Every home should look good and feel comfortable. When it comes to looks, paint is the first thing people see. What’s more, paint is the first defense against elements such as harsh weather and pests. As such, experts at Benjamin Moore advise that your home’s paint should always be in the best condition.
But how do you know when it is time to repaint your home? Here are ten signs you should look out for.
- Fading
Paint fades over time owing to factors such as sun bleaching and water intrusion. Normally, dark hues tend to fade faster than light ones, but no paint looks good when faded. It takes several years for paint to fade, depending on its quality.
- Bubbling and cracking
You may observe small bubbles and/or cracks on the surface of your paint. These bubbles are rot and mold. They may also be caused by extreme weather such as storms, strong sunlight, sandy wind, and harsh winters. Bubbles and cracks on paint are uglier than fading, so they are a sure sign you need to repaint.
- Peeling
Peeling is perhaps the ultimate sign of the need to repaint. Paint is not supposed to peel off, but poor-quality paint eventually does. Other factors, such as exposure to strong sunlight and harsh winters, also contribute to peeling. When paint peels off, it makes your home look old and dilapidated, and it exposes the walls to damage from elements such as extreme weather.
- Chalking
Chalking is not always easily noticeable. To determine whether your home’s paint is chalking, you need to run your hand over the surface to feel its texture. If the paint leaves chalk residue and feels hard, then it is a sure sign that it is chalking.
Chalking is caused by years of exposure to harsh weather and other elements. It can be hazardous to your health and the environment, so you should consider repainting soon.
- Aging out
Different brands of paint have varying life expectancies. High-quality paints have a life expectancy of seven to ten years, while poor-quality paints last for less than five years. Normally, aging out is accompanied by other signs, such as bubbling and chalking, but they may not be profound. Nevertheless, you should repaint your home once the current paint ages out, as directed on the paint cans, to avoid complications.
- Morphing
You may not always get what you asked for with paint. Morphing is when paint fades and changes color entirely or in patches. For instance, beige often morphs to pink when exposed to sunlight even after only several weeks. Morphing only affects exterior painting, but some brands are designed to resist the effects of UV rays.
Morphing can be a beautiful or ugly transformation, and in the latter case, there is no option but to repaint.
- Hardened caulk
Your home expands and contracts every time the weather changes. Caulk is designed to expand and contract along with your home, but it eventually loses elasticity. Hardened caulk can damage your walls, so you should replace it regularly.
- New house
The age of your home matters when scheduling painting. A new house receives one layer of paint after construction to protect the walls. However, this single layer of paint is insufficient and has to be reinforced after about five years. As such, do the math, and if your house is about five years old, then schedule a repainting.
- Rotten wood
One of the uses of paint is to protect your home’s walls. As such, rotting wood is a sure sign of your current paint’s inefficacy and a good reason to repaint soon or experience more damage and greater expenses.
- Lack of appeal
The basic purpose of paint is an aesthetic appeal. The current paint of your home may have appealed to you in the past, but tastes and preferences change over time. Since your home is the best place you can call your own, you should ensure it suits you in every aspect. As such, consider redoing your paint if the current color no longer appeals to you. This is especially important for interior paint.
Go For the Best.
As explained, quality is an important determining factor in paint. Poor-quality paint may be cheap, but it is not durable, aesthetically appealing, or protective for your home’s walls. As such, you should use only top-quality paint: Benjamin Moore paint.
Benjamin Moore is one of the most respected paint brands in the world. It produces a wide range of paints including exterior and interior paints. Benjamin Moore paint is easily available, and if you are wondering where to buy Benjamin Moore paint, you can get directions to a store near you on the website; just click on the “Find a Store” tab.
Take the Initiative.
Choosing the ideal paint for your home is the first step of repainting. As such, visit the Benjamin Moore paint website to browse through the inventory of paints. You can also sign up for our newsletters to get news and educative guidelines on painting.
