How Mold and Mildew Play a Role in Your Home’s Curb Appeal

June 18, 2021

Whether it is in an online listing or the view from the street, curb appeal is the first impression your house makes on a prospective buyer, so your home’s exterior must be in top shape. While it is perfectly natural to see some mold and mildew on your home’s exterior– especially in New England and other coastal areas– these seemingly innocent flaws can lead to significant damage.

If you’re looking to sell your home or just want to maintain a pristine property, here is what you need to know about how mold and mildew play a role in your home’s curb appeal.

How Mold and Mildew Impact Your Home

Appearance

First and foremost, mold and mildew are unsightly. Mold on a home’s exterior can mask the true beauty of your home’s exterior and give the impression that you have not tended to the needs of your home.

Even if your home’s interior is carefully curated and beautiful, seeing a home with mold or mildew on its exterior may lead your potential buyers to believe that there are other areas of the home that have been neglected. This could leave them with a lower opinion of the home overall. This prospective buyer will likely offer a lower amount on your home or pass it up entirely.

Damage

Aside from the obvious issue of mold and mildew’s unsightly appearance, these elements can also lead to significant damage to your exterior. Mold and mildew are corrosive elements that eat away at your home’s exterior materials.

Wood can be significantly affected by mold. As wood traps moisture, it will bend and warp, entirely losing its shape. Not only can wood come loose from siding, but it may also become entirely unusable and lead to expensive residing for your home.

Additionally, when mold and mildew eat away at your home’s siding, aesthetic problems can quickly become a security issue. When doors or windows degrade, you may find that doors do not shut entirely, and windows do not seal completely. At best, drafty doors and windows could increase your heating or cooling bills. At worst, the exterior damage caused by mold and mildew could leave your doors and windows vulnerable to a break-in.

Mitigating Mold and Mildew

Trying to rid your home of mold and mildew yourself may be a lost cause. Mildew clings to crevices and texture on your home’s exterior, which can make it impossible to clear away with a high-pressure nozzle on a standard garden hose.

To properly take care of your home’s exterior when it has mold or mildew is through surface restoration with a sandblasting service. Sandblasting and other forms of media blasting are the only abrasive cleaning methods strong enough to clear away mold and mildew from your exterior paint and reveal a clean surface, good as new for any prospective buyer.

With the right cleaning services, you may even avoid house painting from your local paint contractor.

Mildew Mitigation in Rhode Island

Contact ELCO Painting Today!

No one likes to see mold and mildew on their home, so it is critical to hire the right people to take care of these dangerous elements before they create significant problems for your home. Whether you need to make major changes or take care of cleaning issues like mold on your siding, ELCO Painting is ready to meet your property’s unique needs.

We offer home painting services and services for commercial and industrial buildings in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Southern Massachusetts. We have the tools and professionals to get the job done. Check us out online or call us today at 401-329-0910 to experience the ELCO difference!

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Project Spotlight: Sandblasting a Historic Mill Building in Chelsea, MA

September 29, 2025

Like many historic mills in New England , this building carried the weight of decades: peeling paint, dust, grime, and coatings that had long since lost their integrity. Ceilings, brick walls, and wood columns were all hidden beneath layers of paint that dulled the building’s original character. Simply painting over the old surfaces wasn’t an option. To get it ready for renovation, and its next phase of life as modern apartments, the space needed to be stripped back to its bones, restored, and sealed. That’s where our specialized sandblasting services came in. The Process: Sandblasting, Step by Step Sandblasting is as much about precision as it is about power. For this project, we worked floor by floor over three levels, using specialized equipment to remove years of buildup. Protecting the space. Before blasting, we set up containment to control dust and debris, ensuring the process stayed safe and efficient. Stripping surfaces. Using the right abrasive medium and calibrated pressure, we blasted away paint from the ceilings, brick, and wooden support columns. The goal wasn’t to erase history but to reveal it; to uncover the original materials while preserving their integrity. Revealing character. Once stripped, the natural beauty of the brick and timber shone through, showing off the craftsmanship that had been hidden for years. It never gets old!

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Rhode Island weather doesn’t go easy on buildings. Between salty winters, humid summers, and everything in between, your commercial property’s exterior is working overtime just to keep up appearances. That’s why we put together this seasonal checklist to help you stay ahead of the wear and tear. Whether you manage a restaurant, retail storefront, office building, or high-traffic hospitality space, staying proactive with exterior maintenance protects your investment, boosts curb appeal, and keeps your business looking as sharp as the service you offer. Let’s walk through what to watch for, season by season. Spring: Refresh and Recover After a long winter, spring is about repair and renewal. Snow, salt, and ice can take a toll on every surface, so now’s the time to clean up and fix the damage. What to focus on: Inspect roofing and flashing for signs of water intrusion, missing shingles, or debris buildup. Clean out gutters and downspouts so spring rain drains properly instead of pooling. Power wash sidewalks and patios to remove grime, salt, and mildew. Touch up or repaint worn areas of your façade, signage, or trim, especially if peeling paint is visible. Inspect windows and doors for broken seals or cracked glass. Refresh landscaping to reframe your exterior with clean lines and healthy greenery. Pro tip: Spring moisture can hide mildew in shaded areas. If power washing doesn’t cut it, a repaint with the right mildew-resistant coating will make a big difference.

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Deck Staining vs. Painting: Which Is Better for Your Outdoor Space?

By Christine Lekberg • June 30, 2025

When it comes to sprucing up your deck , you’ll eventually run into The Question. You know the one: “Should I stain my deck… or paint it?” It’s a tough call. Both options offer protection. Both can look great. And both come with their own baggage. In this post, we’re unpacking the pros, cons, and all the murky in-between so you can confidently choose the finish that fits your deck and your sanity. No deep YouTube rabbit holes required. The Basics: What’s the Real Difference? Before you can pick sides, you’ve gotta know the players. Stain and paint may both live in the same aisle at the hardware store, but they’re totally different animals when it comes to how they treat your wood. Let’s break down what each one actually does. Staining soaks into the wood, enhancing its natural beauty, letting the wood grain shine through. Painting, on the other hand, coats the surface, covering blemishes and adding color. Want a white deck? Navy blue? Go for it. Just remember: you’re covering the wood grain entirely. Durability: Does Paint or Stain Last Longer On a Deck? Let’s not sugarcoat it: paint is more durable, especially the high-quality exterior kind. It forms a thick barrier that helps repel UV rays, moisture, and other deck-destroying villains. Stain isn’t as robust, but it’s no slouch either. Oil-based stains offer solid protection and tend to wear away gradually, which sounds bad, but it’s actually easier to manage. So who wins? If your deck gets a lot of sun or moisture, paint does last longer. But that doesn’t mean it’s always the better choice…

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