Spring and summertime are the best seasons to make exterior repairs and renovations. Home exterior projects could include roofing, exterior walls, and shutters. While these projects you could do-it-yourself (DIY), there are mistakes you need to avoid at all costs.
Below are some of the most common home exterior mistakes to avoid so you save money, time, and effort.
1. Using The Incorrect Gutter Type And Material
Gutters have various materials, styles, and sizes with different advantages and drawbacks. Choosing the incorrect gutter type and material can be a nightmare. It’s crucial to pick the most durable material, like what you can find at easymerchant.co.uk.
Here are the most popular gutter materials:
- Plastic: Plastic gutters are high quality, economical, affordable, and have a high gloss exterior surface made from recycled material.
- Vinyl: Vinyl gutters are the most sought after because of their easy installation. However, they’re not a good choice for regions that experience cold climates due to the risk of the vinyl cracking.
- Aluminium: Aluminium gutters are lightweight and rustproof. However, they’re prone to bents and dents caused by tree branches and ladders.
- Stainless Steel: While stainless steel gutters are the most durable gutter option, their price is higher than other gutter materials.
2. Incorrectly Sizing Your Shutters
If you place shutters on windows without the proper width, it reduces the overall look of your home. You can fix this error by ensuring your measurements are correct or, if this is not the case, not installing them at all. Sometimes, it’s better to avoid installing complicated exterior elevations with multiple materials, such as shutters and bracket details.
3. Not Replacing Your House Siding
Siding protects houses from the elements. Natural disasters like storms or hail could cause cracks to develop and allow moisture, water, or pests to enter. Thus, your house’s siding could get damaged. It’s essential to tackle siding issues before they cause significant problems. While siding can last up to 20 years, you should plan to renew your siding every 10 to 15 years to retain the material’s effectiveness.
4. Installing Stone Veneers
While some prefer a natural aesthetic with grass and trees, others may find an industrial style more appeasing. If you’re an individual who’d prefer to add stone veneers to your exterior, be sure to learn the process thoroughly so it’s done correctly.
While you can design your exterior depending on your style and preference, there are important stone rules to follow for cohesiveness. Some tips on how to install stone veneers properly are:
- Install stone on your entire exterior but not on dormers and gables.
- Use stone only on the foundation with corners to run into. Failure to give a corner makes the stones looks fake and unnatural.
- Don’t do stone bump-outs. Concentrate on attaining a specific vernacular instead of integrating different stone materials and styles.
- Forgetting to Prep The Surface: Cleaning the wall exterior before applying paint allows the paint to firmly adhere to the surface. If you do not clean the exterior, dust and dirt build-up could muddle the paint job, and it could look unfinished. Experienced painters have tools, like a pressure washer, to remove wall stains, dirt, and grime.
- Using The Wrong Paint And Tools: Qualified painters know that each roll or brush has a specific finish. Soft brushes are used in applying finishes, while stiff brushes are perfect for attaining clean lines because they can hold more paint. In addition, soft paint rollers should be used on smooth surfaces. Oil-based and water-based paints are applicable for certain surfaces. Using the wrong paint or tools may ruin your exterior look and finish.
- Not Applying Primer: Similar to preparing your surface, primer, a base coat of paint often applied to ensure better adhesion of your final paint coat, is vital for a sleek, polished finish. Either not applying or forgetting to apply primer could lead to your paint peeling over time.
