Your home is your most prized possession. So, it only makes sense that you want to avoid mistakes when doing any type of renovation. Especially when it comes to painting stucco.
If you’re not familiar with painting stucco, then things can get a bit challenging – and mistakes can occur. These mistakes can cost you time, money, and many headaches in the long run.
You want to get the job done right the first time, to avoid damages or having to re-do it in the future.
Stucco looks amazing when it’s done properly, but painting it is another story.
To ensure your stucco looks its best, we’ve compiled a list of 5 mistakes you want to avoid when painting with stucco:
1) Not Preparing The Surfaces Before Painting Stucco
Before you bring out the stucco it’s imperative you’ve thoroughly examined the walls (or wherever you’re painting) for cracks, peeling, and even dust or dirt.
If the stucco is in good condition, you can get away with just giving it a good clean with a pressure washer. If it’s not in good condition and has cracks or is peeling, you’ll need to do repairs before you paint.
Not preparing the surfaces you’re about to paint is only asking for trouble.
2) Purchasing The Wrong Materials
We’re talking about your home here. Don’t go for the cheapest option when it comes to the kind of paint you purchase.
Quality paint will make all the difference. Choosing the wrong type of paint can be disastrous.
They make many different paints for different projects, so make sure to speak to a professional before picking up the paint for your stucco job.
3) Bad Timing
Like many things in life, timing is everything.
If your stucco is new, you must wait until it’s had a chance to cure. Especially if it’s wet, it needs time to properly dry. Although the curing process can take time, it’s a critical part of the process and an absolute necessity, before you paint. Usually, you’ll need to leave the stucco to cure for ten days to two weeks before any painting can happen.
This will be an extremely expensive mistake if you rush it.
4) Not Spraying The Stucco
Depending on your style of stucco it can be extremely difficult to paint with a brush and roller. There can be many crevices’ to get the paint into. The best way is to tape all adjacent surfaces off with paper or poly plastic. Then spray painting the stucco will be much easier and faster to make sure there is a complete coating on all exposed surfaces.
5)Attempting To Do It Yourself
Painting stucco is no easy task, let’s face it.
For the most part, this is something we should leave to the experts. You wouldn’t ask your neighbor to perform heart surgery, and you shouldn’t risk making potentially devastating mistakes by making this a ‘DIY’ job, or having someone who’s not qualified to do the job
Final Thoughts
Stucco is one of those things that can be tricky, especially when it comes time to paint it.
You always want to ensure that the stucco is crack-free (and if it\’s not, repair it), and make sure it\’s cleansed properly.
Invest in quality supplies, and you’ll have quality work when you’re done. This includes primer. This will give you a beautiful first coat of paint that will make all the difference in the long-run.
And finally, consult an expert in painting stucco.
What mistakes have you encountered when you tried to paint stucco?