When should I paint the exterior of my Orlando home or business?

When it comes to painting an exterior home or business in Orlando the two most common questions we are asked are: What is the best time of year to paint my home in Orlando? And can you paint during the rainy season or winter? And, when I say “Yes, we always paint year round in Florida” it is almost always followed by “What do you do if it rains?” Well, the rainy season is from June to November, so as much as we would love to take the summer off and half of fall, we can’t. We have learned to adapt and improvise.

The truth is most rain showers are very short, and late in the afternoon in Florida, so we start early and hope for the best. Not to mention that is also the hottest time of the year. It’s so hot that if your not moving fast, the brush or roller will dry on the wall. Our acrylic paints are dry in this heat and sun in 30 minutes of less.

Revitalizing your home or simply keeping up its appearance is easy to do with a fresh coat of paint. This will up the curb appeal of your home as well as the resale value. It doesn’t hurt that once the paint job is done it is often the first line of defense to protect your home from the elements of brutal sun and wind driven rain that can cause hidden damage and create dangerous moisture related problems as it creeps into your home oftentimes unnoticed for years.

So, when do you do it?

The best time is to do it whenever it needs it and you can afford it. Let us worry about the heat, rain and weather. That’s our job. You could say we are armchair meteorologist. We watch the weather as much for our fishing forecast as we do our Orlando exterior painting jobs. We don’t even have to see rain coming. We can smell it in the air and feel the presence of imminent rain sometimes even just 5 minutes before hand.

When temperatures are to high, it does indeed become more challenging. We learned a long time ago to work on the shady side and stay hydrated. We buy bottled water by the case and ice by the 20lb bag too.

Moisture

Moisture and high humidity are one constant in Orlando and Central Florida. And, in defense of Orlando exterior painting, you can paint in humid climates. You just have to keep an eye on the humidity levels of the surface to be painted. It bears repeating that we always check the weather before setting out for the day. With the advent of smart phones, we are always able to check the weather radar throughout the day as well.

Painting surfaces can become moist just by contact with humidity in the air. Rain and looming rain can cause moisture on your surface for at least a full day after. When painting, always thoroughly check the area you are painting. Feel it and be sure it’s dry. Be aware that porous surfaces may still be wet even if they don’t feel as though they are. In some instances where specialized products are being used in very critical areas, we don’t rely on feel. In those cases we use a moisture meter.

In continuation with paint not surviving temperature fluctuations very well, keep an eye out for early morning dews after long warm days. Even if you painted in the warm weather, your paint still has a chance to be damaged in this instance. Be aware also of humidity inside the house escaping to the outside.

Paint adheres to the surface by evaporating the water in its mixture faster than the solvents. If too much humidity stops the water from evaporating, this lets the solvent dry first. If this happens your paint will not last. You can paint with levels of 70% humidity, but it is recommended that the range be between 40% to 50%.

What Else You Need to Know

When painting the exterior in addition to keeping the first two points in mind it is recommended that you follow the sun around the house. If you paint when the surface has been heated too much, your paint job could have paint blisters. If you paint when the surface will soon be heated too much, your paint job could have paint blisters. So follow the sun and stay in the shade. In the late morning, paint the east side of the exterior, then the south side in the afternoon, and the west side later. The north side can be painted at any time.

As you can now see, much more must be taken in to account when deciding when to paint the exterior of your Orlando home. You need to be aware of the type of paint you are using, the temperatures and the humidity and what time of the day to do what. That being said however, so long as you are aware of these things, you don’t have to stick to a specific season to paint. Your home can get an exterior paint job of lasting quality when done right with that extra attention to the details at any time of the year.

We offer free estimates! To get your free estimate or if you want to learn more about our Orlando, FL exterior painters, contact us here or call us today at 407.256.8610.