[av_one_full first min_height=” vertical_alignment=” space=” custom_margin=” margin=’0px’ padding=’0px’ border=” border_color=” radius=’0px’ background_color=” src=” background_position=’top left’ background_repeat=’no-repeat’ animation=”] [av_heading heading=’Homeowners and Exterior Painting Contractors’ tag=’h2′ style=” size=” subheading_active=” subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”][/av_heading] [/av_one_full][av_hr class=’default’ height=’50’ shadow=’no-shadow’ position=’center’ custom_border=’av-border-thin’ custom_width=’50px’ custom_border_color=” custom_margin_top=’30px’ custom_margin_bottom=’30px’ icon_select=’yes’ custom_icon_color=” icon=’ue808′][av_textblock size=” font_color=’custom’ color=’#000000′] Is it too cold to paint? How cold is too cold? These are a few questions that homeowners ask, particularly those that have pushed repainting their exterior until the end of the year and those living in the Portland Oregon area. Jokes aside, cold temperatures do affect projects for exterior painting contractors and customers they work with. This blog focuses on equipping everyone with the best advise to help you make the best decision.

exterior house in the cold

Too Cold

At very low temps, paint will freeze. The point at which paint will freeze depends on the type of paint. Latex paint is water based so that means that it will freeze right around when water freezes, 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil-based paint which is thicker has a lower freezing point. The freezing point for this type of paint is around -4 degrees Fahrenheit. Sweet we can paint with oil-based paint anytime then, right? Actually, no. Even though the freezing point is that low, average cold temps still affect the paint. So exactly at what temperature are you still able to paint? The standard guideline and what most exterior painting contractors will say, is that above 50 degrees is still okay, the warmer the better though, to a certain extent. Painting below this guideline is highly not recommended, and should only be done if there is no other option, if your home simply cannot wait.

Effects of Cold Temperature

What can happen if you decide to paint in the cold?

  • First, the time it takes for the paint to dry is greatly affected. In warm temperatures, exterior painting contractors may be able to apply a second coat just after a few hours. In cold weather this time can be extended to 2 days. That would mean that you need to find a couple days of sun after you painted.
  • Another issue that may arise is poor color uniformity. This means that some areas may look slightly a different shade.
  • Also, water spotting can form. This is seen as streaks in paint, droplets, or brown spots on the film of the paint.
  • Improper film formation or cracking film.
  • These issues can all lead to poor protection by the paint.

Good exterior painting contractors need to be aware of these issues and be able to explain to homeowners the risks of painting in cold weather. Even better yet to advise against painting in cold weather and instead push the project to when the weather starts to warm.

Forced To Paint In The Cold

What if you don’t have another option but to paint during the winter? If this really is the case and you cannot move your project to the following year, here are a few ways this can be done.

  • One way to do this is to create a tent around the area that needs painting. You can accomplish this by using tarps to build a “fort” around the area. Then take a space heater of sorts and turn it on inside. This will heat up the air inside and allow better conditions to paint. The downside to this is that it will take a lot more time to paint the home. Setting this up area by area extends the project by a lot.
  • Another way to go about is adding additives to the paint. Floetrol is good for latex paint and Penetrol is good for oil-based paint. These additives help lower the freezing point of the paint and also to keep the paint from becoming to viscous.

I hope that this helped both exterior painting contractors and homeowners understand how cold temperatures affect painting. Again, it is recommended that you paint your exterior in the warm weather and not put it off until winter. Not only will the paint look much better on the house, but also have a longer life and better protection. This is why we repaint in the first place.[/av_textblock][av_one_full first min_height=” vertical_alignment=” space=” custom_margin=” margin=’0px’ padding=’0px’ border=” border_color=” radius=’0px’ background_color=” src=” background_position=’top left’ background_repeat=’no-repeat’ animation=”][av_textblock size=” font_color=” color=”]

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