Latest / Repcolite Home Improvement Show / Combating Bedbugs, Painting Shutters & Choosing Colors for South-Facing Rooms

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Combating Bedbugs, Painting Shutters & Choosing Colors for South-Facing Rooms · Repcolite Home Improvement Show

0:00
Speaker 1: Welcome to Home in Progress, sponsored by Repolite Paints and
0:03
Speaker 1: Benjamin Moore. It's the podcast where we talk paint projects
0:06
Speaker 1: and all the ways to make your homework and look better.
0:10
Speaker 1: I'm your host, Dan Hansen, and we've got a packed
0:12
Speaker 1: episode today. We're kind of all over the place with
0:15
Speaker 1: this one. Later on in the show, we're going to
0:17
Speaker 1: talk about how to paint shutters, you know, exterior shutters,
0:20
Speaker 1: what kind of paint you use, whether you should remove
0:22
Speaker 1: them or paint them in place, and how to get
0:24
Speaker 1: great results that actually last. Before that, we'll talk about
0:28
Speaker 1: paint blocking. Why freshly painted doors, for example, sometimes stick
0:32
Speaker 1: even days after painting. We'll talk about that and how
0:34
Speaker 1: to stop it from happening on your next project. We're
0:37
Speaker 1: also going to talk about paint color choices for south
0:39
Speaker 1: facing rooms where sunlight can either make your color glow
0:43
Speaker 1: or completely wash it out. We'll get into all of
0:45
Speaker 1: that as the show unfolds, but first, let's talk about
0:49
Speaker 1: a pest problem that's been crawling through the headlines lately
0:52
Speaker 1: and possibly hopefully not but possibly into your suitcase. We're
0:57
Speaker 1: diving into bed bugs, which is just a terrible gross
1:00
Speaker 1: image diving into a big bed of bedbugs. It seems
1:05
Speaker 1: like that should be something in a movie, you know,
1:08
Speaker 1: a horrible scene in a movie. But that's what we're
1:10
Speaker 1: gonna do metaphorically. We're going to talk about how they spread,
1:14
Speaker 1: how to avoid them, and what to do if they
1:16
Speaker 1: find their way into your home. So let's get started.
1:19
Speaker 1: And I want to start right off the bat with
1:21
Speaker 1: the reason I'm talking about this. Recently, Fox seventeen published
1:25
Speaker 1: a report highlighting a list from Orcan you Know, the
1:28
Speaker 1: pest control company. They highlighted a report that Orcan made
1:32
Speaker 1: concerning or ranking. I guess it is concerning, but they
1:36
Speaker 1: were ranking the worst cities in the country for bedbugs,
1:40
Speaker 1: and in the midst of that article, four Michigan cities
1:44
Speaker 1: make the cut. And on top of all of that,
1:46
Speaker 1: Grand Rapids, you know, right where I'm nearly located, it's
1:51
Speaker 1: one of them. It's too close for comfort for me.
1:54
Speaker 1: It's not exactly the kind of top ten appearance that
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Speaker 1: we want to celebrate. So today I want to focus
2:01
Speaker 1: on practical information. You know, what you need to know,
2:03
Speaker 1: what I need to know to stay safe. We're going
2:07
Speaker 1: to cover how bedbugs spread, how to avoid bringing them
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Speaker 1: into your home, the signs that you might have a problem.
2:12
Speaker 1: And then, of course, what to do if you find
2:14
Speaker 1: yourself facing an infestation. And to start, let's talk about
2:19
Speaker 1: how they spread. Bedbugs they're hitch hikers, like hippie hitch hikers.
2:24
Speaker 1: And that's not a slam on hippies. I shouldn't have
2:27
Speaker 1: brought that in when I'm talking about bedbugs. But you
2:30
Speaker 1: never know. Bedbugs they're hitch hikers, all right. They don't fly,
2:33
Speaker 1: they don't jump. They're just quiet, little creepy crawlers. That's
2:36
Speaker 1: what they do. They hide in the seams of luggage,
2:39
Speaker 1: in the folds of your clothing, in purses, in backpacks,
2:42
Speaker 1: in furniture, they hide in just about anything. You know,
2:46
Speaker 1: you might stay at a hotel, you might visit a friend,
2:49
Speaker 1: you might pick up a secondhand couch, and in so
2:52
Speaker 1: doing you might unknowingly bring them into your home with you.
2:57
Speaker 1: And here's the frustrating part. It doesn't matter how clean
2:59
Speaker 1: your home is. Bed bugs don't care. You know. They're
3:02
Speaker 1: not looking for a hoard or home. They're not looking
3:05
Speaker 1: for mess. They're looking for blood. Right, They're not looking
3:07
Speaker 1: for crumbs, they're looking for blood. Anybody can wind up
3:11
Speaker 1: with them. And once they're in your home. They tend
3:13
Speaker 1: to stay close to where you sleep, and of course
3:16
Speaker 1: that's how they get their name. Some mattresses, box springs, headboards,
3:19
Speaker 1: the crevices of nearby furniture often become their hiding spots.
3:23
Speaker 1: And mostly they come out at night to feed and
3:26
Speaker 1: then they disappear again into the cracks and seams as
3:29
Speaker 1: the morning dawns and we start to become active. All right,
3:33
Speaker 1: Now that you know how they travel, let's talk about
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Speaker 1: how to avoid them. And first off, when you're traveling,
3:38
Speaker 1: you know, whether a hotel or an airbnb or even
3:41
Speaker 1: a friend's house, it pays to be crazy cautious. I
3:45
Speaker 1: mean not crazy like you know you've got a mental issue.
3:48
Speaker 1: I was using that to mean excessively or well, excessively
3:52
Speaker 1: doesn't convey good things either. Be cautious, take take time,
3:58
Speaker 1: and before you unpack it everything, take a few minutes
4:01
Speaker 1: to inspect the bed. First thing I do when I travel.
4:04
Speaker 1: I don't travel often, but when I do, it's the
4:08
Speaker 1: first thing I check. I am checking the bed because
4:11
Speaker 1: I do not want to live or bring these things
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Speaker 1: to my home. Because I know myself, I know my
4:17
Speaker 1: mental state. I know the tenuous nature of it. I
4:20
Speaker 1: know if I've got bed bugs in the home that
4:23
Speaker 1: we're all in for just a long dry ride of
4:27
Speaker 1: who knows what's going to happen. It's gonna be horrible.
4:29
Speaker 1: I had two mice in the home once, I think
4:32
Speaker 1: it was only two, and it was brutal. The kids
4:36
Speaker 1: still talk about it. So when you travel, check the bed.
4:40
Speaker 1: Take a few minutes before you do anything. Check the bed,
4:42
Speaker 1: pull back the sheets, check the mattress seams and the
4:44
Speaker 1: edge of the headboard. Look for signs of trouble. And
4:47
Speaker 1: what you're looking for are tiny black specks, you know, droppings,
4:51
Speaker 1: or worse, the bugs themselves. Right, See that, then you
4:54
Speaker 1: know you got to get the heck out of dodge.
4:56
Speaker 1: The bugs are small, they're reddish brown. They're about the
4:58
Speaker 1: size and shape of an apple seed, you know, So
5:01
Speaker 1: that's what you're looking for. If everything looks clear, you're great.
5:04
Speaker 1: You know, probably great. Now I can't say for sure
5:07
Speaker 1: you're great, but you're probably great. At least it's better
5:10
Speaker 1: than finding bugs. But still it's smart to keep your
5:13
Speaker 1: luggage off the floor and definitely off the bed. You know,
5:16
Speaker 1: use the luggage rack if there is one place your
5:18
Speaker 1: suitcases on a counter or a tile surface, something smooth
5:22
Speaker 1: and easy to wipe down. And when you get home
5:24
Speaker 1: from your trip, take your clothes straight to the washer
5:26
Speaker 1: and dryer and wash them and dry them on high
5:29
Speaker 1: heat if possible, even if you didn't wear everything. You know,
5:32
Speaker 1: heat is your best defense against bed bugs. They can't
5:35
Speaker 1: survive in high temperatures. So do all of that. That's
5:38
Speaker 1: for traveling, For thrift stores, garage sales, even roadside freebies,
5:42
Speaker 1: you know, those are another source of trouble. And that
5:45
Speaker 1: vintage armchair, that budget friendly dresser that you stumbled across
5:48
Speaker 1: might seem like this crazy good deal. You can't pass
5:52
Speaker 1: it up, but it's worth inspecting thoroughly before you bring
5:55
Speaker 1: it into your home. And if you're not sure what's
5:58
Speaker 1: been living inside it, you might want to pay all right,
6:01
Speaker 1: might want to pass No matter how good a deal
6:03
Speaker 1: it is, it's gonna bite you if it turns out
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Speaker 1: to be full of bedbugs or even carry just a few.
