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Pick the right paint
Stumped by the wide variety of paints on the store shelf? You’re not alone. Whether you’re out to paint your whole house or simply touch up the back fence, selecting the best exterior paint or stain for the job can be confusing. No one type of paint or stain is best for all surfaces, especially on the exterior where it takes a beating from the weather. (Check out the best temperature to paint outside.)
We’ll list the common exterior painting tasks and then recommend the best exterior paint or finish for the job. But keep in mind that certain materials or weather conditions may warrant different choices, especially when painting over old coatings. Talk to the staff at a local full-service paint store for additional advice or use an exterior paint calculator. Like the look of worn, antique wood? Check out our guide to outdoor wood stain.
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Bare wood
Primers fill the pores in wood and form a good adhesion base for topcoats. They’re lightly pigmented to help the topcoats cover better. Here’s more on how to pick primers and how to use primer.
Oil-based (alkyd) primers are the old favorite, but high-quality acrylic latex primers are now available and a popular choice of many pros. Both work well. In either case, be sure to buy a quality product and spread it to the proper thickness. Better primers are more expensive. Read the directions on the label to determine the ideal application thickness. A common mistake is applying it too thinly, like a wash, rather than as a regular coat.
When priming cedar or redwood, use an alkyd primer or a stain-blocking acrylic latex primer. Cedar and redwood have water-soluble tannins in their heartwood that, when moist, will leach out and “bleed” through the topcoats, leaving dark, ugly stains. Alkyds and stain-blocking acrylics bind the tannins and hold them in the primer. Buy a brand from a dealer who will guarantee the product’s performance.
Knots can also bleed through the topcoats. To prevent this problem, double-prime them. First prime just the knots with the alkyd or stain-blocking acrylic primer or pigmented shellac (such as BIN). Let the primer dry, and then prime the entire wood surface.
TIP: Choose your paint first, then read the label and buy the primer recommended by the manufacturer. Some paints perform best when used with the same brand of primer.
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