Can you paint vinyl siding?

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Restoring Faded Vinyl Siding

Vinyl siding was introduced as an exterior product in the 1950s, and it has improved a lot since then. However, just like traditional house paint, it is not immune to Mother Nature. After years of facing harsh New England winters and direct summer sun, the factory color will oxidize, chalk, and fade.

Homeowners often ask us: “Can vinyl siding be painted, or do I have to replace it?”

The good news is that yes, you can absolutely paint vinyl siding. Painting is a highly cost-effective way to bring a tired exterior back to life without the massive expense of a full siding replacement. However, there is one critical rule you must follow to avoid ruining your home.

The Golden Rule of Painting Vinyl: Beware of Dark Colors

Standard vinyl siding is designed to reflect a certain amount of heat. If you take a light-colored vinyl house (like pale yellow or white) and paint it a dark color (like navy blue or dark gray) using standard paint, the dark color will absorb the sun’s heat. This will literally cause your vinyl siding to buckle, warp, and melt off the side of your house.

To safely paint vinyl, you must do two things:

  1. Use Vinyl-Safe Paint: You must use premium paints specifically formulated with “vinyl-safe” technology, such as Sherwin-Williams Emerald® or Benjamin Moore Regal® Select Revive®.
  2. Check the Light Reflectance Value (LRV): Your new color must have an LRV similar to or lighter than the original siding color, unless you are using a specifically engineered vinyl-safe color palette.

The Painting Process

Because the surface preparation and spray application process for vinyl is nearly identical to how we treat metal siding, we use the exact same rigorous prep methods. It requires a thorough chemical soft-wash to remove chalking, followed by a flawless spray application.

To see exactly how we prep and spray these surfaces to guarantee a factory-like finish, read our full step-by-step Aluminum & Vinyl Siding Painting guide here.

Need Your Connecticut Home Painted?

With 22 years of exterior painting experience, E D Painting knows exactly which products will keep your siding safe and looking brand new for years to come. If you live in West Hartford, Simsbury, Farmington, or the surrounding towns, contact us today for a free estimate!

Exterior house painting ideas

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One very simple exterior house painting idea is white. Believe it or not 40% of the residential exteriors are white and in my opinion they look pretty good.

Start with a color you like and try to work a color scheme around that. Maybe you’ve seen a house that you like in your area, you can stop by and talk to the owners about the color scheme. Most of the time they will be pleased that someone likes the color on their house so much that want to paint their house with the same color.

Another great idea is to look in the charts with color combinations that paint stores offer. Those combinations are put together by professional decorators and always work great.

Other exterior house painting ideas involve whether you plan to live on that house for a long time or if you plan to sell your house in the near future. If you plan to sell your house you might consider using a neutral color. Something that will look pleasant to most people.

Another idea is to ask your your painter. House painters see many different types of homes and generally have a pretty good idea on what might work for a particular type of house.

Getting rid of paint smell

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Today’s question comes from Aaren. Aaren asks:

Hi hope you can help! My daughter’s room will not stop smelling. In fact, I challenged Olympic Paint and Lowe’s – going back and forth until we settled. KILZ and another coat of paint reproduced the original smell! Olympic even paid a professional to do all that work for us. The second coat of Premium One water based latex interior paint still smells. We have 2 air purifiers and had our windows opens for a week while painting and for 12 days afterward. …. As of today however we are dealing with a smell from Friday. It’s awful and I’m afraid to let my daughter sleep in there (although she has for two nights). WHAT can I do to make it go away. The room seems like it’s cursed. No other room in our house ever smelled like this… Please help with ideas of what to do. How long is this supposed to last. The smell is like a sweet, clay smell. It doesn’t really smell like paint at all. We even crawled into the attic to check for smell and it wasn’t present. We tried sprays, onions, vinegar, steam cleaning. Everything. Your advice would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks. Aaren

The E D Painting Expert Answer 

Hi Aaren. When we first answered this years ago, it was a rare issue, but over our 22 years in the painting industry, we’ve seen this exact scenario pop up a few times. That “sweet, clay-like” or sometimes “sour” smell that lingers for weeks is incredibly frustrating.

Based on your description, you are likely dealing with one of two specific issues:

1. “Sour Paint” (Bacterial Contamination) Water-based latex paints can actually “go bad.” If bacteria get into the paint at the factory or the store, it starts a reaction that smells exactly like sour milk, clay, or dirty socks. Unfortunately, no amount of air purifiers or open windows will cure this, because the smell is baked right into the dried film on the wall.

2. The “Wall Odor Phenomenon” Sometimes, the chemicals in new low-VOC water-based paints react with the invisible residues left on the wall from older paints, creating a chemical off-gassing that smells sweet and pungent.

Here is the problem: you mentioned the professionals applied a coat of KILZ. If they used a water-based latex KILZ primer, it will not block the odor. Water-based primers allow the smell to breathe right through them.

How to Fix the Lingering Paint Smell

To permanently kill this odor and make the room safe for your daughter, you have to seal the wall so the smell cannot escape. Here is the professional procedure:

  1. Dehumidify the Room: Close the windows. High humidity (especially if you live in a humid area like we do here in New England) keeps the paint pores open. Run a strong dehumidifier for 48 hours to pull all the moisture out of the walls.
  2. Seal with BIN Shellac-Based Primer: You need to apply a coat of Zinsser B-I-N Shellac-Based Primer (or a heavy-duty oil-based stain blocker). Shellac is what professionals use to seal in heavy smoke damage and severe odors. It creates an impermeable barrier that the clay smell cannot penetrate. Note: Shellac has a very strong alcohol smell when applying, but it dissipates completely once dry. Do not use a water-based primer here.
  3. Apply Your Final Topcoat: Once the Shellac is 100% dry and the room is aired out, apply a fresh coat of high-quality, premium acrylic paint. (If you aren’t comfortable doing this yourself, our residential painting services handle this exact process safely).

Need Professional Painting Help in Hartford County, CT?

Fixing a botched paint job or dealing with mysterious wall odors can be a nightmare. If you are located in our service area of West Hartford, Farmington, Avon, or the greater Farmington Valley, you don’t have to tackle this alone.

With over two decades of experience, E D Painting knows how to prep, prime, and paint your home correctly the first time. Give us a call at (860) 989-6517 or request a free consultation online!