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More painting tips and buyer's guide
Siding Close to the Roof
Too often, builders install trim and siding right up against shingles and don’t bother to seal the ends of the boards. It looks good at first, but trim and siding—whether they’re wood or a manufactured material like hardboard—soak up moisture from the wet shingles and before long the paint peels.
The solution is to cut back the siding to leave about a 1-in. gap. This keeps the siding out of contact with the shingles and allows you to seal the ends so they won’t absorb moisture. Keep in mind that if the intersection of your roof and siding has been covered with roof cement (a thick, tarlike compound), you may have to deal with roof leaks as well. Chances are you’ll have to replace the metal flashing and some shingles after removing the cement. We won’t show that process here.
Begin by removing all the paint in the badly peeling area. While scraping, you might discover cracked or rotten siding that needs replacing. There’s no need to replace an entire board if only a section near the roof is damaged. Instead, cut off the damaged section with a hacksaw. Don’t install any new boards until you’ve cut back the bottom edge of the siding. See “A Board That Won’t Hold Paintm,”, for help with removing and replacing siding.
Cutting back siding is slow, tedious work. A backsaw or a dovetail saw with an offset handle is the best tool for the job ($10 at home centers and hardware stores). The fine teeth cut slowly but neatly, and the offset handle prevents scraped knuckles. Don’t cut all the way through the siding or you’ll risk dulling the saw teeth and damaging the metal flashing behind the siding. Instead, stop your cut 1/8 in. or so from the flashing and then finish up by making several passes with a sharp utility knife. But be careful—it’s possible to slice the flashing if you press too hard.
With the siding cut back, take the same steps we covered in “Wood Close to the Ground”: paintable water repellent followed by primer and two coats of paint on the faces and cut ends of the siding. At each step, use a disposable foam brush to coat the ends of the siding. Keep paint off your flashing and shingles with duct tape—masking tape may not stick to them very well.
Water Repellents Help Paint Last
Although seldom used, paintable water repellents have been proven to add years to the life of paint. Wood that stays dry holds paint longer. Repellents work by penetrating wood and sealing out moisture that works its way through the paint. Some repellents also contain preservatives that fight wood rot.
Here’s the catch: You have to remove all the paint so the repellent can soak in. Don’t apply repellent over old paint; the next coat won’t stick. Completely removing paint is slow work. But better paint performance reduces scraping in the future.
Water repellents cost $10 to $30 a gallon, a quantity that’s more than enough to treat all the vulnerable areas on a typical house. Most home centers and hardware and paint stores carry several water repellents, but check the labels carefully: Most water repellents are not paintable. If the label doesn’t say how long the product needs to dry before priming, assume it isn’t paintable. Wood that’s exposed to sunlight for more than a couple of weeks starts to degrade and won’t hold paint as well. So avoid repellents with drying times of more than two weeks.
Buyer’s GuideBehr No. 2-85 Waterproofing Sealer: (800) 854-0133. www.behr.com
Cuprinol Clear Deck Wood Seal: (800) 424-5837. www.cuprinol.com
Penofin Blue Label: (800) 736-6346. www.penofin.com
Woodlife Classic Clear Wood Preservative: (800) 556-7737. www.wolman.com
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