LESLIE: Bob in Maryland, welcome to The Money Pit. What can we do for you today?
BOB: Well, I’m calling about painting my – having my house painted and …
TOM: OK.
BOB: … I have aluminum siding and I’ve been trying to get information on aluminum – or paint for aluminum siding or even someone to do the work. I can’t even find anybody that’s ever painted aluminum siding.
TOM: Well, I’ve seen it painted many times; it comes up very, very nicely. A couple of key things: prep is really important here because generally the finish on the old siding is very, very soft and powdery and that needs to be …
LESLIE: Kind of powdery, yeah.
BOB: Exactly.
TOM: That needs to be cleaned off; power-washed off. You’re going to see a lot of shiny aluminum when you get that done but after it’s dry, then the next step is to prime it. You’re going to use an oil-based primer and it’s best if the primer and the finish paint are applied by spray.
LESLIE: Because it’s going to get in all those nooks and crannies.
TOM: A lot of prep work involved here because you’ve got to cover everything that you don’t want the paint to get on but you spray the paint on; then, you spray the top coat over that. If you do it really well, you can get a paint job that can last you 10 to 15 years. It’ll last longer than it would on wood because the aluminum is not organic, so it doesn’t soak up water and expand and contract; it’s very dimensionally stable. Hence, the paint …
BOB: Right, right.
TOM: … lasts a lot longer.
BOB: Yeah, but what’s the best way to try to find somebody to do it?
TOM: Angie’s List. Go to AngiesList.com. It’s a service you subscribe to where over 600,000 members around the country actually will talk about their experiences with various contractors. And look up the painting contractors that are being recommended or talked about by folks in your area and I bet you’ll find a pro that can do this job.
LESLIE: And you know, a good top-coat paint option is there’s a new product from Behr. It’s called the Premium Plus Ultra and that’s their exterior line of paint and it really seals well; it adheres together very nicely. It’s got this NANOGUARD technology. It’s mold-resistant. It’s a great product; I used it to paint a railing at my home and it worked very, very well.
BOB: Fantastic. Hey, you’ve got a great show. Keep up the good work.
TOM: Thanks, Bob. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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