If you stop by our blog regularly, you've probably noticed I've been AWOL - and with good reason.  This summer's incredibly nice weather has meant I've been working overtime getting those exterior painting projects done that got postponed last fall.  But I thought I'd stop by and leave some thoughts for those of you who are contemplating painting your own house before the rainy season starts. 

Many homeowners think that painting can't be all that hard.  I know it's true, because I've done lots of jobs over the years that were finishing up what people started and then realized they were in over their heads.  But even if you're an experienced DIY'er and are handy with a paint brush, painting your home's exterior is something you may want to leave to a professional painting contractor (like  North Pine Painting), for a number of reasons:

If you're trying to save money, chances are a painting contractor will pay much less for the paint than you will.  Painters usually get substantial discounts from paint stores like Sherwin Williams based on the volume they buy.  While you're totaling up your savings, you may want to figure in your own hourly rate - what are your labor costs?  Yes, you're not paying yourself, but if you're painting your house rather than working for pay, it's costing you. 

Choosing the appropriate paint for your home, the type of siding you have, and the local weather isn't as easy as you might think.  You have to select a paint that will work well over the existing (or prime it), as well as one that will cover well.  A painting contractor has the experience to select a paint that will cover well and hold up without needing multiple coats.  That bargain closeout paint you bought may take you two or three coats, while the more expensive paint I'd select only takes one. 

Have you planned out all the prep steps?  There's the power washing ($$$ to rent one if you don't own one), plus scraping, sanding, and spot priming any loose paint.  If you don't take the proper steps (or even know what your house needs), the paint you put on will most likely peel, flake, chip, and/or bubble.  Then you'll need to hire a painter to remove that and re-do it. 

Do you know all the factors in Bellingham's weather than can cause your paint job to be a flop?  Moisture and hot sun are two things that can wreak havoc on a new paint job.  A professional painting company knows how to deal with these issues. 

And last of all there's the stress element, plus the inherent safety issues of working outside on a ladder. 

Tell you what - if you're thinking about painting your home yourself, why not get an estimate from us just to find out what it will cost.  We offer no-cost estimates, so you're not out anything but a little time.

By the way, if you want to get that paint job in this year, we've only got about another 6 weeks before the weather will make it somewhat dicey - so give us a call today. 

Does your deck look like this? 

Here in northwest Washington, no matter how well we take care of our decks, they end up with green gunk on them every spring.  There really is no way to prevent it, but it's important to remove it regularly. 


That ugly green slime can make your deck slippery (which is a safety issue), plus it's breaking down the finish.  Now that the weather is warming up, it's time to get that deck cleaned so you can enjoy sitting outdoors and soaking up the sunshine.

Options for Cleaning Your Wood Deck

Often customers tell me they spray their decks down with bleach water.  While that may kill the algae and mildew, bleach can be too harsh for wood unless you use a fairly weak solution and wash it off immediately.  Don't let it sit, or the wood will get lightened and somewhat fuzzy-feeling.  Also, while bleach is an effective algae killer, it doesn't remove grime or grease.  And finally, the pH of bleach is too alkali for wood, so you will need to rinse your deck with a weak solution of something mildly acidic such as oxalic acid.  If you follow up with a deck brightener product, check that it contains either oxalic or citralic acid

We do offer professional deck cleaning and refinishing, but I realize may of you are home maintenance DIY fans, so here are some of my suggestions for cleaning it yourself:

• Sherwin Williams Deckscapes© cleaners
• A solution of 1 gal. water, 1/3 c household bleach, and 1/3 c TSP (tri-sodium phosphate)
• A solution of 1 gal. water and 1/3 c OxyClean

Steps for Cleaning Your Deck

1. Apply your solution to the deck with a pump-type garden sprayer and allow it to sit for 10-20 minutes. Avoid getting the cleaning solution on any plants or shrubs surrounding your deck.
   
2. Spray off with a pressure washer set at 900-1000 psi, using a wide angle tip (usually white).
3. Keep your nozzle 4"-6" from the deck surface, and use sweeping motions to avoid leaving a striped pattern on the wood or damaging it. 
4. Follow up with a deck brightener, applied in the same manner as the cleaning solution, and then rinse as above.
   
5. Allow the deck to dry at least a half day or overnight before walking on it and re-positioning the furniture.

The foregoing assumes you aren't trying to remove any existing sealer.  This requires much more aggressive action and caustic cleaning solutions which are best left to a professional.  We are currently scheduling deck refinishing, but our calendar is filling up quickly.  If your deck is in need of a facelift, give us a call today to get on the list! 

