The work
What exterior painting actually involves
Substrate, weather window and the repairs that come first
Exterior work starts with washing, scraping back anything failing, treating bare timber or rusted metal, filling and caulking, and priming. Rotten timber has to be repaired or replaced before anything goes over it, and that is frequently discovered once the old paint comes off.
The weather sets the schedule. Paint applied too cold, too hot, in damp conditions or on a surface in direct sun will not form the film it is meant to, whatever the day looks like.
Check what the paint's own data sheet says about temperature and humidity, including overnight. The overnight minimum is the one that catches people out in spring and autumn.
Lead
On a house painted before the late 1970s, assume lead
Sanding or scraping old exterior paint on an older house releases lead dust into the soil and the air around the property, and the rules on it are not advisory.
Where lead-safe rules apply, the contractor needs specific certification and has to follow containment, cleaning and disposal procedures. It affects the price and the method.
A painter who has not mentioned it on a house of that age either does not know or is planning not to comply, and both are reasons to ask directly before work starts.
Failure points
Two things that go wrong
Rot found after the price is agreed
“What is the rate for timber repairs, and how much is allowed for in the price?”
Nobody can see behind sound-looking paint. Repairs to timber, trim and sills are the standard exterior variation, so the sensible thing is a rate agreed in advance rather than a negotiation once the scaffold is up.
Painting over the problem
“What is being stripped back to bare, and what is being painted over?”
Coating over failing paint, damp render or unaddressed rot hides it for a season. The new film lifts wherever the old one was letting go, and the guarantee will exclude exactly that.
Before you book exterior painting
How we rank →Six checks, in the order they save you the most. None of them takes longer than a phone call, and the first one is the reason two quotes for the same job can be a thousand apart.
Common questions about exterior painting
Who handles exterior painting?
Exterior painting is handled by painting companies. Not every company in the trade takes this work on, so each ranking lists the services a company genuinely performs rather than everything it advertises.
What should I ask before booking exterior painting?
Ask what the quote includes and excludes, who is doing the work, whether a permit is needed and who is pulling it, and what the workmanship warranty covers. Get the answers in writing before anyone starts.
How do I compare quotes for this?
Put them on one sheet line by line. Differences in price almost always turn out to be differences in scope, material grade or warranty length rather than margin.
Is exterior painting priced separately from the rest of the job?
Usually it is a line inside a larger quote rather than its own invoice, which is exactly why the exclusions matter. Ask for it itemised so you can compare that line between companies instead of comparing two totals.
For painting
Do you offer exterior painting?
Claim your profile so the services you actually perform are the ones recorded here, alongside your licence, hours and coverage. Neither claiming nor advertising buys a ranked position.