Can I Paint My House During Winter?

It’s always a good idea to paint a house. A freshly painted house won’t fail to spruce up your mood and make your house seem like the loveliest place on earth. But, would it be alright to paint your house at any time during the year?

​Like, what if you wake up feeling blue one morning in the winter and suddenly decide that your house needs fresh paint or some old friend from afar suddenly decides to visit you but it’s already winter and you haven’t freshened up the house’s paint during the summer period.

Would getting your house painted even during winter be possible?

Unfortunately, if you’re planning to have the exterior of your house painted during the winter, it’s just not possible. ​

That’s because the paint needs to cure over a period of time for it to adhere to the walls so that it will look good and last as long as it ideally should. Ideally, you should paint your house when the temperature is between 50 to 70 degrees and you should definitely avoid having your house painted if the temperature is projected to drop beyond 30 degrees.  

​This is true even if you have warm temperatures during the day but very cold temperatures during the night time. 

This is an essential bit of information to note especially if you live in a desert because the difference in day time and night time temperatures in such areas can be on the extremes that you can be experiencing a very hot day but the night could be as cold as 25 degrees. 

The same is true for areas with high elevation because these places generally get lower temperatures than their low elevation counterparts. For example, Georgia generally has mild winters; so, much of the southern portions of the state is only deprived of the choice to paint their homes during December and January. However, for the mountainous regions, the winter can be brutal with heavy snows and very low temperatures.

​Painting at Low Temperatures

If you really must paint your house during the colder weather, take heart because it’s not really impossible. You just need to get low-temperature compatible paints. These paints are specially engineered so that they can set and cure even when temperatures reach 2 degrees outside. They’re special paints, however, so you won’t have the same array of choices as to when you’re painting during spring or summer and you can’t opt for that lovely smooth finish that you get from oil-based exterior paints. In addition to that, not all low temperature compatible paints are created equal.

​Some paints such as low-temperature acrylic paints can be applied only when the temperature will be between 35 to 50 degrees for at least two to three hours straight.

​Other Considerations When Painting at Low Temperatures

It’s also important to make sure that there will be no sudden dips in temperatures while your paint is curing. This is tricky because various paints have various requirements for curing time. To add to this, Mother Nature is also tricky and unpredictable so the weather forecasts are never truly accurate.

Other things that you need to keep in mind when you’re painting during the colder season, include the materials you will need for the painting job, the ideal time of the day to work and moisture.

​When you’re painting your house, you might be tempted to get on with your painting job right after you get your low-temperature compatible paint. However, you still have to think about materials such as the caulking and primers that you will use while you’re painting your house. These materials may require warmer temperatures so you also need to make sure what kinds you use are also compatible with cold temperatures.

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As regards the time of day, it’s best to start working as soon as the sun comes up and plan your painting job to coincide with how the sun moves around your house. ​

This way you can paint the side of your house which the sun teaches to provide it with a warmer temperature. Take note also that daylight hours are relatively shorter during the winter season so you have a shorter window of time to finish your painting job unless you’re fine with using artificial lights when sunsets which is not practical anyway because then there will be a colder temperature and you can’t see details in the evening as well as you see them during day time.

Lastly, be careful of moistures that stick to your surfaces because they can get trapped under the paint and ruin your painting job. This means that while you’re painting, you will have to make sure that the surface you are painting is dry and free from moisture.
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So, if you really must paint during the cold season, check with your paint providers for low-temperature paints and while you’re at it, make sure to ask about the ideal temperature range for your chosen paint and how long they will need to cure. Also, check your weather forecast to make sure that you will have a decent temperature for the proper application of your paint.

Indoor Painting
​During Winter

​Unlike exterior painting, indoor painting is more accommodating because you can manipulate the environment inside your house better that the exterior of the house. For instance, if you were dead set on painting your exterior walls during the winter, you’ll have to work with the eager amount of sun you will be having or you might have to build a bubble for the parts of your house that you will be painting to protect them from the tough weather conditions.
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In the interior parts of your house, you’re in control of the conditions. For the most part that is. First, you won’t need to worry about sudden drops in temperature because in winter, you will have a heater running already. Your heater will take care of your paint’s temperature requirement. You will still need to check with your paint providers about the best temperature range for applying the paint you selected and make sure to set your heater is set for such temperatures. 

​It might even be advantageous for you to paint the interior of your house during the winter because the low humidity during this time will be ideal to allow your paint to dry at a shorter time compared to when the humidity is high. 

But there are also disadvantages to painting the interior of your homes during winter. The main disadvantage would be that the kind of paint you use must be one of those low VOC paints to make sure that it is safe. Since you can’t leave your windows and doors open for long periods during winter, the paint fumes will tend to stay indoors. For many types of paints, there are huge amounts of fumes that will be emitted as the paint dries.

These paint fumes are made of chemicals that are harmful if inhaled for long periods of time and many of them will leave your house smelling bad. Low VOC paints are now more common so it’s easy to procure them if you need to paint the interior of your house during winter.
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Another disadvantage is the amount of electricity you will need to heat your home so that the temperatures will be ideal for the curing of the paint that you apply on your walls. For regular paints, you’ll want to keep your room above 60 degrees. The higher you set your temperatures at, the higher your electricity bill will be. This problem is even made worse when you decide to crack a window open to let out some fumes from the paint.

Having open windows will make your heater work harder to keep temperatures at your desired level so you the heaters will need to use more electricity which translates to a higher bill.

To wrap things up, your paint needs be applied at a certain temperature range so that it will be applied well and it will yield to the desired result. The best time of the year to have your house painted is generally during spring and summer. If you’ve already missed that window, it might be best to wait for the following year to have the painting job done.

​However, if it is necessary for the painting job to be done during winter, you still have options and if you carefully pay attention to the conditions, you can still get a decent result in your painting job. Simply choose a low-temperature compatible paint and monitor the weather carefully. Aside from the paint, also make sure that the other materials you will be working with for the painting job are those that can withstand the harsh temperatures of winter. 

If you need a reputable house painting professionals in Warner Robins, Macon region who understand the needs of their clients look no further. Contact the experts at Pizzazz Painters Warner Robins.
Check us at https://www.pizzazzpainterswarnerrobins.com/ and schedule your appointment for a free painting estimate or call us at 478-292-2821. We are here to help!

​Painters proudly serving in Warner Robins, Macon, Bonaire, Byron, Kathleen, Lizella, Perry, Fort Valley
Bibb County Georgia, Houston County Georgia, Peach County Georgia, Macon County Georgia, Crawford County Georgia.

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