Exterior painting · NH & ME
Exterior House Painting
Siding, trim, soffits, decks and railings — washed, scraped, primed and coated to hold up through a New England winter.
What does exterior house painting in New England involve?
J&B Drywall & Paint paints exteriors across New Hampshire and Maine: clapboard, cedar shingle, board and batten, engineered wood, painted aluminum and vinyl, plus trim, soffits, fascia, shutters, doors, porch ceilings, decks and railings. Every job is washed, scraped, recaulked, spot primed and given two coats of 100 percent acrylic.
An exterior paint job in New England is not judged the summer it goes on. It is judged after two winters of freeze and thaw, ice on the north side, and sun beating on the south wall. Paint fails early for one reason far more often than any other: it was applied over a surface that was not clean, dry, sound or primed. So most of our labor on the outside of a house happens before a finish coat is opened.
We paint clapboard, cedar shingle, board and batten, engineered wood siding, previously painted aluminum and vinyl, plus trim, fascia, rake boards, soffits, corner boards, window casings, shutters, doors, porch ceilings, decks, railings, and garages. We work on single family homes, condos and small multi-family buildings, and we schedule multi-family work in stages so tenants keep access.
Prep starts with washing. Every surface gets cleaned of dirt, chalked paint, pollen and mildew, because paint will not bond to any of that. Then we scrape loose and peeling paint, sand the edges of scraped areas so they do not read as ridges through the new coat, and spot-prime every bit of bare wood the same day it is exposed so it does not take on moisture overnight.
Then we deal with what the scraping revealed. Failed caulk at joints and around windows and doors comes out and gets replaced with a quality exterior elastomeric sealant. Soft, rotted trim gets flagged: minor spots can be filled with an exterior epoxy filler, but anything structurally gone needs to be replaced, and we will tell you honestly which one you have rather than painting over rot.
Application is dictated by weather, not by our schedule. We work inside the manufacturer's temperature window, which for most exterior acrylics means above 50 degrees and falling no lower overnight, we do not paint a surface that will be wet with dew before it can cure, and we follow the shade around the house instead of coating a wall in direct hot sun. That is why exterior work in this region runs roughly from late April into October, and why we will move a day rather than push a coat on in bad conditions.
For coatings we use 100 percent acrylic exterior paint, which stays flexible through the seasons instead of getting brittle and cracking. Bare or previously stained wood gets a bonding or oil-based primer depending on the substrate, tannin-heavy woods like cedar and redwood get a stain-blocking primer so bleed-through does not show up months later, and bare metal railings get a rust-inhibitive primer.
How the work is done
How should an exterior be prepped before paint goes on?
J&B Drywall & Paint walks every elevation and checks for moisture and rot, protects plants and hard surfaces, washes the whole house with a mildewcide and lets it dry fully, scrapes and sands failed paint, replaces failed caulk, primes every bare spot the same day it is exposed, then applies two acrylic coats following the shade.
- 01
Walk the house and check moisture
We look at every elevation, find where paint is failing and why, check for rot at the bottoms of trim and around windows, and identify gutter or flashing problems that are dumping water onto siding. Water problems get named before painting starts.
- 02
Protect the property
Plants, walkways, driveways, roofs, AC units and windows get covered. We set ladders and staging on protective pads and keep debris off the beds and lawn.
- 03
Wash everything
Full wash to remove dirt, chalk, mildew and pollen, with a mildewcide where growth is present. Then the house dries fully before anything else happens — usually a day, longer in humid weather.
- 04
Scrape, sand and repair
Loose and peeling paint is scraped, edges are sanded so the transition is smooth, failed caulk is cut out and replaced, and minor rot is filled with exterior epoxy. Significant rot is quoted as carpentry, not hidden.
- 05
Prime what needs priming
Every bare spot gets primed the same day it is exposed. Tannin-bleeding woods get stain-blocking primer, bare metal gets a rust inhibitor, and previously chalky surfaces get a bonding primer.
- 06
Two finish coats, working the shade
Two coats of 100 percent acrylic, applied in the manufacturer's temperature range, following the shade around the building and stopping in time for the last coat to cure before evening dew.
- 07
Final walkaround
We walk every elevation with you, look for holidays and thin spots, touch up, pull all masking, and clean the site so there is no paint on the driveway or chips in the beds.
What is included in an exterior painting estimate?
A J&B Drywall & Paint exterior estimate includes the full wash, scraping and sanding, replacing failed caulk, minor epoxy rot filling, spot and specialty priming, two coats of 100 percent acrylic on the listed surfaces, property protection, cleanup and a three month workmanship warranty. Siding replacement, roofing, gutters and lead abatement are excluded.
