4 Reasons to Winterize Your Home Exterior with Paint in the Fall

A fresh coat of paint doesn’t just look fantastic – it can also help you winterize your home. While no one is really excited about preparing for winter, it is important to get a head start on your home winterization checklist as soon as possible. That includes looking over your home’s exterior to make sure it is in good shape for withstanding a Fort Collins winter. Painting your exterior siding and protective trim can prepare your home, doors and windows for snow, rain, sun and sub-zero temperatures; all of which can occur in a single day in Colorado. 

• Paint Protects Your Siding and Trim from Winter Storms

A fresh coat of paint looks amazing, but its primary purpose is actually to protect your home from damage. Looking great is just an extra benefit and one we often focus on the most. Paint has a higher purpose than making your home the jewel of the block. 

Paint seals your siding to prevent moisture from destroying the exterior of your home. It seals your siding, making it resistant to the insidious damage that hidden moisture causes to building materials. This is especially important in a Colorado winter, where snow stays piled up for weeks if the daytime sun doesn’t hit it. Melting snow has even more potential for destruction, as it runs off of surfaces to the ground. 

Paint also protects your home from harsh winter sunlight. UV rays don’t stop damaging your home in the winter. Colorado has a lot more sunshine than clouds and dry conditions coupled with UV rays can cause unprotected wood to dry out, splinter or split. This then creates new entrances for water, insects, mold and fungus to enter your home. AMC Painting uses paint with UV-resistant properties to boost the protective qualities of your paint job. 

• Fall Still Has Great Weather for Painting

Colorado fall weather offers mild temperatures to paint outside. When outdoor painting temperatures are too hot, new paint can dry too quickly. It needs at least four hours to properly bond to the surface. If it dries faster than the manufacturer recommendations, the chances of your paint peeling, chipping or cracking later on are high. 

Painting when it is too cold has similar consequences. Your paint can change color when it’s cold, blooming or clouding and ruining your intended final result. While this occurs more often with low-quality paint brands, it is still possible with higher quality brands like those used here at AMC Painting. Cold weather affects how your paint cures and bonds to the surface as well. A bad bond will leave your paint vulnerable to chipping and peeling, re-opening the potential for rot, mold and other damage. 

Fall is a good season for painting because it is milder in both temperature and temperament. The summer monsoons have come and gone and winter snows have not yet begun in earnest. The weather stays fairly dry throughout the months of autumn, giving your house painter more time to work and get your job done right. 

• Fall Is Less Busy

Speaking of your house painter, you may have noticed it’s a little harder to get that perfect appointment time that works for you in the summer. For all painters, summer is the most popular time of year to paint a home. If summer is really busy for you, you may be worried about getting your home painted before winter. Fortunately, we can always get our customers on the books. We can accommodate your schedule for a fall project so your home is ready for winter!

Fall offers more flexibility for homeowners who have stacked schedules. As noted above, that flexibility is only increased by fall’s mild temperatures and temperate weather. After all, more ideal days means more days we can schedule you for your exterior painting project. 

Can you paint a house in the winter instead? That’s a great question and one we get often here at AMC FoCo. The answer to that question is yes, but we do find many customers prefer not to start a winter house painting project right before the holiday season. And in consideration of the holidays… 

• Improve Curb Appeal for the Holidays

Improving curb appeal may not necessarily count as a tip for winterizing, but it is a really great reason to paint your home before winter. The winter holidays typically mean guests. If your home is the hub for family, visiting adult kids or all the neighborhood holiday parties, you want it to look its best. A new coat of paint can give your home a whole new look before the in-laws, cousins, friends and co-workers converge on your home for the holiday season.

It’s also worth noting that painting your home can improve your home’s chances of selling in the winter months. It’s common knowledge that selling a home in the winter is more difficult than spring or summer, even in the bustling Fort Collins’ real estate market. Keeping your home in like-new condition with new paint can improve your chances of snagging that winter shopper and getting the return on your investment you desire. 

Winterize Your Home with Exterior Paint!

We hope these helpful reasons will motivate you in preparing your house for winter. Paint offers so many protective benefits for your home with the temperature drops and the snow starts to fall. And remember, if you’re looking for house painting in Fort Collins, look no further than AMC Painting. We have the experience, the dedication and the attention to detail to get the job done right.