Exterior Painting in Malden, MA

How this plays out in Malden

Most of what we paint in Malden is two- and three-family houses. Two- and three-family houses from the 1890s through the 1920s, brick apartment blocks near the centre, and a scattering of Victorians on the higher ground. Front porches carry the households and take the weather. Rails, decking and post bases are the first things to fail and painting over soft wood buys one winter.

What actually happens on site

Full pressure wash, scrape back anything loose, feather the edges, replace rotted wood, caulk every gap, prime bare surfaces, then two coats.

Wash, then let it dry — 48 hours minimum, longer on north elevations that never see sun. Then scrape everything lifting, feather the edges with 80 grit so the transition doesn't telegraph through the finish, spot prime bare wood the same day it's exposed, and caulk after priming rather than before so the caulk bonds to primer instead of raw grain.

The mistake we get called to fix

Nearly every failed exterior we're called to repaint failed for the same reason: someone coated over chalky, damp or mildewed siding. Paint doesn't stick to dirt, and no product on the shelf fixes bad prep.

What the quote covers

• Line-by-line scope — prep, materials and labour costed separately
• A real start date and duration, held to
• Licence #193121 and certificate of insurance in writing
• Two-year workmanship warranty

Products are Benjamin Moore and Sherwin-Williams. Worth reading before you hire anyone: EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule National Weather Service Boston forecast