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Roof Painting Techniques At Your Fingertips

Whether tiled or corrugated, painting roof adds value to your home. Planning and preparation are two vital steps to get the job done. Following are the tips to follow for successful roof painting.

• Cleaning the roof is the first thing you should do before getting started. Some roofs look better than you think once the cleaning has been done.

• When painting make sure to be able to get down from the roof without having to walk over wet paint.

• Avoid painting on a windy day with an airless spray. In windy conditions, the paint can be carried a long way.

• Check the weather forecast before starting the roof painting project. You cannot paint when it is raining and also when it is too hot. So, better check the weather and start early when it is going to be hot.

• Choosing the right kind of roof paint is another important aspect of the project. You can choose from water based roof paints or oil based roof paints depending on what works best for you.

For long term performance of the roof, it is important to ensure that you have assigned the task to professional painters in Auckland. Do some research and background checks before hiring any painting contractor. With an expert painting contractor, you can enhance the overall look of your house.

If you wish to get roof painting done in your house, feel free to contact Citywide Decorators, the most reputed house painters in Auckland.

How To Go About Becoming A Painting Contractor?

So, you wish to become a painting contractor?

It should not be a difficult thing to achieve if you move in the right direction. The first thing about being a contractor is to gather as much information as you can about the industry and profession. Decide if you can handle the things that tag along with the painting profession.

If you have some experience in the industry, it’s a plus. You will need more than just the basic knowledge of using a brush and a roller to be able to become a good painting contractor. Remember, there are many painting contractors in Auckland to give you competition. To begin with, you can start reading books that could help a newbie paint contractor learn the necessary trick and techniques. This will give you only basic information but nothing can beat hands-on experience. These books are easily available in the market and are well worth the money. You will also have to go through the basic business management manual, marketing techniques and effective business planning rules for painting contractors. While you have gathered the know-how of painting, you can either choose to work individually or team up with a professional Auckland painter.

Having guided by professional Auckland painters is a wise move to gain experience. Once you are confident of your painting skills, you can showcase your experience to earn projects. This is important for any freelancer paint contractor.
Most importantly, you will have to be a real good painter to impress your clients. For any kind of painting job, kindly contact Citywide Decorators.

Need a Painting Expert in Auckland?

A large number of people take the route of house painting or office painting for giving a quick makeover. A fresh coat of paint changes the appearance of a space in an instant. This is why, it is considered as one of the most cost-effective ways to renovate any space. The benefits associated with painting can be best reaped when done by a professional. Auckland house painters with wide experience leverage their painting skills to achieve desired results for the customers.

That’s not all! A professional painting company can offer quality job at a reasonable price. They keep their operational costs to the minimum without compromising on quality. They offer quotation that includes everything from tools to be used to amount of time to be spent on each activity. There are no hidden charges and therefore, customers know exactly how much they will have to spend to complete the painting project.

Citywide Decorators based in Auckland is one of the most reputed painting companies for commercial and residential painting projects. We offer long term value to each and every project. Depending on the type of project and the specific needs of the clients, we prepare a plan that is best suited to the customer’s needs and budget.

We offer with a wide range of services, which includes Auckland commercial painting, residential painting, roof painting, and house/ commercial space pressure washing. To more about our services, please feel to contact us 021 30 8040/ 0800 766 344

Enhance the Look of Your Entryway with Interior Paint

If you want to make impression on visitors, work towards making your entryway inviting. While the exterior of the house is your home’s first impression, your entrance is a close second. You cannot make a house look inviting if the entrance is dull.

How can you update your entryway?

Wall paint is the ideal way to give your entryway a boost irrespective of its size. Wall colours should work well with the rest of your interior paint colours and flow nicely from your exterior house colour. The design and size of entryway varies from home to home. You can consider a dramatic change for a more welcoming space. While white is a safe colour, it may feel a little bleak depending on the rest of the decor. Deep gray or blue creates an inviting space. Deep, rich colours give a cosy feeling. Every colour uniquely defines the space you have. Take help of your painting expert for best advice on colour selection. Not only that, house painters in Auckland can help you give the right finish to the interior decoration project.