It looks like winter has finally decided to leave the Bellingham area, and the overnight temps are staying above freezing.  Add to that the sunny days we've been having, and before too much longer those of you who have had your exterior painting jobs on hold can expect a call from me to schedule your project. 

I always enjoy spring time, because so many homeowners are fixing up their houses, and my phone is ringing off the hook.  These days when it comes to homes, curb appeal is one of the most important things you can have for your house.  A real estate professional will tell you if you're choosing between interior and exterior remodeling, always go with the exterior.  While that advice helps sell houses, it's also a good tip even if you're planning on staying in your home indefinitely.  After all, you want to feel good about your home's appearance when you drive up, and you want your guests to enjoy the view, too.

One of the easiest ways you can do that is with a new exterior paint job.  While siding companies will tell you it's a waste of money to keep painting your siding over and over, if you compare the price of new siding with the cost of getting your house painted, you may want to re-check that logic. 

Depending on the size of your home and whether it's more than one story, the average cost to repaint the exterior in this area is about $1900-$2500.  Of course, if you want multiple colors and you've got an historic-era home with lots of gingerbread trim, it will be more, but this is a good number to use for comparison. 

Now for the siding numbers.  The best siding options for this area aren't wood (which needs to be repainted anyway).  If you choose vinyl, you can expect to pay about $7000.  For fiber cement such as HardieBoard, the cost doubles - $14,000.  And fiber cement often needs repainting.  Metal siding costs are about $8000 for aluminum, and a bit more for steel.

Now here's a bit more math to help.  A good paint job will last about 7-10 years, so for the cost of vinyl siding you can get your home painted three  times.  Will your vinyl siding last 30 years?  I've seen numbers ranging from 20-30 years, but usually after about 10 it has faded and needs repair or replacement.  Fiber cement siding that comes pre-finished (not all of it does) usually is warrantied for about 15 years, but you've paid more than 5 times the cost of a paint job, which in those 15 years would need to be re-done once. 

If you're considering having your wood siding replaced, perhaps you may want to request an estimate from a local Bellingham painting contractor like me to find out just what paint would cost.  One thing about having a paint job - it's a lot more economical to change the color if you get tired of it than having to replace the siding! 

We're now doing estimates for spring exterior painting - contact us today for a quote.  360.594.2430.

I often have homeowners ask about stripping their old wallpaper before I come to install new wallcovering.  I suspect they're trying to save money by doing something that seems easy.  Fair enough. 

If you're planning on stripping your old wallpaper prior to having your room painted or new wallcovering hung, I'd like to warn you ahead of time that wallpaper stripping is not for the faint of heart.  It takes patience, and it's often tedious.  And depending on how the wall was prepped before the old paper was hung, it can also be difficult.  I've periodically run into homes where wallpaper was installed over new drywall without the walls being primed first.  The result?  The top layer of the drywall comes off the with paper.  That means a wall repair before moving on - an additional expense. 

So I've given my warning, but some of you may want to forge ahead anyway.  In that case, I would suggest you check out this video from This Old House on How to Strip Wallpaper.  (If after you've reviewed this you're having second thoughts, I'd like to point out that stripping old paper is going to be the least expensive part of wallpaper hanger's bid.  You may want to get an estimate to see what it's going to cost to have a pro do it, and then evaluate whether the hassle is really worth it for you.)

There's nothing like a fresh coat of paint to freshen up your home.   Now that winter is coming to an end here in the Bellingham WA area, if you haven't thought about giving your home a facelift by having it painted, you may want to give it some consideration. 

We found a helpful article from Angie's List recently, and after you've read it perhaps you'll be in the mood for adding some dramatically different looks to your home, like Sherwin Williams' 2014 Color of the Year, Exclusive Plum.  The gray and blue tones are definitely extremely popular right now, and this luscious color could be at home in just about any room of the house.

If purple tones aren't what you have in mind, pop on over to our Pinterest board on Interior Color Trends for a look at some of the other popular colors.  No matter what your taste is, you'll find a color that could give the inside of your home a refreshing change. 

Or maybe it's the outside of your home that needs some sprucing up.  After all the rain in March already, the greens are bursting out, and here and there spring flowers like crocuses and tulips are emerging.  The blah days are over for the weather; how about for your home?  Our Pinterest Exterior Color Combos board has some inspiration for that, too. 

