coats after the base coat. Like I mentioned above, buy the highest quality exterior paint.
In Conclusion
Proper cleaning and surface preparation are the two main ingredients to a successful painting job. A bonding agent in the first coat is also very critical to avoid paint peeling off later on. Using these techniques, I’ve re-painted homes that have lasted far longer than the original factory applied finish.
ARTICLE REPRINT PERMISSION
You may reprint the above article in your electronic or print newsletter; however, please include my byline and bio and keep the article intact. I retain all copyrights.
Robert Clarke has operated home improvement companies over the last 30 years. He is the owner of ContractorsUSA,Inc, a nationwide contractor referral service at http://www.contractorsusa.info/ . Get more information about aluminum and vinyl siding at http://www.contractorsusa.info/install-vinyl-siding.html
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