6:09
Speaker 1: Oh man, you don't want that now. Even with all
6:12
Speaker 1: those precautions, sometimes bedbugs still find a way. Right. It's
6:15
Speaker 1: like Jurassic Park, life finds a way. I think that
6:18
Speaker 1: was the line. It's gonna find a way. Nature finds
6:20
Speaker 1: a way. I don't remember. All I know is bedbugs
6:24
Speaker 1: can find a way in even when we're careful. So
6:27
Speaker 1: how do you know if you've got a problem. Well,
6:29
Speaker 1: the most common clue is gonna be bites. Bedbug bites.
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Speaker 1: They often appear in small clusters or in little lines.
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Speaker 1: Typically they're on skin that's exposed while you're sleeping, so arms, legs, neck, back.
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Speaker 1: They can itch like mosquito bites. Sometimes they cause a
6:44
Speaker 1: red rash or swelling, but not everybody reacts the same way.
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Speaker 1: You know, some people don't get any marks at all,
6:50
Speaker 1: which makes detection even trickier. Aside from the bites, there
6:54
Speaker 1: are other signs, and they include small dark stains on
6:57
Speaker 1: your sheets or your mattress, maybe pillowca And those are
7:01
Speaker 1: often droppings left behind after feeding. That's nice to think about, huh,
7:06
Speaker 1: sleeping right nuzzled up right next to bedbug droppings that
7:11
Speaker 1: were left behind after they fed on you. Yeah, so
7:15
Speaker 1: look for those. You might find even little shed skins,
7:18
Speaker 1: you know, little paper thin translucent shells left behind as
7:22
Speaker 1: they grow, you know, because when you get bedbugs, they
7:26
Speaker 1: do like to grow, and you know they're gonna become
7:29
Speaker 1: even more horrible as time goes by, so they shed
7:33
Speaker 1: their skins. If you see that, that's a sure sign
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Speaker 1: of a problem, and you're gonna want to deal with that.
7:39
Speaker 1: In more severe infestations, there can be a faint, musty odor,
7:43
Speaker 1: kind of sweet, but still unpleasant. So if you notice that,
7:47
Speaker 1: it might not just be the natural you know, whatever
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Speaker 1: musk of your room, it could be bed bugs. And
7:53
Speaker 1: of course, like I said earlier, if you see the
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Speaker 1: bugs themselves, especially hiding in mattress seams, corners of the
7:59
Speaker 1: bed frames, or even behind outlet covers or picture frames,
8:01
Speaker 1: that's a clear sign that you've got a problem. Now,
8:05
Speaker 1: if that happens, if you suspect you might be dealing
8:07
Speaker 1: with bed bugs, there are a few really important things
8:10
Speaker 1: to keep in mind. First off, don't panic. I'll say
8:14
Speaker 1: that again, don't panic. I know they're creepy, and I
8:18
Speaker 1: know they're hard to get rid of, and you're gonna
8:20
Speaker 1: probably want If you have a brain like mine, your
8:23
Speaker 1: first thought is that the only solution is to burn
8:26
Speaker 1: the house to the ground and then gather all the ashes,
8:29
Speaker 1: and then burn the ashes and then scatter them and
8:32
Speaker 1: then move you know, miles and miles and miles away.
8:35
Speaker 1: That's overkill. Don't do that. Don't freak out, don't have
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Speaker 1: a meltdown. It's not great, but you can get through it.
8:44
Speaker 1: So first thing to keep in mind is that they're
8:46
Speaker 1: not dangerous in the way that some pests are. You know,
8:49
Speaker 1: they're not great, they're pretty bad, but they don't carry disease.
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Speaker 1: They're just persistent. They're annoying, all right. So first thing,
8:55
Speaker 1: don't panic. Second thing, you should act quickly. You know,
8:59
Speaker 1: the longer you the worst the infestation can become. But
9:02
Speaker 1: don't run out and start immediately tossing all your furniture,
9:06
Speaker 1: you know, into the road or hauling it to the
9:09
Speaker 1: dump or something like that. And don't necessarily start spraying
9:12
Speaker 1: bug spray all around the house. You know, those things
9:14
Speaker 1: can actually make things worse. Moving infested items can spread
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Speaker 1: bed bugs to other areas of the home or even
9:19
Speaker 1: your car. And over the counter bug sprays they're not
9:23
Speaker 1: terribly effective against the bed bugs, and in fact, they
9:26
Speaker 1: can cause the bugs to scatter deeper into the walls
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Speaker 1: and the furniture. So your best move is to contact
9:31
Speaker 1: a licensed pest control company. You know they're going to
9:34
Speaker 1: come out a lot of the times they'll do a
9:35
Speaker 1: free inspection or a low cost inspection. They'll confirm whether
9:40
Speaker 1: you've got bed bugs. They'll walk you through the next steps.
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Speaker 1: They'll have some recommendations, and the professional treatments are going
9:46
Speaker 1: to usually involve things like chemical insecticides or heat. In
9:49
Speaker 1: heat treatments, your home is heated to temperatures that kill
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Speaker 1: bed bugs at all life stages, from eggs to adults.
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Speaker 1: It's often one of the most effective solutions, but it
9:58
Speaker 1: does require professional equips and set up, so talk to
10:02
Speaker 1: a professional. It's not fun, but it's going to be
10:04
Speaker 1: your quickest way probably through this problem. It's for sure
10:07
Speaker 1: the place to start, and you're also going to most
10:10
Speaker 1: likely need to prep your home before that treatment happens.
10:13
Speaker 1: They will walk you through what you need to do,
10:14
Speaker 1: but it's not unusual that you're going to have to
10:17
Speaker 1: you know, wash bedding and clothing, vacuum, thoroughly reduce clutter
10:21
Speaker 1: so that the treatment can reach all the hiding places,
10:23
Speaker 1: you know, things like that. Now, one last thing before
10:26
Speaker 1: we wrap all of this up and move on to brighter,
10:29
Speaker 1: happier topics. Don't be embarrassed. Bedbugs don't mean you're dirty
10:34
Speaker 1: or that you did something wrong. They're really common, and unfortunately,
10:37
Speaker 1: with increased travel and global movement, they're not going to
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Speaker 1: really be going away anytime soon. Best thing you can
10:43
Speaker 1: do is stay informed, stay prepared, do your checks, all
10:47
Speaker 1: the things we talked about. So that's the bottom line.
10:50
Speaker 1: Bed Bugs are sneaky, but they're not invincible. Keep your
10:53
Speaker 1: eyes open when you travel, be cautious with used items,
10:56
Speaker 1: know the signs, and if you spot something suspicious, don't wait,
11:00
Speaker 1: act fast, call a pro, and get it handled before
11:03
Speaker 1: it becomes dun dun, dunt. An infestation which we don't want.
11:08
Speaker 1: Sounds like a horror movie and when it happens kind
11:11
Speaker 1: of feels that way too. But remember, you can get
11:13
Speaker 1: through it. I don't want to leave on a sour note.
11:15
Speaker 1: You will survive and you'll be stronger on the other
11:18
Speaker 1: side of this. Right, here's hoping. All right, let's shift
11:21
Speaker 1: peers into something a little more pleasant. Paint colors. You know,
11:24
Speaker 1: the lighting in your space plays a huge role in
11:26
Speaker 1: how colors actually look, and one of the biggest influences,
11:30
Speaker 1: even indoors, is the natural light that's coming through your windows.
11:33
Speaker 1: Sell facing rooms in particular have their own unique challenges
11:36
Speaker 1: and advantages, so let's talk about that. You know what
11:39
Speaker 1: you need to know when you're picking colors for those spaces,
11:42
Speaker 1: and we're going to do all of that. Right after this,
11:46
Speaker 1: you're listening to Home in Progress, where the projects are real,
11:48
Speaker 1: the mistakes, they're educational, sometimes painful, mostly educational. And the
11:54
Speaker 1: only thing more stubborn than that old wallpaper on your
11:58
Speaker 1: bathroom wall is your determ termination to get it fixed,
12:02
Speaker 1: probably sponsored by Repcolite Paints and Benjamin Moore Paint with
12:05
Speaker 1: a purpose, people who care and everything you need to
12:07
Speaker 1: get the job done right. Well, right now, let's talk
12:11
Speaker 1: about self facing rooms. And I promised, like three weeks
12:16
Speaker 1: ago or something like that, I promised that we would
12:19
Speaker 1: do this, and then thank you, aging brain. I completely forgot.
12:25
Speaker 1: Most of my life is just a long series of
12:29
Speaker 1: things I've forgotten. And then the other night I was
12:34
Speaker 1: dreaming it was all about work, which they're just the
12:37
Speaker 1: worst possible dreams ever. I mean, I like what I do,
12:41
Speaker 1: I do, but I don't like it that much that
12:44
Speaker 1: I want to just live in it twenty four to seven.