Still not sure?  Just give us a call - we offer free color consultations in the Bellingham / Whatcom County WA area.  Call us today - 360.594.2430360.594.2430.

Here's a glimpse of Benjamin Moore's 'Breath of Fresh Air 806,' which they have named their Color of the Year.  This color could work well anywhere from an entryway to a bath to a bedroom or a sitting area.

I've always been a fan of painting walls in luscious pastels like this in the spring.  It seems to bring outdoor freshness into a home.  Pastels work well in smaller areas - they can make a space look larger. 

Contrasts are popular this year, too, as this vibrant kitchen combo shows.  Blue and yellow are reminiscent of early-spring crocuses and wildflowers, and the blue ceiling overhead almost makes you feel like you're outside!  This yummy pairing is Behr's 'Summer Harvest 380A-3' and 'Liberty 580D-6.'

If you're having a hard time making up your mind, I'd be happy to arrange a free color consultation.  I've got a wide range of color decks for you to see for yourself some of the beautiful interior paint colors available for 2014.  Contact us today to arrange a no-obligation, no-cost appointment:  360.594.2430. 

Now you can follow us on Pinterest!

Since painting and wall coverings are such visual things, I thought it was time I'd jump into the Pinterest scene.  If you're in the mood for a color change at your house but you've run out of ideas, check out our Pinterest page for starters.  We're updating this regularly, so be sure to check back often. 

One of our favorite resources these days is Sherwin Williams (since it's my favorite paint), and they've got some exciting new colors for 2014.  If this is the year you've decided your home needs a makeover with interior or exterior painting, check out some of these colors.  I'd be happy to meet with you and bring my color samples so you can see for yourself the fantastic range of choices Sherwin Williams offers, both for interior and exterior. 

As we come across new paint colors or combinations that we think are worth noting, we'll post them on our Pinterest page.  And if you've got a favorite color combo - or you think your home should be on our page, email us a copy of your photo and we'll put post it.

(You can easily go right to our Pinterest site by clicking the "P" at the top right corner of any of our web pages.) 

After nearly twenty years of operating my business in the Midwest, where it's too cold to do much outdoors for almost six months out of the year, let alone paint or stain houses, I was looking forward to milder temperatures here in the Puget Sound area.  Seeing as I had been told it rarely dips below freezing in the winter, I was looking forward to having a longer exterior finishing season. 

Then several things happened.

First of all, until late summer, all of the work I got was indoors. Since I was working steady, I wasn't complaining.  I had sent out a number of bids for exterior jobs, but with the nice weather, I guess the property owners were enjoying being out in their yards without scaffolding and painters in their way.

Then fall hit, and it was a short fall, apparently in comparison to most years.  As the temperatures began to drop, I had a number of owners call somewhat urgently requesting to get their projects done before winter.  Much as I wanted to accommodate everyone, fall turned out to either be rainy with only a break of a day in between, or else unseasonably cool.  And for exterior house painters, either one spells trouble, and both mean it's just about a sure thing you won't get your job done this year. 

For those of you who were counting on getting your house painted or or stained before the end of the year, I'm sorry to have disappointed you, but the weather just didn't cooperate.  For future reference, here are a few basic things about exterior painting and staining that depend on the weather.

• Several dry days in a row are necessary.  I can power wash in the rain, but at least one day afterward is needed to dry the wood out, sometimes two if it's cool or cloudy. 
• Once the wood is dry, a couple of days are needed to apply the paint or stain.  If more than one coat is needed, extra time for drying in  between is required (4-6 hours of temperatures above 40°-45°). 
• Then another 4-6 hours at this temp is needed for the paint to cure properly.  Darker colors may take longer to cure due to the tint content. 
• Humidity level and shade affect drying times as well. 

Some painters may tell you that it's possible to apply paint so long as the outside temperature is above freezing, and perhaps some paint manufacturers might say it's okay, but after nearly 30 years in the business, it's been my experience that below 40° you're asking for trouble. 

So for those of you who are disappointed I didn't get your job done before winter, I apologize - Bellingham is touch and go for outdoor painting in the fall.  I'll get back with you in the spring, and I can promise you that you'll be a lot happier with the results when the weather warms up and the sun comes back around again. 

 Meanwhile, it's always a good time for interior residential painting, so give us a call to make an appointment before spring, because then hopefully I'll be back outdoors.