5 Common Paint Problems
There’s nothing nicer than a new paint job to make your home look polished. Unfortunately, over time your house can develop paint problems. To keep your house paint looking like new for a long time, be sure to use thorough preparation before painting begins and remember all paint jobs require regular maintenance.
Let’s take a look at the 5 most common paint problems along with their probable cause and how to fix them.
1) Peeling
What Causes Peeling Paint?- Peeling occurs with the loss of adhesion between a coating and the substrate which can happen over time. An overabundance of moisture, improper surface preparation, using poor quality materials, painting over a dirty or uneven surface, and applying latex paint over oil paint are all things that lead to peeling paint.
How to fix it - To fix exterior peeling paint, you need to thoroughly scrape off all loose paint before repainting. For this, you should use a scraper to remove the paint, a wire brush to sweep away remaining debris, and fine-grit sandpaper to smooth away the surface. You want to have a clean, dry, smooth surface to then prime and repaint.
2. Chalking
What Causes Chalking Paint? Some amount of chalking - a fine powder on the surface - can be normal but there should never be excessive amounts of chalking coming from the painted surface.
Cheap paints which contain high levels of pigment extenders, or paints that have been over-thinned, can cause chalking to occur. Additionally, if you do not seal a porous surface properly before painting, chalking will appear.
How To Fix It - To remove existing chalking, start by scrubbing with a trisodium phosphate cleaning solution, then rinse with water. Afterward, be sure to give the area ample time to dry and use high-quality latex paint to do the repainting.
3) Blistering
What Causes Blistering Paint? - Blistering is simply small bubbles under the paint film. Usually wooden sidings and trim are the most likely to suffer from blistering. Blistering is usually caused by trapped water. Either the water dries quickly, leaving a hollow space, or trapped moisture expands the paint film. This could be caused by direct sunlight, heavy dew or rainfall, or very high humidity. Painting on a damp, dirty, or hot surface - or applying oil-based latex paint over improperly prepared surfaces – can result in blistering.
How To Fix It - To fix blistering correctly you must start over. Scrape and sand smooth the entire area before priming and repainting. If you have blistering on only a few clapboards it’s still a good idea to prepare and repaint the entire area as the blistering could happen on the surrounding surface in the near future. To prevent blistering, avoid painting in high humidity, under the direct hot summer sun, or when it’s raining.
4) Mildew
What Causes Mildew? - Mildew is a fungus that grows on the paint film or chalk. It grows in areas that get a lot of moisture, are poorly ventilated, or lacks direct sunlight. Additionally, low-quality acrylic or oil-based alkyd paints are at high risk of attracting mildew.
How To Fit It - Use household bleach solutions to scrub the mildew from the surface. Rinse the area with clean water and wash it with detergent to get rid of the mildew. Using top-quality acrylic paint will help to protect against mildew.
5) Mud Cracking
What Causes Mud Cracking? - Mud cracking refers to thick, irregular cracks in your paint film with the appearance of cracked mud. If you apply paint too thickly to cover up a porous surface, there’s a good chance you’ll face mud cracking; and using low-grade paint only adds to the problem.
How To Fix It- First, remove the affected coating by thoroughly scraping & sanding. Then apply primer coat and repaint. Using an excellent quality paint is important here. Low-quality alkyd, oil-based ordinary paint tends to mud-crack more often. Quality acrylic paint has a high TSS (total suspended solids) content, and as a result, will reduce the risk of mud cracking.
To avoid painting problems, try to use high-quality paints and hire professional painters from reputable companies like Cobb Brothers, who have the experience to correct and avoid these common paint problems.