although vinyl siding is touted as ';maintenance free'; and ';never needs painting'; - the truth is, many people paint their vinyl sided homes with excellent results. i've listed below a couple of a suggestions for preparing the surface, priming and finishing - plus one very important caveat about painting vinyl.
1) if this is vinyl siding that has been on your home for some time, make sure the surface is clean before painting. power wash, or scrub the surface with a non-sudsing detergent such as soilax* or dirtex* and water to remove dust and dirt...add 1 quart of bleach to a gallon of detergent mix to remove mold, mildew and algae (if present)...
* other detergents such as tri-sodium phosphate (tsp) may be used as described above, but it will be necessary to rinse surface with clean water before painting...
if this is new vinyl siding, it may be necessary to wipe the surface down with mineral spirits (paint thinner) or naptha to remove any surface oils that may be present...
now your surface is clean and free of dust, dirt, mold, mildew, algae and any other foreign contaminants that may inhibit the adhesion of paint...you're ready to paint.
primer - although it's not absolutely necessary to prime vinyl siding, there are many primers on the market that bond very tightly to slick, non porous surfaces (such as vinyl siding). water borne acrylic primers such as zinnsers bulls-eye 123 are ideal for this type of surface (there are many other brands that'll perform equally as well, check with your local independent paint dealer for his best recommendation)...
to finish vinyl siding always use a high quality acrylic (solid acrylic or high in acrylic content) house paint. a satin sheen will most closely approximate the original sheen of new vinyl siding. and to make the job easier and better looking, always use high quality tools and applicators when painting. a system of 1 coat primer and 1 coat finish should last 15 - 20 years (regardless of what the label says)...
now for the caveat...the one thing about vinyl siding that makes it difficult to paint is heat transference...because it is flexible, not rigid - you can't paint vinyl siding a darker color than what is was originally (you can change colors, just not a darker color). if originally it was white, you're pretty much limited to painting it white again or some very light pastel shade of off-white. if you try to paint it darker than the original, the heat from the summer sun will literally cause it to buckle and twist off the side of your home...an unfortunate horror story too often times experienced by un-informed homeowners...
i hope this info is helpful to you...good luck on your project. feel free to email me if you have other questions.
ricCan you paint vinyl siding?
obivously with suitable paintsCan you paint vinyl siding?
No, thats its purpose, not having to paint
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