The heat and humidity of summer in the South make painting your home’s exterior nearly impossible in the summer. Summer thunderstorms, heat, and direct sunlight make it more than a little difficult to properly paint a home. The dependable painting contractors in Woodstock, GA, at A&P Painting & Flooring describe the problems with painting in the sun during summer.
Why Paint and Sun Don’t Mix
So you managed to match colors for your current home color or find the perfect new paint colors using a color visualizer tool. The next step is to paint your house. The problem is that it’s summer in Georgia, and the air outside is hot soup under the blazing heat lamp of the sun.
Direct sunlight on fresh paint can dry it too quickly and make the wall surface too hot, leading to blistering, cracking, uneven application, and early fading as the sun’s UV rays bleach the paint pigments.
Oil-based paints can withstand application in temperatures between 40 and 90 degrees, while most latex paint can only withstand temperatures between 40 and 70 degrees.
Other Problems with Painting During the Summer
Sunlight and heat aren’t the only problems with painting in the summer. Much of the South offers sweltering humidity and regular thunderstorms throughout the summer months.
Rain
Rain and humidity can prevent paint from drying. High humidity can also form dew on your freshly painted walls overnight, leading to bubbled paint, fading, streaks, and worse. You shouldn’t paint within 24 hours of rain (before or after painting), and you need three or four days in a row to complete house painting for a home.
Wind
Those thunderstorms often come with strong winds, which can kick up leaves, dirt, sticks, and other debris and send it all hurtling into the side of your home, where some fresh paint is ready to glue it all to your walls for the rest of time.
Tropical Weather
Although Woodstock sits approximately 250 miles inland, tropical systems in the Gulf and Atlantic can travel inland and affect the area from time to time. Also, rain bands can bring sudden heavy rains and high winds.
How to Mitigate Summer Factors for House Painting
There are some techniques you can use to safely paint in the summer while avoiding painting in the sun, including:
- Start early and move with the sun, so you’re only painting on the opposite side of the home from the sun.
- Divide working days. If it’s a four-day job total, paint two days the first week and two days the following week to allow extra drying and curing time for your base layers.
- Use a high-quality exterior paint rated for high temperatures and humidity resistance like Permanizer by PPG Paint or Sherwin Williams Super Paint.
Summer Is the Best Time for Interior Painting
The same factors that make exterior painting difficult make painting indoors ideal. The warmer temperatures dry paint more quickly, you don’t have to worry about direct sunlight most of the day, and you can control temperatures and humidity indoors.
Call the Painting Experts at A&P Painting & Flooring in Woodstock, GA
Avoid painting in the sun this summer and call the expert painters in Woodstock, GA. Call A&P Painting & Flooring today to schedule a home inspection.
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