When to Repaint a House

Jim O’Malley is the owner of Villa Painting & Restoration in Nashua, New Hampshire. Villa Painting has been in business since 1996, and it also offers deck restoration and repair work, as well as pressure washing. One of the primary services provided by Jim O’Malley’s company is exterior house painting.

Paint is essential for a house for two key reasons. The first is that the exterior paint on your house serves as a protective layer against the elements. It helps to ward off the effects of direct sunlight, hard rain, humidity, and other types of weather. The second reason is aesthetics. A nicely painted house simply looks better. This is an important consideration when taking into account the market value of a house.

Estimates on when to repaint a house can range from as little as four years to as high as 15. One sign that it is time to repaint is the presence of any bubbling or peeling paint — or indications of mold or rot. If the paint on a house is fading — especially to the point that the color has changed — it’s time to repaint. Flaking paint is a definite indicator that a repaint is in order.

Beyond signs of the paint’s deterioration, most houses should be repainted every seven years or so. Coastal houses and houses that are exposed to extreme climates may need to be repainted more often. Houses sided with concrete fiberboard may go as long as 15 years without repainting. Houses with aluminum siding can go five years between painting without problems, while wood houses should be repainted every three to five years to ensure complete protection of the wood underneath.