12:47
Speaker 1: I don't want to dream about it and then wake
12:48
Speaker 1: up and then go do it for real. That just
12:51
Speaker 1: blows Anyway, the other night, I was dreaming about work
12:54
Speaker 1: and it hit me that I completely forgot to do
12:58
Speaker 1: the whole self facing rooms segment. So anyway, without any
13:01
Speaker 1: further ado, let's get into south facing rooms. And what
13:04
Speaker 1: I want to start with is this. If you've got
13:07
Speaker 1: a self facing room, congratulations, you've hit you know, the
13:11
Speaker 1: natural light jackpot. Self facing spaces, they tend to get
13:15
Speaker 1: consistent sunlight all day long, and that light is usually
13:19
Speaker 1: warm and golden. It glides in with pizazz. You know,
13:24
Speaker 1: it brightens everything that it touches. It's basically exactly one
13:29
Speaker 1: hundred percent exactly what happens when I walk into a space.
13:32
Speaker 1: You know, a rosy glow kind of follows me. Eyes, faces,
13:37
Speaker 1: they all lift up and they look down because I'm shorter,
13:41
Speaker 1: but there, you know what I'm saying. They look happier,
13:43
Speaker 1: they look lighter, everybody's mood brightens, the you know, all
13:46
Speaker 1: of that happens. The clouds part, angels sing when I
13:50
Speaker 1: walk into a room. I'm sure that you are having
13:52
Speaker 1: no trouble picturing that. Anyway, That's what happens in soeuf
13:55
Speaker 1: facing rooms with the light. The light pours in, it
13:58
Speaker 1: brightens everything and it may make most paint colors look
14:02
Speaker 1: their best, But that doesn't mean that picking colors in
14:06
Speaker 1: a cell facing room is a breeze. In fact, it's
14:10
Speaker 1: easy to think that you can just slap you know,
14:11
Speaker 1: pretty much anything on the wall and get great results.
14:15
Speaker 1: But here's the thing. Southern light is intense. You know,
14:19
Speaker 1: it's a little in your face. It's a little bit
14:21
Speaker 1: of a chameleon as well. It changes character as the
14:24
Speaker 1: day goes on, and as we'll get to at the
14:26
Speaker 1: end of this segment, as the seasons change. It's kind
14:29
Speaker 1: of chameleon like in that regard. It's warm and glowing
14:33
Speaker 1: in the morning in the evening, but around noon, that
14:35
Speaker 1: same sunlight becomes so strong that it starts to wash
14:38
Speaker 1: colors out. So a color that felt cozy in the
14:41
Speaker 1: morning that might easily feel flat, you know, lifeless by lunchtime,
14:46
Speaker 1: and it might feel like way too much color by
14:49
Speaker 1: late afternoon. That's all possible, and that's why it's so
14:52
Speaker 1: important to give a lot of time and thought to
14:55
Speaker 1: the colors that you're putting in a self facing room.
14:58
Speaker 1: And what I want to look at right now is
15:01
Speaker 1: to basically break color recommendations down by the vibe that
15:06
Speaker 1: you're going for. I kind of think that's more helpful
15:08
Speaker 1: than what I did with northern facing spaces, and that
15:11
Speaker 1: one I just gave out a bunch of Benjamin More colors,
15:14
Speaker 1: which I think is kind of helpful. But what I'd
15:18
Speaker 1: like to do, I guess, instead, is just break it
15:20
Speaker 1: down by vibe and then I'll give you some generalized
15:22
Speaker 1: colors with a few specifics thrown in. So let's start here.
15:26
Speaker 1: Maybe you want to create a calming, you know, a
15:29
Speaker 1: RESTful space, maybe a spot to read, to relaxed, recharge,
15:33
Speaker 1: a place to kick back, you know, probably without socks,
15:38
Speaker 1: so you can feel the carpet between your toes, you know,
15:41
Speaker 1: as you sip a warm beverage or in the summer,
15:44
Speaker 1: a cool beverage and listen. You know, I don't know
15:47
Speaker 1: what to enya or something like that. If that's the
15:50
Speaker 1: space that you're looking to create, you know, that little
15:53
Speaker 1: toes in the carpet while Nya kroons space, you know,
15:56
Speaker 1: which we all are craving a space like that in
15:59
Speaker 1: our homes. If that's that's what you're trying to create,
16:00
Speaker 1: that calming, RESTful space, look for colors that have cooler undertones.
16:05
Speaker 1: Things like a soft gray blue, a pale lavender, a
16:07
Speaker 1: dusty green. These tones are going to offset the warmth
16:11
Speaker 1: of that southern sun, and they're gonna help settle that
16:13
Speaker 1: space down a little bit. You know. Think of something specifically,
16:16
Speaker 1: like Benjamin Moore's Quiet Moments. It's a pale you know,
16:19
Speaker 1: blue gray that just whispers peace. You know, that's a
16:23
Speaker 1: little goofy, but you know it's very calming. Think about
16:26
Speaker 1: a gentle green gray like Spanish olive, if you want
16:29
Speaker 1: something a little more grounded, you know. So those are
16:32
Speaker 1: some ideas that'll get you off and running. If you're
16:35
Speaker 1: looking for a calming, RESTful space. What if you want
16:37
Speaker 1: the opposite, You know, a room with energy, a spot
16:39
Speaker 1: that feels alive and fun. You know, pretty much everywhere
16:43
Speaker 1: I go I bring that with me. Maybe you want
16:46
Speaker 1: that in your home, you know, a place for family dinners,
16:49
Speaker 1: for game nights, hanging out with friends. I laugh, because
16:53
Speaker 1: I have one single friend. Yeah, we won't go into that.
16:58
Speaker 1: It's it's too sad for a Saturday morning. We'll just
17:02
Speaker 1: leave that there. We'll put a pin in that one
17:04
Speaker 1: and maybe we'll come back and visit that again. Or
17:06
Speaker 1: I'll talk about it with a therapist either way. If
17:09
Speaker 1: you have a lot of friends, like most people do,
17:13
Speaker 1: and you want to create a space to entertain and
17:15
Speaker 1: do all of that, you might be wanting to lean
17:18
Speaker 1: into that warm light that you've got going for you
17:20
Speaker 1: in that southern facing space. So go with rich saturated colors.
17:23
Speaker 1: Maybe a buttery yellow, a coral peach, even a golden tan,
17:27
Speaker 1: maybe an earthy clay. These colors are going to bounce
17:30
Speaker 1: off the light. They're going to amplify that space and
17:32
Speaker 1: the energy you know that's going on in the room,
17:35
Speaker 1: and it's going to be great. It's exactly what you want.
17:38
Speaker 1: But be careful. They can get really intense. You know,
17:41
Speaker 1: we talked about what afternoons can do, or you know,
17:44
Speaker 1: in the middle of the day too. If you go
17:46
Speaker 1: too bright, especially in a room with a lot of windows,
17:50
Speaker 1: you might start to feel like you're living in a
17:51
Speaker 1: lava lamp or something like that, and nobody really wants that.
17:55
Speaker 1: Nobody shoots for that. You might get it, you might
17:58
Speaker 1: tolerate it, you might I love it, who knows, but
18:01
Speaker 1: you're normally not shooting for that lava lamp feel. So
18:04
Speaker 1: sample those colors first. Make sure you've got the right
18:07
Speaker 1: one before you jump in. All right, Maybe you're looking
18:10
Speaker 1: for cozy, you know, not just calming and relaxing, but cozy.
18:14
Speaker 1: It's a popular one, you know, people want that for bedrooms,
18:17
Speaker 1: smaller living areas, things like that. If that's your vibe,
18:21
Speaker 1: if that's if that's your jam. Have you ever seen
18:24
Speaker 1: that Gary Busey weird YouTube thing. I don't know what's
18:30
Speaker 1: wrong with the man, but somebody asks him if something
18:33
Speaker 1: is his jam, and he says no, he doesn't like jam.
18:36
Speaker 1: He likes honey, and he kisses it on the lips.
18:38
Speaker 1: If you have no idea what I'm talking about, google it.
18:41
Speaker 1: It's worth it. It's a little creepy, but it's worth it.
18:43
Speaker 1: But maybe cozy is your jam, you know, maybe that's
18:47
Speaker 1: exactly what you want. Try for medium to dark colors,
18:50
Speaker 1: particularly in the cooler tones. You know, a smoky navy,
18:53
Speaker 1: a charcoal with blue undertones would be good. You know,
18:57
Speaker 1: maybe a deep green gray that would be great in
18:59
Speaker 1: that space. It would cut the brightness of the sun down.
19:02
Speaker 1: It's going to make everything feel a little more grounded
19:05
Speaker 1: and a little more intimate, you know, a little more cozy.
