Painting the exterior of your own home is a manageable DIY task. However, you may have some struggles or difficulties at certain times throughout the process. If you know what to do and how to troubleshoot these problems, you can get back on track quickly and still get good painting results. So, take a look at some troubleshooting tips for common exterior house painting issues, below.

Problem: The old color is showing through.

If the old color is showing through your new paint, stop what you're doing and let the paint that you have already applied dry. Then, paint over the entire home, including the sections you've already painted, with a good-quality exterior primer. Look for one that is marketed as "color masking" or "color sealing." This primer will form a barrier between the old paint and the new paint so you don't get that same color show-through effect.

Problem: The paint is not getting into little divots.

By the time the siding needs to be repainted, it tends to have some dings and dents in it. If you're just painting with a roller, you may notice that the paint does not settle into these little divots very well. There are two ways to troubleshoot this. You can keep a small paintbrush with you and use it to touch up the areas where the paint did not cover. Or, you can switch to a roller with a longer nap. The longer nap of the roller will "squish" into those little divots for more complete coverage.

Problem: Your paint is not drying.

Paint should feel dry to the touch within an hour or so. If yours is taking much longer than this to dry, then it may be too humid outside for the paint to dry effectively. Stop painting, and wait until a day when the humidity levels are lower. You could also try applying the paint in thinner layers. Let the first full layer dry completely before applying a new one, even if that takes a whole day. With thinner layers, you won't get as many drips or as much bubbling, even if the paint does not dry as quickly as it should.

Now that you know how to solve these common issues, you should be better prepared to paint the exterior of your own home. Rest assured that if you ever start to feel in over your head, there are professional painters you can hire to do this work for you. 

For more info about exterior house painting, contact a local company.