If your entryway is large with tall ceilings, you can play around with different colours than you could with a smaller area. Good combination of colours can make way for both peaceful and beautiful welcome. At Citywide Decorators, we carry out a wide range of house painting projects in Auckland. You can get all kinds of painting Auckland services from us.

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Water Blasting

We can get rid of that mould, moss and lichen fast! Call us now to give your home or building a new lease of life!

Choosing the Right Metal Roofing Colour

We understand the fact that choosing the perfect metal colour for the roof can swirl up your brains and leave you with a long list of questions. Thorough research can help you. Talk to friends, neighbors, roofing experts and also ask yourself what colour you’d like your home to have. For your assistance, here’s listing a few essential things to consider when choosing metal roof paint:

Quality Of The Paint – Check For More Than Just The Colour

Metal Roof Painting  Colouring the roofs is not an annual thing you will do, so the selection of the roofing colour specifically depends upon the quality of paint. Choosing a good quality roofing paint will ensure the colour stays sturdy and provide effective protective shield against natural threats and will give the house with a spanking new look for years. Acrylic paints that offer UV protection and have water resisting properties are recommended by roofing painters. Moreover, look out for other proactive features, so that the paint doesn’t fade, peel or cause water infiltration causing deposit rusting at the corners. Moreover, the paint can be made to last longer with different types of coatings or sealants.

Type of Home – Roof Colour Should Gel Well With the Exterior Colour Scheme

Besides the quality of paint, the style or designing of your house also plays a vital role in the selection of roof paint. The preferred selection of paint should match the exteriors of a house and should complement the colour of walls, doors, windows and other exteriors. As discussed earlier, the metal roof paint will stay for years, so the selection should be done with a longer perspective. We will recommend you to go for a colour that imparts a unified and balanced look to the house exterior. However, natural elements like foliage around the house and availability of natural sun light are some crucial factors that must be considered before the selection.

Type of Preferred Look – Shades You Select the Overall Appearance Of The House

Modern painting options allow you to select the best roof painting colour with endless possibilities and thus you can select the colour that protects the house well and provides it with elegant exterior. Nowadays, you can have the roofs painted in contemporary monochromatic colour schemes or give the house vintage look with a classical choice of colours. However, because metal roofs are generally designed from steel, aluminum or alloys, natural colours always add a special grace with an ultra modern look the house exterior. Moreover, colouring the metal roofs with lighter shades will make your house look taller, whereas opting for darker shades will make the house appear less overwhelmed.

Location of Your House – What Your Neighborhood Looks Like Will Matter

In order to make our house look the best we sometimes overdo with our paints and it ends up looking like a duckling among the swans. Therefore, the selection of roof paints should be precisely done according to the trending colours of your neighborhood. Other factors that can affect the shade of roof paint include the location of house and availability of sunlight it receives. For instance, if your house has an abundance of natural sunlight and heats up during the day, prefer lighter shades. However, if the house has a scarcity of sunlight, prefer using darker shades that absorb sunlight and help in maintaining the right room temperature for longer hours.

7 Tips for Picking the Correct Paint Colour for Your Home

Colour choices are certainly connected with your moods and feelings. Responding to colours is a natural human instinct for anyone, but the importance of colour is often underestimated. Colours can affect us subtly and significantly when we spend large amounts of time surrounded by them.

Below are 7 important tips for picking the right paint colour for your homes!

Experiment

To get started, shortlist your favorite colours and experiment within a small area. Paint test patches in different light source areas within bathrooms, on accent walls or areas between two rooms to see the way different light sources effect the colour.

Think About The Mood Setting

While selecting a suitable colour consider the mood setting of individual room. A bedroom setting should be calm, peaceful and soothing. Typically the soft, neutrals and cooler colours are ideal for a composed bedroom setting. Similarly, your dining area should feel appealing and socializing and as such warmer colours and brighter contrasts should be chosen for creating an ideal social ambiance. However, for a formal setting deeper-blues, or greys and neutrals should be opted.

Lighting is Important

Stronger colours like red can produce a vibrant statement when applied on feature walls behind fire surrounds or beds. Vibrant colours can also become overpowering if used in areas with a powerful light source. So always consider your lighting options whilst selecting a favorable colour contrast.