19:07
Speaker 1: That's exactly what you're looking for. So colors like Benjamin
19:10
Speaker 1: Moore's Knoxville gray or Hail Navy are great examples. You know,
19:13
Speaker 1: they've got depth, they've got personality, and they can hold
19:16
Speaker 1: up to that bright light without looking washed out. And
19:19
Speaker 1: don't worry so much about the color names and all
19:22
Speaker 1: of that. I will put all of this info in
19:24
Speaker 1: the show notes and you can check it out there,
19:26
Speaker 1: or you can head to Rep cao Light dot com
19:28
Speaker 1: and check out this entire radio segment podcast segment as
19:35
Speaker 1: a blog, you know, in blog form, so if you
19:37
Speaker 1: like to read rather than listen, you can find it
19:41
Speaker 1: there with all the info. All right, What if you
19:43
Speaker 1: want something that feels light, fresh and airy. If that's
19:46
Speaker 1: where you're at and that's what you're looking for, this
19:48
Speaker 1: is where it's self facing rooms really really do shine.
19:50
Speaker 1: You know, a creamy white, a soft grayge. Love saying
19:54
Speaker 1: that grayge just feels so sophisticated when I say that.
19:59
Speaker 1: So creamy white gray, even a cool toned white can
20:02
Speaker 1: make the most of all of that sunlight. Just remember
20:05
Speaker 1: the warmer whites that you use, they're gonna pick up
20:08
Speaker 1: and kind of exaggerate some of that warmth in that
20:10
Speaker 1: southern exposure. So if you're trying to cool the room visually,
20:14
Speaker 1: steer towards whites with a touch of blue or gray
20:16
Speaker 1: in them. You know Benjamin Moore's white diamond or decorators
20:19
Speaker 1: white good places to start. They're gonna cut the yellow
20:22
Speaker 1: cast kind of keep things looking clean. Now, let's say
20:25
Speaker 1: last one I've got for the vibe. Let's say you
20:28
Speaker 1: want something fun or whimsical. You know, space that feels
20:31
Speaker 1: creative and playful, maybe just a little offbeat. Self facing
20:35
Speaker 1: rooms can handle color. We kind of have talked about
20:37
Speaker 1: that a little bit already, but you can really lean
20:39
Speaker 1: into some real color in a southern facing room. You know,
20:43
Speaker 1: sea glass, aqua rose pink, you know, a chalky lilac,
20:48
Speaker 1: even a muted teal. All of those colors are gonna work. Now.
20:51
Speaker 1: Generally speaking, those colors can feel overwhelming in a darker space,
20:56
Speaker 1: but the bright southern light coming in is gonna help
20:58
Speaker 1: them feel energized and have instead of dreary and MOPy
21:03
Speaker 1: and heavy. So you've got a lot going for you
21:05
Speaker 1: with the southern space. You can really lean into some
21:07
Speaker 1: colors and have a lot of fun with that. So
21:10
Speaker 1: those are just a few different vibes that you might
21:12
Speaker 1: be going for in your space, and then some generalized
21:15
Speaker 1: colors and a few specifics to help you get there. Now,
21:19
Speaker 1: let's talk about something that we don't always think about
21:21
Speaker 1: when choosing color, the seasons. And I want to talk
21:24
Speaker 1: about this because southern light isn't static. You know, it
21:26
Speaker 1: changes with the time of year. In winter, the light's
21:29
Speaker 1: going to be cooler and it comes in at a
21:31
Speaker 1: lower angle. You still get daylight, but it has a sharper,
21:34
Speaker 1: kind of a bluish edge to it. If you will
21:37
Speaker 1: fast forward to summer where we're at right now, and
21:40
Speaker 1: that same light is going to turn golden. You know,
21:42
Speaker 1: the sun's higher, the rays are stronger, Your walls are
21:45
Speaker 1: likely going to pick up a bit of an amber
21:47
Speaker 1: glow in a southern facing room, and that shift can
21:51
Speaker 1: dramatically change how your paint looks from one season to
21:53
Speaker 1: the next. A cool gray, you know, for example, that
21:56
Speaker 1: felt perfect in January might feel a little green and
21:59
Speaker 1: muddy in July. You know that's possible. A creamy neutral
22:02
Speaker 1: that looked perfectly warm, you know all winter long, it
22:05
Speaker 1: was just everything you wanted, like a little spring day,
22:08
Speaker 1: that same color might suddenly feel a little bit too warm,
22:11
Speaker 1: and maybe bordering on peach as summer kicks in. Now,
22:15
Speaker 1: I did find based on all of that, you know
22:17
Speaker 1: what I'm telling you. I found a number of design
22:19
Speaker 1: blogs and design professionals who really leaned into the importance
22:23
Speaker 1: of sampling, right, sampling your paint colors. And to some extent,
22:27
Speaker 1: a big extent, they're right. You sample your colors. Always
22:31
Speaker 1: sample your colors. And don't just check your color at
22:35
Speaker 1: one single time of the day. You know, look at
22:37
Speaker 1: it in the morning, look at it at midday, look
22:39
Speaker 1: at it during the evening time, evening hours, and get
22:42
Speaker 1: all of the vibes that you're picking up from that color.
22:45
Speaker 1: You know, really assess it at different times of the day.
22:48
Speaker 1: That's great advice. But I did find a number of
22:51
Speaker 1: them that took it further in regards to the seasons,
22:54
Speaker 1: and they suggested that the colors should be analyzed over
22:58
Speaker 1: the course of the seasons, if at all possible. So
23:02
Speaker 1: start now, I mean you should have started yesterday or
23:06
Speaker 1: last week or last summer, but start now. If you
23:08
Speaker 1: want to paint that living room, man, the best you
23:12
Speaker 1: can do is next summer, So start now. Get a
23:15
Speaker 1: Benjamin war color sampler to get some on your walls
23:18
Speaker 1: today and then watch it through fall and winter and spring,
23:24
Speaker 1: and then by next summer you should know which color's best. Right.
23:29
Speaker 1: I don't know they wrote it. I read it. I'm
23:33
Speaker 1: curious if they reread it and thought about that. I'm
23:36
Speaker 1: certainly not saying that you should sample your colors for
23:38
Speaker 1: an entire year before you make your decision. That's taking
23:42
Speaker 1: it a little far. I think I only bring up
23:45
Speaker 1: that seasonal thing just to make you aware of it.
23:48
Speaker 1: Keep it in mind as you're picking your colors, But
23:50
Speaker 1: don't sample your colors over the course of the year.
23:53
Speaker 1: That doesn't make a whole lot of sense, all right.
23:56
Speaker 1: One other thing, A few other things. Don't forget about
23:58
Speaker 1: your trim and ceiling. Let's start with that one. A
24:01
Speaker 1: crisp white like Chantilly lace. You know, that's a really
24:03
Speaker 1: safe bet in a self facing room for the ceiling.
24:07
Speaker 1: It's clean, it's neutral, it's gonna work well with just
24:09
Speaker 1: about everything. Now, in all of this conversation, I've said
24:13
Speaker 1: it once or twice, but I'll say it one more time.
24:15
Speaker 1: We're speaking in generalities here. You know, not all self
24:18
Speaker 1: facing rooms are created equal. Some get just blasted with
24:22
Speaker 1: sunlight all day long and others are shaded by porches
24:25
Speaker 1: or overhangs or big trees or whatever, and that shading,
24:30
Speaker 1: all of that matters. You know, rooms with tons of
24:33
Speaker 1: windows and direct sun might need deeper colors to avoid
24:35
Speaker 1: feeling overexposed. In contrast, you know, a self facing room
24:39
Speaker 1: that's filtered or darker, you know, can still benefit from lighter,
24:43
Speaker 1: medium tones, but you'll want to avoid anything too icy
24:46
Speaker 1: or cold, or the room might feel off balance. Now
24:49
Speaker 1: here's a rule of thumb as we wrap all of
24:51
Speaker 1: this up, the more light that a room gets, the
24:53
Speaker 1: more you can afford to go deeper with your colors.
24:56
Speaker 1: Pretty basic, lighter colors are going to wash out during
24:58
Speaker 1: peak sun hours, while colors or medium depth tones, they're
25:02
Speaker 1: all going to maintain their personality. But if your self
25:04
Speaker 1: facing room is a little more shaded or small, you
25:08
Speaker 1: don't need to shy away from color. Just choose one
25:11
Speaker 1: with you know, a little bit of warmth or a
25:13
Speaker 1: grounded base that's going to help you out. And absolutely,
25:15
Speaker 1: as we've already said it, sample your colors on the
25:18
Speaker 1: wall before you make your paint purchase. You know, live
25:21
Speaker 1: with them throughout the whole day. You know, see what
25:23
Speaker 1: it looks like. At eight in the morning, See what
25:25
Speaker 1: it feels like at noon, See what it feels like
25:27
Speaker 1: in the evening. You know, you don't have to look
25:29
Speaker 1: at it in all seasons, but at least look at
25:31
Speaker 1: it through the course of a couple of days, and
25:33
Speaker 1: that will give you a really good idea which colors
25:35
Speaker 1: are best. All right, that's going to be it self
25:37
Speaker 1: facing rooms. They can be beautiful, cheerful, wonderful, versatile spaces,
25:42
Speaker 1: and with a little bit of thought you can make
25:43
Speaker 1: them work exactly the way you want. And we're absolutely
25:47
Speaker 1: here to help you do that. We've got color experts
25:49
Speaker 1: on staff at every single one of our Repcolite locations.
