How Often Do I Need To Paint My Cedar Siding

Where you live the type of materials your house is made with and the quality of the materials you use for the project.
How often do i need to paint my cedar siding. Treating cedar with primer and paint. Otherwise i would not paint raw cedar siding as the pitch inside the wood is a natural preservative. This is a tough question to answer as every house is going to tell a different story. How often should fiber cement siding be painted kate b renton washington.
Cedar siding is very durable against the elements but still requires regular maintenance and depending on the climate should be restained every few years. How often you need to repaint the exterior of your home depends on a few variables. Lighter colors last longer since they reflect light more efficiently than darker colors. Should i replace or repair my cedar siding.
Still some homeowners may desire or feel the need for painting cedar siding. According to paul mackie at the western red cedar lumber association wrcla red cedar siding that has been finished on all six sides with a stain blocking primer and top coated with 100 percent exterior acrylic latex paint has the longest expected service life. The most damaging element to cedar siding is moisture. Your typical exterior paints being 100 acrylic is not meant for cedar siding where as a solid body paint stain is.
A stain or clear coating needs one or two finish coats depending on the cedar shake grade and whether you re applying a solid or semi transparent product. As each year passes we get more and more of these calls as houses built in the 70 s 80 s are experiencing siding failure. Any exposed wood is susceptible to the elements that cause mildew swelling splitting and cracking. The problem is many painting contractors do not approach painting cedar siding the right way.
Remove pollutants and remove failing paint. Cedar siding painting will only be successful if you have a clean slate. Depending on the quality of the paint you choose you could spend anywhere from 25 to 100 on just one gallon of paint and so if you. Paint is your best option for treating cedar if your only intent is protection.
Notice i keep using term paint stain in that a paint stain leaves a mil thickness on top acting like a paint but penetrates cedar also unlike a 100 acrylic exterior paint would not do. Paint s solids ward off light and light is the main contributor to the deterioration of cedar. On average a high quality 100 percent acrylic exterior house paint should last anywhere from five to 15 years on fiber cement that s properly primed at the factory as long as the paint was applied. Raw cedar also smells great and is a.
If your cedar siding is already painted it needs to be repainted when the old paint starts to crack or peel. We get calls every week from homeowners asking us about their cedar wood siding and if we can come take a look.