Get aquanted with Colour Terms

Understanding colour terminology is very important. For example, hue is refers to any colour eg. blue is a hue, red is a hue and so on. Colour hue refers to the pure colour, one that doesn’t have shade or tint (No added white or black). Hue saturation refers to the dominance of the hue and intensity of colour which increases its brilliance.

Test Your Colour Choice

You don’t need to stick to traditional colour combinations. Go on, get out of your comfort zone and test different combinations. Getting outside your comfort zone with colours that you wouldn’t normally choose can give you a great end result which you will love.

Add Depth With Unique Finishes

Transform the dull walls of your apartment into appealing and interesting spaces by adding either dramatic or subtle paint effects. Layered colour glazes or glistening metal or mineral finishes are typically used for adding depth to walls. Reflective metal paint effects include copper, mica, pewter, antiqued gold/silver and bronze.

Follow The Colour Wheel

The colour wheel is one amazing reference tool which can be used effectively for colour selection. Example green and red (two contrasting but intense colours), when used together can result in a very neutral colour. The colour wheel can also be used for measuring visual temperature of colours.

Using Mold Resistant Paints: What You Should Know Beforehand

There are several brands of mildew resistant house paint available in the market today. Most of them are effective in discouraging the growth of mold, but none of them can kill it completely. Painting over mold is not recommended at all in any situation; even painting with mold resistant paint over the mold is a wasted effort. Any mold resistant paint will be most effective if applied to a clean mold free surface. It will prevent the mold from spreading further and will get the mould situation under control and prevent paint film flaking.

Advanatges of using Mold Resistant Paint

Mold resistant paint restricts the growth of mildew, lichens and mold on the paint surface. Mold can discolor the paint film surface and make your paint finish look unsightly. It feeds on the paint surface and slowly weakens the structure from inside. It can cause health problems like sinus, asthma, pneumonia and inflammation of the lungs. People have also reported symptoms like sore throats, migraines, coughing and headaches. When left un-checked it can lead to chronic problems like rashes, depressions and pain in the joints. A mildew resistant paint can protect your family from all of these problems.

Where to Use Mold Resistant Paint

Mold resistant paint is recommended for areas that are moisture prone, like kitchens, washrooms, balconies and basements. They also seem to re-occur in areas that had instances’ of mold. Before applying paint your painter should be ensured that the surface is free of mold, clean and absolutely dry. When using a primer, allow it to dry completely before painting over it.

Choosing the Correct Paint

Mold resistant paints contain a custom designed anti microbial composition that prevents the growth of molds on surfaces that are painted. They are easily available and your painter should be able to obtain a paint product with it already premixed or they can add an additive to the paint. They can be bought in almost any color shop in Auckland. When your painter is choosing paint he should make sure that it has the mold growth preventing chemicals premixed into it or just add an additive to the paint mix. Always consult a professional painter before looking to paint of areas with mold and mildew. A good paint service company will be able to assess the situation and advise you correctly on how to handle the problem at no additional cost to you. You should get a professional to assess your needs first.

Three essential Steps

The following three steps need to be followed when painting your surfaces with mold resistant paint-

  1. 1. Locate the Mold – Identify all the areas in detail that are infected with mold. Ignoring even a little bit will result in it growing back quickly.
  2. 2. Gather your supplies – Call a professional and have your area assesses and consults him on the supplies that he will require in order to complete the paint job.

Prepare the work area – Clear the area of all furniture or personal belongings or cover them with a heavy plastic sheet, to prevent contamination.
After these steps are completed you can now go ahead and apply the surface with a mold resistant paint.

Reasons Why Your House Paint Failed on Wooden Surfaces

The exterior of your home gets hit from extremes in weather and house movement. These factors together take a toll on the paint coatings which can affect the lifespan of a new paint job.Typically these two main factors can cause premature paint failure – environmental factors and the quality of the paint job.

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As environmental factors are beyond our control, you’ll need to employ a painter who will make sure that the surface to be painted is prepared properly so that the paint film holds its integrity.