25:52
Speaker 1: Just swing in, bring your pictures, bring all your hopes
25:56
Speaker 1: and dreams, bring everything you've got, and we'll help you
26:00
Speaker 1: out which colors are going to work best in your situation.
26:02
Speaker 1: All right. Coming up next, we're talking paint blocking, What
26:06
Speaker 1: it is, why it happens, and how you can avoid
26:08
Speaker 1: it on your next project. That's right after This home
26:12
Speaker 1: in progress is brought to you by Repcolite Paints and
26:14
Speaker 1: Benjamin Moore. Top to your paint expert advice. Your next
26:18
Speaker 1: project is way easier than you think it's going to
26:20
Speaker 1: be well, let's talk about a common and incredibly frustrating
26:25
Speaker 1: paint problem, paint blocking. If you've ever painted a door
26:28
Speaker 1: and you've had it stick to the frame the next day,
26:31
Speaker 1: or you painted a shelf and then later, you know,
26:34
Speaker 1: found that your coffee mugs or your cups were kind
26:37
Speaker 1: of glued there. If you've ever had either of those things,
26:40
Speaker 1: you've experienced paint blocking. And sometimes when you try to
26:44
Speaker 1: pull the things apart, you end up getting peeling, tearing,
26:48
Speaker 1: sometimes even a completely ruined finish. It's really annoying. It
26:52
Speaker 1: feels like something went wrong. But the good news is
26:55
Speaker 1: it's totally preventable. We're going to get into that. And
26:58
Speaker 1: before we dive into the y and all of those
27:00
Speaker 1: things and how to avoid it, let's talk about the
27:03
Speaker 1: what you know, paint blocking. It's kind of a weird name, right,
27:07
Speaker 1: I mean paint sticking, paint I don't know what paint
27:11
Speaker 1: sticking that makes more sense. But the term blocking, you know,
27:14
Speaker 1: where does that come from? Well, it actually comes from
27:17
Speaker 1: the printing and manufacturing industries, where it describes materials that
27:21
Speaker 1: stick together when they shouldn't. You know, that's blocking. That
27:23
Speaker 1: term eventually made its way into the paint world. So
27:26
Speaker 1: now when you hear blocking, just think paint that's clinging
27:31
Speaker 1: where it shouldn't, you know, clinging to things that it
27:33
Speaker 1: shouldn't be clinging to. So why does paint blocking happen? Well,
27:37
Speaker 1: one of the biggest reasons is rushing the dry time.
27:40
Speaker 1: And I know we all do it. We all do.
27:43
Speaker 1: We're all guilty here. We're all in the little group
27:46
Speaker 1: sitting in a circle high. My name is Dan. I'm
27:49
Speaker 1: guilty of rushing the dry time on my paint. I
27:52
Speaker 1: end up with paint blocking all the time. We all
27:55
Speaker 1: do it. You paint a door, it feels kind of
27:58
Speaker 1: like it's dry to the tide. Right for me, it's
28:01
Speaker 1: kind of dry to the touch. Some of you you
28:03
Speaker 1: wait till it truly is dry to the touch, and
28:05
Speaker 1: then you close it for the night, and then the
28:07
Speaker 1: next morning it's stuck shot or you pull it open.
28:10
Speaker 1: More likely you pull it open. It's not that stuck shot.
28:13
Speaker 1: You pull it open and you hear a big crunching
28:15
Speaker 1: sound or a tearing sound or a big unsticking sound,
28:20
Speaker 1: and the door opens up and there's a whole bunch
28:22
Speaker 1: of paint missing from the edge. It's very frustrating. That
28:25
Speaker 1: happens because the paint can feel dry to the touch
28:28
Speaker 1: on the surface, but it's still going to be curing underneath.
28:33
Speaker 1: And if you trap that curing paint between two surfaces
28:36
Speaker 1: like a door and you know, the weather stripping, it's
28:39
Speaker 1: going to create that bond that pulls and peels when
28:41
Speaker 1: you try to break it. Another factor that causes it
28:44
Speaker 1: is paint quality. Low quality latex paints, especially in semi
28:49
Speaker 1: gloss or gloss. Low quality latex paints tend to stay
28:53
Speaker 1: tacky a bit longer, and that tackiness, of course, leads
28:57
Speaker 1: to sticking. Is tackiness ever good for any thing? I
29:00
Speaker 1: wish it was? I certainly wish tackiness had some kind
29:04
Speaker 1: of payout, you know, payoff in the real world, because
29:08
Speaker 1: I'd be rolling in dough if taxi paid for something.
29:11
Speaker 1: But taking normally doesn't do any good in this instance.
29:15
Speaker 1: It leads to sticking. And it's even worse in warm
29:18
Speaker 1: human conditions, where paint struggles to dry completely, you know,
29:21
Speaker 1: as it is. So how do you prevent paint blocking? Well,
29:24
Speaker 1: you start by choosing, you know, a high quality paint,
29:27
Speaker 1: and this is where it really pays off to go
29:30
Speaker 1: with something good, you know, We talk about that all
29:32
Speaker 1: the time. Good paint does make a difference, but I
29:34
Speaker 1: sell paint, so you know, you got to take that
29:38
Speaker 1: with you know, the amount of trust you place in
29:41
Speaker 1: what I'm saying. It really does, but you got to
29:43
Speaker 1: find that out for yourself. In this instance though, Oh man,
29:47
Speaker 1: it really makes a huge difference. Benjamin Moore's scuff X
29:50
Speaker 1: for example, you know the semigloss scuff X. All of
29:52
Speaker 1: the scuff X finishes, but Semigloss it's easily one of
29:57
Speaker 1: the best options on the market when you're talking semi loss.
30:01
Speaker 1: In terms of block resistance, So scuff X from Benjamin
30:04
Speaker 1: Moore incredible block resistance, especially in high traffic areas where
30:08
Speaker 1: surfaces might come into contact regularly. It's designed for commercial settings,
30:12
Speaker 1: so you know it's tough, but it really does work
30:15
Speaker 1: just as well in a home. So scuff X from
30:17
Speaker 1: Benjamin Moore. Can't recommend that enough for avoiding you know,
30:21
Speaker 1: paint blocking and all of that. The Aura Exterior Regal Select,
30:25
Speaker 1: there are other great options. You know, both are going
30:27
Speaker 1: to be durable, they're smooth, and they resist blocking very
30:31
Speaker 1: well during that tricky curing phase. All of those products
30:34
Speaker 1: are going to be better than just your standard run
30:37
Speaker 1: of the mill, water based you know, latex paint products,
30:40
Speaker 1: So get good stuff. It's going to matter. And no
30:44
Speaker 1: matter what paint you go with, make sure you secondarily,
30:47
Speaker 1: you know, we're talking about how to prevent it, make
30:49
Speaker 1: sure you follow the instructions on the label. You know,
30:51
Speaker 1: don't just go by feel when it comes to the
30:53
Speaker 1: dry time. Go by the manufacturer's recommendations. And make sure
30:57
Speaker 1: that you're painting in a well ventilated space. You know,
31:00
Speaker 1: good airflow really does help the paint dry and cure properly,
31:04
Speaker 1: and that's going to help you prevent that blocking. Now,
31:07
Speaker 1: a few practical things, you know, if you're painting a
31:09
Speaker 1: front door, I brought that up earlier. If you're painting
31:11
Speaker 1: a front door, there are a few additional things that
31:14
Speaker 1: you can try. You could paint early in the day,
31:16
Speaker 1: you know, start your painting then, and then leave that
31:18
Speaker 1: door open as long as possible before you have to
31:22
Speaker 1: close it. Hopefully you've got a screen. Are you going
31:24
Speaker 1: to be inviting all of the outside world, the nature inside,
31:28
Speaker 1: all the bugs and all of that. But if you've
31:30
Speaker 1: got a screen you're find or a storm door or
31:32
Speaker 1: something like that, try to leave your door open as
31:35
Speaker 1: long as possible before you have to close it. That's
31:37
Speaker 1: one thing you can try. You can also usually remove
31:39
Speaker 1: the weather stripping. You know, most of the time, it's
31:40
Speaker 1: really simple. You just use a flat tool like a
31:42
Speaker 1: putty knife or a painter's five and one tool if
31:45
Speaker 1: you've got one of those, even a flat screwdriver, and
31:48
Speaker 1: you use that to pop it out of the track
31:50
Speaker 1: and then just pull it out, super simple, and that
31:53
Speaker 1: should give you space to close the door without the
31:55
Speaker 1: freshly painted door edge coming into contact with anything. Then
31:58
Speaker 1: the next day, you know, and everything's good, you just
32:01
Speaker 1: easily pop the weather stripping back in. If you're curious
32:04
Speaker 1: how that works, you can't quite wrap your brain around it.
