Rain Before House Siding

Originally published november 29 2008 at 12 00 am.

Rain before house siding.

How to stop rainwater from running behind house siding. The glues used to make osb are water resistant because the manufacturers know that virtually no one can build a home that won t get wet before the roof and siding is applied. If it did you probably wouldn t need to pressure wash your home nearly so often. That is because unlike power washing rain doesn t typically soak into the siding of a home allowing for painting shortly after it stops raining.

After all even if it feels dry to the touch that doesn t mean that moisture isn t still captured within. After it rains we typically wait a couple of days to make sure that the siding is perfectly dry. And if a board does get wet but is not sitting in moisture for an extended period of time you can simply let it dry out before installing. This means that the siding of your house won t soak up rain water the way it soaks up water from the pressure wash.

Houses i built got wet. After a period of rain if your siding looks dry you ll have the green light to get on with your exterior painting in plymouth ma. After a rain you can start siding again as soon as the previously installed siding and the house wrap are dry. Having the home s siding clean dry and dull before painting is a key to success which makes questions of when to do an exterior paint job after power washing and rain important.

Rain will slow down the drying time and might affect the look but shouldn t hurt its bond with the substrate. Another factor is that eaves and soffits help keep rain from even hitting the house keeping the siding dry and ready for paint. Oil based primer takes longer to dry but can withstand rain fairly soon. Gutter leaks can do hidden damage when siding masks the problem.

Too much sun can be detrimental to a paint finish just as too much rain can be. Hardie plank joints butt joints james hardie siding is 12 feet long which means that siding on your longer walls will need to join together. It s always best to work with dry materials. If you re applying latex paint over a glossy paint play it safe and prime the entire house even if you ve sanded or treated the existing finish with a deglosser.

Hardboard siding may also require a primer. If you are using latex acrylic paint you need at least two hours of sun for exterior paint to dry before the rain comes. As long as the substrate is dry when the primer is applied rain but not a gully washer won t affect it too much 30 minutes after it s applied. If heavy rain is forecast or several days of rain are coming in the next few days you will need about six hours of good sun to dry the paint thoroughly enough to not be affected.

Paint will dry to the touch in one hour or so depending on the heat of the day.