Why Is My Home Exterior Paint Color Fading?

January 30, 2020

As much as we might not like to admit it, we all certainly judge a book by its cover when it comes to homes and businesses. While you may be running a tight ship at your company, curb appeal can be enough to turn away a prospective client or customer before they even step through the door.

For homeowners who may be looking to sell, a drab paint job is a huge deterrent for buyers, and the lengthy process of exterior home painting is the last thing you want to worry about while managing all of the other details of selling your home.

If you struggle with maintaining the life and vibrancy of your home’s or business’ exterior paint, here is what you need to know to answer the commonly asked question: Why is my home exterior paint fading?

What Causes Paint to Fade?

Environment

It’s probably not too hard to guess that the environment in which you live can make a drastic impact on the life of your exterior paint.

The primary culprit for causing paint to fade is the sun itself. Especially with darker colors that attract more sunlight, the sun will speed up the fading process of your exterior paint.

According to the painting professionals at Spear , “ Without getting too scientific, here’s the basics of what happens:

Chromophores are the part of the pigment molecule that causes its specific color to be seen.
Sunlight attacks the chromophores, causing a change to their structure and making the pigment lose its color.
Some pigments react with chemicals in the environment (oxygen, nitric acid, ozone) to cause fading.”

Aside from sun fading, the chemical makeup can be a source for your paint fading. The chemicals in your paint interact with the atmosphere around them, which can depend on whether you’re in an urban, suburban, or rural setting.

Paint Quality

Paint quality is also something to consider if your paint is fading faster than you’d anticipated.

When it comes to exterior home painting services (as well as interior painting services ), since the job has a lot of surface area to cover, the temptation may be to select the cheapest paint possible to get the job done in a cost-effective manner.

While this may save money immediately, it could be costing you in the long run.

Since exterior home paint is so highly exposed to the sun, cheaper paints tend to shed outer layers of paint much more quickly than a higher-quality paint might. When this outer layer sheds, paints quickly lose their vibrancy and luster.

Age

Aside from any other factor, all paints will lose some color over time simply due to aging.

While it is impossible to entirely avoid fading paint, there are some steps that can be taken to prevent early fading and extend the life of your exterior home paint. This is especially important because once paint has started cracking and fading, there is essentially nothing that can be done to salvage it; it must be removed and repainted.

Deciding which paint is right for your home’s specific needs is no easy task. Don’t make these crucial choices on your own and put yourself at risk; talk with the experienced professionals at ELCO Painting .

If you’ve struggled with fading exterior home painting, the best way to treat this is just to do it right the first time! The experts at ELCO Painting have the knowledge and experience to find the perfect paint for your home or business’ location and your prefered aesthetic.

Whether your next home renovation project is cabinet refinishing or a home painting service cost estimate, ELCO Painting is the perfect choice for painting companies in RI and Southeastern Massachusetts. Let our experienced carpentry professionals meet your home’s unique needs and help bring your design dreams to life.

Give us a call (401-295-2201) or contact us online today to see how the ELCO Painting difference can work for you.

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