32:06
Speaker 1: I've got a link to a quick DIY video that
32:09
Speaker 1: I ran across demonstrating what that looks like and how
32:12
Speaker 1: to do it. I've got that all in the show notes.
32:15
Speaker 1: You know, paint blocking is not a glamorous, exciting, fun
32:18
Speaker 1: hilarious topic, but it is one of those behind the
32:22
Speaker 1: scenes kind of things that can really make or break
32:24
Speaker 1: the quality of your project. And once you know what
32:27
Speaker 1: causes it and how to avoid it, it's one of
32:30
Speaker 1: the easiest frustrations to eliminate. All right. If you have
32:33
Speaker 1: any questions on any paint project, remember everybody at Repcolite
32:37
Speaker 1: is waiting to help you know. We've seen it all.
32:40
Speaker 1: Trust me, we've seen it all. We would love to
32:42
Speaker 1: find something that we haven't seen yet. You know, we've
32:45
Speaker 1: been doing this for over seventy almost almost eighty years,
32:49
Speaker 1: and not each one of us, but the collective has
32:52
Speaker 1: been around for almost eighty years. So please, if you
32:55
Speaker 1: think you've got something we've never seen, stop in see
32:59
Speaker 1: if you can stump us. We'd love to help you out.
33:01
Speaker 1: All right. Do you want to easily and quickly improve
33:04
Speaker 1: the curve appeal of your home and better yet, do
33:06
Speaker 1: you want to do it for free? Completely for free? Well,
33:10
Speaker 1: we're going to talk about the project that I've got
33:12
Speaker 1: in mind. It's a good one, it's simple, and I'm
33:15
Speaker 1: going to tell you how one lucky listener is going
33:16
Speaker 1: to win a one hundred dollar repcoll Like gift certificate
33:19
Speaker 1: after the show wraps today. All of that's coming up
33:22
Speaker 1: right after this. This is home in progress where the
33:26
Speaker 1: to do list is long, and that's all right. We're
33:29
Speaker 1: not crabbing at you. We're not going to yell at you.
33:31
Speaker 1: That's how it is. It's how ours is too. It's
33:34
Speaker 1: probably supported by repcoll like Paints and Benjamin Moore because
33:37
Speaker 1: home projects are easier when you've got people you can trust,
33:41
Speaker 1: all right. You know a lot of times when people
33:44
Speaker 1: start thinking about the exterior, you know, updating the exterior
33:48
Speaker 1: of their home, we jump into big stuff, or at
33:51
Speaker 1: least our brains do. Our brains want to jump into
33:53
Speaker 1: big stuff, you know, new siding, landscaping, overhauls, replacing windows
33:58
Speaker 1: or doors. That's a big one that pops up for me.
34:01
Speaker 1: It's the driveway. I mean, oh my goodness, the driveway
34:04
Speaker 1: like a complete and utter overhaul of my driveway. It
34:08
Speaker 1: is like a dream to me if I could do that.
34:11
Speaker 1: You know, just thinking about it brings a little tear
34:14
Speaker 1: to the corner of my eye. My neighbor across the
34:18
Speaker 1: street had his driveway done last year, I think it was,
34:21
Speaker 1: and I think he's tired of me sitting in my
34:25
Speaker 1: yard directly across from his driveway, you know, just sitting
34:29
Speaker 1: there and admiring it. It's probably a little bit creepy,
34:33
Speaker 1: to be honest, I admit that, but his driveway looks
34:36
Speaker 1: so good. It is. Oh, it's a knife through the heart.
34:39
Speaker 1: I'm happy for him, right, I'm big hearted like that.
34:44
Speaker 1: But oh my goodness, if I could steal a driveway, No,
34:48
Speaker 1: I wouldn't do that. I would never advocate stealing anything,
34:51
Speaker 1: even a driveway, but man, I want that driveway anyway
34:55
Speaker 1: when it comes. I'm way off track when it comes
34:58
Speaker 1: to making our homes ba you know, look better, feel better,
35:02
Speaker 1: all of that. There are tons of amazing things that
35:04
Speaker 1: we think about adding, you know, all the things I
35:06
Speaker 1: talked about, But one of the simplest, most affordable ways
35:10
Speaker 1: to boost your curb appeal. And it's gonna sound boring,
35:12
Speaker 1: but one of the best ways to boost your curb
35:15
Speaker 1: appeal without tearing your yard apart or spending thousands of
35:18
Speaker 1: dollars you know, on doors or windows or whatever, and
35:21
Speaker 1: not stealing somebody's driveway, you know, without doing any of
35:25
Speaker 1: those things. All you need to do is repaint your shutters.
35:28
Speaker 1: It's a perfect weekend project. It's a small investment, quick turnaround,
35:32
Speaker 1: huge impact. Now, when it comes to shutters, a lot
35:35
Speaker 1: of different varieties out there. A lot of people, probably
35:38
Speaker 1: most people have vinyl shutters, but they're not the only
35:40
Speaker 1: kind out there, you know, we still see plenty of
35:43
Speaker 1: wood shutters, quite a few composite shutters, even some aluminum
35:46
Speaker 1: ones still lingering around, especially on mid century homes. And
35:50
Speaker 1: with all of those different varieties, different styles, different not styles,
35:54
Speaker 1: different materials, the good news is almost all of them
35:58
Speaker 1: can be painted. Not all of them, but almost all
36:00
Speaker 1: of them. The key is understanding the material you're working
36:03
Speaker 1: with so you can prep and paint it the right
36:05
Speaker 1: way and don't waste your time or money. All right,
36:07
Speaker 1: So let's talk about that and walk through the different
36:11
Speaker 1: types of materials out there and what you need to do.
36:13
Speaker 1: And let's start with vinyl shutters, since it's the most common.
36:17
Speaker 1: And if you go ahead and give her a goog
36:20
Speaker 1: you know, do a little googling about vinyl shutters and
36:22
Speaker 1: painting them. You're going to find a lot of conflicting
36:25
Speaker 1: info online about whether or not vinyl shutters can be painted.
36:29
Speaker 1: You're going to see plenty of experts, you know, I'm
36:32
Speaker 1: using little quotes, experts saying don't do it, the paint
36:35
Speaker 1: is not going to stick, don't bother, buy new. That's
36:39
Speaker 1: not the whole story. They're not entirely wrong, but they're
36:42
Speaker 1: not entirely right either. There are plenty of vinyl shutters
36:46
Speaker 1: that can be painted and which will hold paint beautifully.
36:49
Speaker 1: Mine are painted and they've held the paint for years
36:52
Speaker 1: and years and years and years. However, there are others
36:54
Speaker 1: that are not paintable, and the reason they're not paintable
36:58
Speaker 1: is they contain plasticizers. Plasticizers are just special chemicals that
37:02
Speaker 1: are used to make vinyl and other materials plastic materials
37:06
Speaker 1: more flexible and less brittle, so they last better and
37:09
Speaker 1: hold up better outside. Those plasticizers really cause trouble for
37:14
Speaker 1: paint when it comes to adhesion. You know, over time
37:17
Speaker 1: they migrate through the vinyl and they just break down
37:19
Speaker 1: the bond that you've got between the shutter itself and
37:23
Speaker 1: the paint that you put on it. And even if
37:25
Speaker 1: you use a bonding primer, you know, because a lot
37:27
Speaker 1: of people will think, okay, plasticizers, I'm going to go
37:30
Speaker 1: to some crazy, you know, really effective bonding primer that's
37:33
Speaker 1: going to stick to anything, you know, something like sticks
37:36
Speaker 1: from Benjamin Moore. I've talked about that over and over again.
37:39
Speaker 1: We use that on a ton of different scenarios and
37:42
Speaker 1: it's just unlike anything I've ever seen before. You can
37:46
Speaker 1: paint we've painted glossy tile without a lot of prep.
37:50
Speaker 1: I'd still recommend prep, but I did it for a show,
37:53
Speaker 1: you know, a home expo that we went to. I
37:56
Speaker 1: painted it without any prep. We painted half of that tile,
37:58
Speaker 1: that glossy tile with sticks, left the other half unpainted.
38:02
Speaker 1: Let people try to scratch it off. And they could
38:05
Speaker 1: scratch little, tiny, tiny little flakes of it off, but
38:08
Speaker 1: most of it ninety eight ninety nine percent of that
38:11
Speaker 1: primer bonded to that surface. Now. Sticks is not every
38:15
Speaker 1: time I talk about painting glossy tile, people think about
38:17
Speaker 1: a tub surround, a shower surround. It's not ideal for that,
38:21
Speaker 1: you know where there's going to be water like that,
38:23
Speaker 1: but for a kitchen, back splash or something along those
38:25
Speaker 1: lines painting those tiles. If you've got tiles in there
38:29
Speaker 1: and you're sick of the look, you can paint them
38:31
Speaker 1: and use sticks as a bonding primer. It's unlike anything
38:34
Speaker 1: I've ever seen. But it's not going to still work
38:37
Speaker 1: on these shutters that are not meant to be painted.