Below are the most common reasons for a paint film failure –

Wet Timber

Timber surface is damp or wet. Make sure that the wood surface has sufficient time to dry out preferably give it time to dry on a hot sunny day. However, if wood is saturated, it will require several sunny days together to dry completely.

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Unfinished Timber Exposed To Several Months Of Rain and Sun Before Painting

Continuous rain and sun exposure can degrade an unfinished wood surface; as a result wood can lose its capacity to hold a paint film. If unfinished wood has been exposed to rain and sunlight for more than 6 months simply wash its surface to remove any soft layers of degraded wood prior to priming.

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Painting Timber in Extremely Cold Temperatures

Oil based paints should only be applied when the temperature is 5°C or above, while the latex paints require a temperature of 10°C and above. Weather conditions should remain constant or above these temperatures for a minimum of 24 hrs after these paints have been applied to allow them to dry off completely.

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Timber was Either Too Hot When Painted or Heated Very Soon after Painting

Do not paint in temperatures 40°C and above. Painting in extremes of temperature can ultimately result in temperature blisters. The best technique for house painting is to follow the directions of the sun. Mark the east side of your house to be painted late in the morning, followed by the south direction to be painted in the middle of the afternoon and ultimately the west side in the last part of afternoon. You can paint the north side of your house any time of the day.

Temperature suitable for painting

Painting Timber in A Humid Weather

The correct procedure for water based paints to cure is to allow the water to evaporate faster than the remaining solvents. It is only after the water has evaporated completely that the paint film shrinks into its final shape. Finally after the solvents evaporate, the chemical reactions in the paint cause it to form a hard material.But water fails to evaporate in humid weather conditions this can cause the solvents to evaporate before the water. This can cause the paint to cure with moisture trapped inside – causing permanent damage.Humid weather conditions also prove to cause havoc when using oil-based paints.

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Pressure Wash Your Dwelling before Repainting it

No! Cleaning with a garden hose will not do. A pressure wash is essentially required to get the optimum cleaning results for the exteriors of your home. Power washing removes all dirt and accumulated matter from the exterior of your home. A clean surface will have more adhesive power in regards to paint film than a dirty one. The bond between the paint and the surface will be stronger and more resistant to the weather elements.
Let’s have a look at pressure washing of your exterior before painting in more detail.

What’s the Cost of Pressure Washing

Power washers are expensive, so in most instances hiring a professional is best. Look out for house washers agency that will be willing to give you a detailed quote to do your job. The small cost of hiring a professional can actually save you a lot of money and improve the longevity of your paint job.
Power Washers

Will a Garden Hose Do?

A simple garden hose will not be able to remove the dirt that has etched onto old paint and has now baked on firmly due to weather conditions. Most people cannot achieve the level of cleanliness that is seen when a house is cleaned by a power washer or by a professional cleaner. Areas that are prone to pollen will have a tough time getting the pollen off the walls with a hose. A pollen coated surface will make the paint peel and will also cause the paint to crack in a very short period of time.
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Washing Weatherboards and Timber Is Very Important

Weatherboards need to be cleaned thoroughly before making plans to apply a new paint coat. The point of pressure cleaning weatherboards is to remove the dirt and wash it. It does not mean stripping the paint from the weatherboards at high pressure. Stripping is a separate step that can be followed after the cleaning is complete.
pressure-washing-Lynchburg1

Interior Walls and Ceiling

It is important to know the dangers of using a pressure washer before using it on your property. The two common damages that can occur are-

1-Etching

If not used properly power washers can cut the underlying brick and the cement layer or damage timber. The jet spray can be so strong that it can cause permanent damage to cedar and vinyl timbers. The best way to avoid this is to always stand far enough of the wall to reduce pressure. One meter away is a good distance to maintain. When spraying at close ranges the setting should be on medium pressure.

2- Injecting

When spraying soft timbers ensure that the pressure is low. If the pressure is high it can penetrate deep below the timber and can damage it forever. Also care should be taken to avoid water from entering vents, heating exhausts and other open spaces like doors and windows. If used incorrectly the seals of window frames can be damaged.
Pressure Washing