What is included
- Full exterior wash with mildewcide where needed
- Scraping, sanding and feathering of failed paint
- Cutting out and replacing failed exterior caulk at joints and openings
- Minor rot repair with exterior epoxy filler
- Spot priming all bare wood, plus stain-blocking and rust-inhibitive primer where required
- Two coats of 100 percent acrylic exterior paint on the surfaces in the scope
- Protection of plants, walkways, roofs, windows and mechanicals
- Daily cleanup, debris removal and a final walkaround with you
- Three month warranty on our workmanship
What is not included
- Replacing rotted siding, trim or sills — quoted separately as carpentry
- Roofing, gutter, flashing and window replacement
- Lead testing and abatement on homes built before 1978
- Vinyl or aluminum siding replacement
- Pressure washing that would damage siding — we clean at safe pressure
- Masonry repointing, and staining or sealing of natural stone
- Lift or boom rental on buildings that cannot be reached from ladders and staging, unless quoted
Typical timeline
How long does exterior painting take, and when can it be done?
A single story ranch takes 4 to 6 working days, a two story colonial takes 1 to 2 weeks, trim and doors alone take 2 to 4 days, and a deck with railings takes 2 to 3 days. Exterior season in New England runs late April through October, weather permitting.
- Single story ranch, siding and trim
- 4 to 6 days
- Two story colonial, full exterior
- 1 to 2 weeks
- Trim, doors and shutters only
- 2 to 4 days
- Deck and railings
- 2 to 3 days
- Season
- Late April through October, weather permitting
Pricing
How much does it cost to paint a house exterior in New England?
J&B Drywall & Paint prices exteriors on siding square footage and trim linear footage, then adjusts heavily for prep, so two identical houses can differ by thousands depending on how much paint has failed. Estimates are free and written and name every surface included; payment is 50% to schedule and 50% on completion.
Exterior work is priced on the square footage of siding and the linear footage of trim, then adjusted heavily for prep. Two identical houses can differ by thousands of dollars if one has sound paint and the other is peeling down to bare wood.
What raises the price: extensive scraping and bare wood, three stories or steep grade around the house, dormers and gable ends that need staging, a lot of window and trim detail, changing to a dramatically different color, rot repair, and any elevation that cannot be reached from ladders.
What lowers it: siding that is only dirty rather than failing, staying close to the existing color, doing siding and trim in the same visit, and scheduling in the shoulder season instead of the mid-summer peak.
The estimate lists every surface included by name — siding, trim, soffits, fascia, doors, shutters, railings — so there is no ambiguity about whether something is in the price. If prep turns out to be worse than what was visible from the ground, we stop, show you, and re-price before continuing.
Our work
Exterior jobs across NH and ME
The photos below are exterior painting jobs completed by J&B Drywall & Paint in New Hampshire and Maine, from single story ranches to a three story multi-family building painted on a staged schedule. All are our own job site photos. Select any photo to view it full size.
Questions we get
Common questions about exterior painting
Homeowners most often ask J&B Drywall & Paint what time of year exterior painting is possible in New England, how long the paint will last, whether the house gets power washed, what happens with pre-1978 lead paint, and whether vinyl and aluminum siding can be painted.
What time of year can exterior painting be done in New England?
Generally late April into October. Most exterior acrylics need surface and air temperatures above 50 degrees, and the temperature must not drop below that overnight while the coating cures. Late fall work is sometimes possible with the right product on a warm stretch, but we would rather schedule it right than gamble on a coat.
How long will the paint last?
With proper prep and two coats of 100 percent acrylic, expect roughly eight to twelve years on siding, and less on trim and any south or west facing wall that takes the most sun. Where paint fails early it is almost always because the surface was not clean, dry and primed, or because water is getting behind it from a gutter or flashing problem.
Do you power wash the house?
We wash it, at a pressure appropriate to the siding. High pressure can drive water behind clapboards and shingles and gouge soft wood, which creates a bigger problem than the dirt it removes. Cleaning solution plus controlled pressure gets the surface ready without doing damage.
My house was built before 1978. Does that matter?
Yes. Paint from that era can contain lead, and scraping or sanding it disturbs it. We do not test for or abate lead. If your home predates 1978 and the paint has not been tested, have it tested first; if it is positive, the work needs an EPA lead-safe certified contractor.
Can you paint vinyl or aluminum siding?
Aluminum, yes — it takes paint well once the chalking is washed off and a bonding primer is used. Vinyl can be painted, but only with a color rated as vinyl-safe, because a darker color absorbs heat and can warp the panels. We will tell you at the estimate whether the color you want is safe for your siding.
Free estimate
How do I get a written estimate?
Send the job details through this form and J&B Drywall & Paint replies the same day, then provides a free written estimate within 24 hours of the site visit. Payment is 50% to schedule the work and 50% on completion. Call (978) 805-8654 if it is urgent.