38:40
Speaker 1: Even the best bonding primer is going to struggle with
38:42
Speaker 1: the plasticizers and you're going to end up with peeling.
38:45
Speaker 1: Often in big sheets after just a season or two.
38:48
Speaker 1: So if the shutters are not paintable, don't bother. You
38:52
Speaker 1: just can't do it. But like I said earlier, a
38:54
Speaker 1: lot of them are paintable. And that leaves us with
38:57
Speaker 1: the big question, the big quandary, how do we figure
38:59
Speaker 1: out which which one we've got? Do you have the
39:02
Speaker 1: paintable ones or do you have the ones that are
39:03
Speaker 1: gonna self destruct in two years like a mission impossible message?
39:08
Speaker 1: How do you know? How do you get to that answer? Well, unfortunately,
39:12
Speaker 1: and this is a big sad this is a big
39:14
Speaker 1: sad reality on the show. Unfortunately, there's not really an
39:17
Speaker 1: easy test for this. Now. Logically, if they're already painted
39:21
Speaker 1: and they're not peeling, chances are they're paintable. All right,
39:24
Speaker 1: So you got that one, and let's play out the
39:26
Speaker 1: other possible scenarios out there. What if they're painted but
39:29
Speaker 1: they are peeling just a little bit. What then, Well,
39:31
Speaker 1: if you've got some peeling on your shutters, you're painted shutters,
39:35
Speaker 1: You're gonna have to do a little bit of testing.
39:37
Speaker 1: So start by scraping oh so gently. Let me say
39:40
Speaker 1: that one more time. Start by scraping oh so gently
39:44
Speaker 1: at the peeling spots with a putty knife, you know,
39:47
Speaker 1: just lightly go after them. Be sure you don't damage
39:50
Speaker 1: the material, you know, the shutter itself. I don't want
39:52
Speaker 1: those emails. You know. The radio guy told me to
39:54
Speaker 1: scrape my vinyl shutters, and now I've got big grooves
39:57
Speaker 1: in them. Nope, I said, be careful. I said, go
40:00
Speaker 1: oh so gently, so gently, scrape at the paint that's peeling,
40:04
Speaker 1: and see what happens if it lifts off easily around
40:07
Speaker 1: the peeling spot and more and more comes off. Well again,
40:11
Speaker 1: you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure
40:12
Speaker 1: out that those shouldn't have been painted in the first
40:14
Speaker 1: place and shouldn't continue to be painted. It's just not
40:17
Speaker 1: going to hold up. On the other hand, if only
40:19
Speaker 1: small flakes come up and the rest of the surface
40:22
Speaker 1: is solid, you're probably fine. You know, it's just a
40:24
Speaker 1: small area where there was some problems. You can get
40:27
Speaker 1: that cleaned up and fix it and you're good to go.
40:29
Speaker 1: All right, So that's already painted vinyl shutters. That's how
40:32
Speaker 1: you would test. What if they're not painted right now
40:34
Speaker 1: and you don't have any of the original packaging, what
40:37
Speaker 1: do you do then? Well, if that's the case. Really,
40:39
Speaker 1: it's a little trick here. There's not a really good
40:41
Speaker 1: answer here. If you can determine the brand and the
40:43
Speaker 1: model of your shutters, you know, maybe pull one off
40:46
Speaker 1: and see if they're stickers or anything on the backside,
40:49
Speaker 1: that would tell you what it is. You can do
40:51
Speaker 1: a little research and find out or talk to a dealer,
40:54
Speaker 1: you might be able to figure out if they're paintable
40:56
Speaker 1: or not. If you can't determine that info, you're probably
40:59
Speaker 1: bad not to paint those. It's probably you're running the
41:03
Speaker 1: risk that it's a lot of work that's going to
41:05
Speaker 1: just peel off down the road. If that's the case,
41:09
Speaker 1: then you need to change the color. You're probably better
41:10
Speaker 1: off just buying new in that instance. Now, once you
41:14
Speaker 1: know that your shutters are paintable, the process from that
41:16
Speaker 1: point on is really straightforward. You take them down. You know,
41:19
Speaker 1: usually a few screws, you know, there's screws at the corners.
41:23
Speaker 1: You could leave them up to paint them, but that's
41:24
Speaker 1: going to be a little more difficult to work with,
41:26
Speaker 1: so ideally take them down, clean them really well. Don
41:29
Speaker 1: dish soap works great, so does Crudcutter. We sell that
41:33
Speaker 1: challenger another product we sell tsp tri sodium phosphate. All
41:37
Speaker 1: of those cleaners would work really well. Pick one of them,
41:40
Speaker 1: and then scrub the shutters well with a tire brush
41:42
Speaker 1: or something along those lines. Powerwashing alone isn't usually enough.
41:47
Speaker 1: The scrubbing is really what makes the cleaning step effective.
41:50
Speaker 1: So scrub them well and then rinse them and once
41:52
Speaker 1: they're dry, you're ready for paint. And for the painting itself,
41:56
Speaker 1: a Wooster Jumbo coder roller makes the job easy on
41:58
Speaker 1: the flat surfaces, and then you finish up with a
42:01
Speaker 1: brush for the edges in the corners and maybe the
42:04
Speaker 1: louvers or whatever you've got, you know, depending on the
42:06
Speaker 1: style of the shutters. And a quick aside here, if
42:09
Speaker 1: you're going to use a brush outside, use a nylon
42:12
Speaker 1: brush or a nylon blend brush. Don't go with a
42:15
Speaker 1: polyester brush. You know, polyester bristles. They're going to bring
42:18
Speaker 1: the price of the brush down. They're cheaper, but they
42:21
Speaker 1: also soften up quite a bit when you're working outside
42:24
Speaker 1: in high temperatures like what we've got in summers in Michigan,
42:28
Speaker 1: and the result of that is they get really soft,
42:30
Speaker 1: they get droopy, they get floppy, they're not easy to
42:33
Speaker 1: work with outside in the heat. They're not fun in
42:36
Speaker 1: painting by all means, and by all measures should be fun.
42:39
Speaker 1: Nylon bristles or blends aren't going to do that. They're
42:42
Speaker 1: going to stay the way you want them to, and
42:44
Speaker 1: it's going to just be a lot easier to work with.
42:46
Speaker 1: So don't go with the cheap o brush on this.
42:49
Speaker 1: You're going to regret that, So get the right tools.
42:51
Speaker 1: Apply one to two coats of a high quality acrylic
42:54
Speaker 1: latex paint like Benjamin Moore's Regal Select Exterior or an
42:58
Speaker 1: Exterior Element gar Repcolites Endura. All of these products have
43:03
Speaker 1: excellent adhesion, durability, color retention, all of those things, and
43:07
Speaker 1: if you use one of those products, you're not going
43:10
Speaker 1: to need a primer. Just go straight to your finish paint.
43:12
Speaker 1: And one last thing. On vinyl shutters, make sure your
43:15
Speaker 1: new color is the same or lighter than the original
43:18
Speaker 1: shutter color. If you go darker than that original color,
43:21
Speaker 1: the shutters can heat up way too much in the
43:23
Speaker 1: sun and they can actually warp and sag. People don't
43:27
Speaker 1: always realize that, sometimes they don't even believe it, but
43:30
Speaker 1: it can cause permanent damage and then you're going to
43:33
Speaker 1: end up replacing them anyway, and there's nothing worse than
43:36
Speaker 1: that is going through all the work of repainting something
43:40
Speaker 1: and then finding out you melted them a little bit,
43:42
Speaker 1: made them sag, and now you've got to buy new
43:44
Speaker 1: ones anyway. So stick with the same color or lighter
43:47
Speaker 1: when you're choosing your new color. Now what about wood shutters, Well,
43:50
Speaker 1: these are much more straightforward when it comes to painting,
43:53
Speaker 1: and really, if they're structurally sound, painting them is a
43:55
Speaker 1: great way to bring them back to life. As with
43:57
Speaker 1: any wood surface, you're going to start with the cleaning.
