With Canada’s often harsh climate, buildings show the adverse affects of our cold winters and hot summers, making the best paint jobs look aged and worn out sooner than more stable climates. Common signs of weather damage are: cracked and peeling paint, fading, water damage, mold, wood rot and even damage to the surface underneath the paint.

The key to beautiful exterior paint jobs is always surface preparation. There are three steps to a good surface prep job:

• Clean the surface using soapy water for siding or a pressure washer for bricks and masonry
• Remove any loose paint, fill and sand smooth on surface to be painted
• Prime and seal surfaces with the appropriate prime

Once the substrate is cleaned, repaired of any damage and primed the finishing coats are carefully applied using a brush and roller or spray equipment. With today’s technologies, exterior paints and stains are always being reformulated and refined to make them more durable, colourfast and eco-friendly.

Traditionally, because of our climate and its extremities, oil paint has been the first choice of Winnipeg painters due to its durability outside. While oil (or alkyd as it is often called) is a good candidate for exteriors, it is not particularly good for the environment. The fumes from the paint release harmful vapors called VOCs into the atmosphere. Cleaning tools used with oil paints requires solvents which are also harmful in the air we breathe and in our water.