44:00
Speaker 1: Don TSP Credcutter, Challenger, all those cleaners that I mentioned earlier,
44:04
Speaker 1: they're great. Do that, and then scrape or sand off
44:08
Speaker 1: any loose paint. If the shutters are shiny as it is,
44:11
Speaker 1: you've got to sand them and dull them down. Do
44:13
Speaker 1: all of that. After you've done that initial washing. You
44:16
Speaker 1: know there's a lot of contaminants that build up on
44:19
Speaker 1: surfaces and you don't want to sand that into the
44:22
Speaker 1: finish and then try to wash it, So you do
44:25
Speaker 1: have to do the washing first, then do that sanding,
44:28
Speaker 1: and then after you've done all of that, do another
44:30
Speaker 1: quick rint to make sure you've got all that sanding
44:32
Speaker 1: dust off and then let it dry. Once it's dry,
44:35
Speaker 1: you're ready for paint. If you're down to bare wood
44:37
Speaker 1: in some places, you're going to want to spot prime
44:39
Speaker 1: those areas. But if the surface is already coated and
44:43
Speaker 1: it's in good shape, you can skip the primer on
44:45
Speaker 1: these and go straight to the finished coat, especially if
44:48
Speaker 1: you're using products like the ones i've already recommended, Regal Select, Aura,
44:52
Speaker 1: element Guard and Dura. You know all of those products.
44:55
Speaker 1: Endura is a Repcolite product. All of those are going
44:57
Speaker 1: to have excellent adhesion and durability. So that's wood shutters.
45:01
Speaker 1: What about composite shutters, Well, they're often made from a
45:05
Speaker 1: mixture of materials, you know, engineered would PBC blends. These
45:09
Speaker 1: can also be painted successfully. Many of them are going
45:12
Speaker 1: to come to you pre primed. So if that's the case,
45:15
Speaker 1: just clean the surface thoroughly and apply your top coat. Again,
45:18
Speaker 1: a separate primer isn't necessary in the situation, you know,
45:22
Speaker 1: unless you're dealing with a bare material or significant staining
45:25
Speaker 1: of any kind. And if that's the case, step out
45:28
Speaker 1: at any Repcolite and you know, bring a sample in
45:31
Speaker 1: so we can see what you're working with and we'll
45:32
Speaker 1: help you get the right product. If you're just starting
45:36
Speaker 1: from scratch, you're going to want to talk to the
45:38
Speaker 1: manufacturer of the shutter that you've got, and they've got
45:41
Speaker 1: finishing recommendations as well, so make sure you double check
45:45
Speaker 1: with all of that. And it's really straightforward. You should
45:48
Speaker 1: be able to use a good acrylically text paint pick
45:51
Speaker 1: one like I showed, like I already recommended. All of
45:54
Speaker 1: those products are great. They're going to have great flexibility
45:56
Speaker 1: and UV resistance. They'll be perfect. Finally, last material that
46:00
Speaker 1: I want to talk about. Last shutter that I want
46:02
Speaker 1: to talk about are aluminum shutters, and they're not quite
46:05
Speaker 1: as common today, but they're still out there. You can
46:06
Speaker 1: still find them. And painting these super simple, really similar
46:10
Speaker 1: to all the other shutters. Not a big difference here.
46:13
Speaker 1: You know, you've got to make sure they're clean, dry,
46:15
Speaker 1: and dull. You know, that's basically what it boigles down to.
46:18
Speaker 1: So clean the surface with a good cleaner and be
46:20
Speaker 1: sure to scrub it before rinsing. Here's one thing that's
46:24
Speaker 1: a little bit different. Aluminum can often exhibit chalking. You know,
46:27
Speaker 1: it occurs when the surface oxidizes and it leaves this white,
46:30
Speaker 1: powdery residue. You know, if you rub your hand over it,
46:33
Speaker 1: you'll get some of that off on your hand. And
46:36
Speaker 1: when you see that, you've got to get that off.
46:39
Speaker 1: Power Washing alone doesn't usually remove all of that, and
46:43
Speaker 1: you've got to get a scrub brush and actually scrub it.
46:46
Speaker 1: And nobody likes to hear that because it feels like
46:48
Speaker 1: a lot of extra work. But when you think about it,
46:50
Speaker 1: you know, if you get a power washer and you've
46:52
Speaker 1: got a dirty car, and you power wash your car
46:55
Speaker 1: and maybe one half of it, you actually get the
46:58
Speaker 1: little little mint, you know, the that looks like a
47:00
Speaker 1: little sheep, and you put it on your hand. What
47:02
Speaker 1: it doesn't look like a sheep unless you've got like
47:05
Speaker 1: a kid version of it. But it's wooly. That's what
47:07
Speaker 1: I was trying to say. You get the little wooly
47:10
Speaker 1: mitt and you scrub and wash one half of your
47:12
Speaker 1: car and then rinse it as well with a power washer,
47:15
Speaker 1: and then the other half you just rinse with a
47:17
Speaker 1: power washer. You're gonna notice the difference. The side that
47:20
Speaker 1: you actually scrub is going to be a lot cleaner.
47:22
Speaker 1: That plays out in everything. When you're doing exterior painting
47:26
Speaker 1: of any kind, you know, painting your siding or all
47:29
Speaker 1: of that, the scrubbing really really helps. In addition to
47:33
Speaker 1: the power washing. Don't just rely on power washing, so
47:36
Speaker 1: really wash these aluminum shutters down, scrub them well, rinse
47:41
Speaker 1: it once it's dry. All you need to do is
47:43
Speaker 1: go to any of those paints I recommended and they'll
47:46
Speaker 1: be great. So once Again or Exterior Regal Select Exterior
47:50
Speaker 1: Element Guard from Benjamin Moore Repcolites Endua. All of them
47:53
Speaker 1: are great. No primers needed. Painting your shutters. It's a
47:57
Speaker 1: fast project with a huge payoff. You know, standards, shutter
48:00
Speaker 1: is usually about eighteen inches wide four feet tall, roughly
48:03
Speaker 1: about six square feet, and that means even a full
48:06
Speaker 1: set of shutters on your house isn't going to require
48:08
Speaker 1: much paint. Quarter or two is going to go a
48:11
Speaker 1: long ways. Now. Of course, if your shutters aren't paintable
48:14
Speaker 1: or they're falling apart, replacement is the way to go.
48:17
Speaker 1: But keep in mind, if they can be painted. New
48:20
Speaker 1: vinyl shutters, you know, pretty much the lowest price option
48:22
Speaker 1: out there, even they run from like twenty five to
48:26
Speaker 1: fifty bucks apiece. Somewhere in that range. You can find
48:28
Speaker 1: them cheaper, you can find them more expensive. That's a
48:31
Speaker 1: good little average twenty five bucks fifty bucks a piece.
48:35
Speaker 1: All the other types are more expensive, so if you're
48:38
Speaker 1: replacing all of your shutters, it adds up fast. Painting,
48:41
Speaker 1: on the other hand, costs a fraction of all of that,
48:44
Speaker 1: and you can do it in a single weekend. If
48:46
Speaker 1: you have any questions about this project, stop out at
48:49
Speaker 1: your closest Repcolite and let us help. Not right, I
48:51
Speaker 1: want to make the project even more affordable. I said
48:54
Speaker 1: I was going to do that, and I'm going to
48:55
Speaker 1: and I've got two things that I can do. First, off,
48:59
Speaker 1: element Guard from ben More. It's one of the products
49:01
Speaker 1: i'd recommend on any of these surfaces. It's on sale
49:04
Speaker 1: for the rest of July at all a Repcolite locations.
49:07
Speaker 1: You can pick it up for about twenty bucks off
49:09
Speaker 1: per gallon, so everybody can take advantage of that savings
49:13
Speaker 1: through the end of the month. So that's one way
49:15
Speaker 1: you can save some money. Second, I'm going to be
49:17
Speaker 1: giving away a one hundred dollars gift certificate every week
49:20
Speaker 1: for the next four weeks to one lucky listener. Every
49:23
Speaker 1: single week, so entering the contest is really easy. All
49:26
Speaker 1: you need to do is email me at radio at
49:30
Speaker 1: repco light dot com. R E P C O L
49:32
Speaker 1: I T E dot com. Email me at radio at
49:36
Speaker 1: repco light dot com. Tell me what the next project
49:38
Speaker 1: is for your home inside outside. I don't care. What's
49:42
Speaker 1: the next project you're going to tackle. Email that to
49:44
Speaker 1: radio at repcolight dot com and I'm going to choose
49:47
Speaker 1: the seventh entry and that person's going to win one
49:50
Speaker 1: hundred dollars Repcolite gift certificate to get you started. All right,
49:53
Speaker 1: that's going to do it for this week. If you
49:55
Speaker 1: want to catch this episode again, you can find it
49:57
Speaker 1: online at repco light dot com or search for Home
50:00
Speaker 1: Progress wherever you get your podcasts. Whatever you do today
50:03
Speaker 1: makes your paints a part of it. And remember, your
50:05
Speaker 1: next project is way easier than you think it's going
50:07
Speaker 1: to be, So jump in, get moving on it, get
50:10
Speaker 1: it crossed off your list. You're gonna feel like a
50:13
Speaker 1: million bucks. It feels great to cross those things off,
50:15
Speaker 1: get it done. Stop out at any rep Caollite and
50:17
Speaker 1: let us help have a great weekend. Everybody. I'll see
50:20
Speaker 1: you next week. I'm Dan Hansen, thanks for listening.