# Recommend a prep please



## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

Hi guys. Just found the forum today. Hopefully, you will be able to help me out. I'm a wannabe house flipper but I took on a job for an acquaintance painting their home's exterior while I wait for my house to sell. 

They have beveled cedar lap siding. It had been painted about 9 years ago they said, but the paint still seems to be in decent shape. This is MN btw, so I was kind of surprised. Apparently it was PP Ultra they had on there. 

Anyway, I wanted to see what I could improve for them during the prep stage and I noticed this: (see first pic) I told them I would try to smooth that out and hide that bumpy appearance. I figured there would be some kind of wood filler I could spread on there and sand it down before I applied the top coat. I was a little surprised when I asked the sales rep at Sherwin Williams. I showed him the pic and he handed me a can of oil-based primer. I trustingly followed his advice and I got the results from the second pic. 

What do you think? I bow to your expertise.  Was the rep correct? Am I good to go with the top coat or should I do something different on the front of the house? Thanks a million.

-Tim C


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

Sorry guys my pics didn't attach. I'm doing all this from my phone so I'll attach the pics once I get home if I have to. Thanks for bearing with me.

OK, I attached the pics to my original post. How do I delete this message?


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Scrape, oil prime, caulk, apply top coat. All done.

Yes the rep was correct. Benjamin Moore has a high build primer that fills in a little better than SW.


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

cdpainting said:


> Scrape, oil prime, caulk, apply top coat. All done.
> 
> Yes the rep was correct. Benjamin Moore has a high build primer that fills in a little better than SW.



Just to be sure I understand correctly, I should skim coat area with caulk?


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

No. Caulk the edges of the siding to the trim. If you want it smoother power sand the siding. Using any type of wood filler or wood bondo is creating a lot more work.


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

cdpainting said:


> No. Caulk the edges of the siding to the trim. If you want it smoother power sand the siding. Using any type of wood filler or wood bondo is creating a lot more work.



Ok. Thanks a lot for the responses! I might give that high-build primer from Benjamin Moore a try. I have a store right next to my house. If that's not smooth enough for my client, I might sand it like you suggest. That makes sense when I think about it. Why spend cash on a fake-wood product that might fall off eventually when I can just remove a little paint and real wood to get a consistent surface? 

Any other opinions out there?


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## premierpainter (Apr 17, 2007)

No need to sand fully. I would because that's what we do. That would come off very easily.


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## driftweed (May 26, 2013)

csiholdings said:


> Hi guys. Just found the forum today. Hopefully, you will be able to help me out. I'm a wannabe house flipper but I took on a job for an acquaintance painting their home's exterior while I wait.....
> 
> -Tim C


So...are you or are you not a professional painter?

DIY'er usually get referred elsewhere...am I correct mods?


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## I paint paint (May 4, 2014)

If what I see in the pics is white primer and brown paint,

Some painters use a gray or deep base or tinted towards topcoat primer.


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

I'm definitely NOT a DIY'er. I did however, come here seeking advice from those with more expertise than myself. I get paid to paint. I have done much, much, much more painting than your average person off the street. Some would consider that professional. Not saying that I do. Is there a forum for poser wannabe painters?


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

The brown paint is the color from 9 years ago. I have not discussed the top coat color that will be applied. Does that make a difference of how I should prep this area?


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

premierpainter said:


> No need to sand fully. I would because that's what we do. That would come off very easily.


You're right in thinking this is very minor. I was thinking sanding might almost be overkill considering the old paint is still well adhered. That's why I was curious how the "true pros" would handle something like this. It seems like the consensus here so far is that I should go ahead and sand it if I want perfection. If I read between the lines of your post, it seems we both want the best finish possible.

How would some of you pros handle this?


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## MikeCalifornia (Aug 26, 2012)

That's a perfect job for SW PrimeRx, I'm surprised they did not recommend it to you. The oil is fine too, just a pain to clean your tools. If your flipping the house, you are going above and beyond what some painters would do.


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

Put some flat paint on there and call it good. (After the primer of course)


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

csiholdings said:


> You're right in thinking this is very minor. I was thinking sanding might almost be overkill considering the old paint is still well adhered. That's why I was curious how the "true pros" would handle something like this. It seems like the consensus here so far is that I should go ahead and sand it if I want perfection. If I read between the lines of your post, it seems we both want the best finish possible.
> 
> How would some of you pros handle this?



How any of us painters would handle this depends upon the customers expectations, which you have yet to explain. Some customers are ok with an old house having some visible imperfections as long as it's structurally sound. Without any of us knowing what your customer wants, you won't get the answer you're looking for.


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## Surreal Painting (May 10, 2015)

Sherwin also has a high build primer. Haven't compared it to the BM one.


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

MikeCalifornia said:


> That's a perfect job for SW PrimeRx, I'm surprised they did not recommend it to you. The oil is fine too, just a pain to clean your tools. If your flipping the house, you are going above and beyond what some painters would do.


I looked into PrimeRx a little. That does look perfect for my application. Thank you so much for suggesting it. :thumbup: This one I'm not flipping but I'm doing it for an acquaintance of mine so I want to do the best I can for her. I'm going back to the SW store today to pick up some PrimeRx. I'll post pics so people can see side-by-side results to compare. 

I visited your website. That before/after is astounding. I had to keep looking back at the before shot to be sure. That was all paint wasn't it?


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## csiholdings (Jul 20, 2015)

stelzerpaintinginc. said:


> How any of us painters would handle this depends upon the customers expectations, which you have yet to explain. Some customers are ok with an old house having some visible imperfections as long as it's structurally sound. Without any of us knowing what your customer wants, you won't get the answer you're looking for.



From my OP:
"Anyway, I wanted to see what I could improve for them during the prep stage and I noticed this: (see first pic) I told them I would try to smooth that out and hide that bumpy appearance."

I set the expectation for them. I have high standards. It's a curse.


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

Surreal Painting said:


> Sherwin also has a high build primer. Haven't compared it to the BM one.


Same here but other way around.


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## MikeCalifornia (Aug 26, 2012)

csiholdings said:


> I looked into PrimeRx a little. That does look perfect for my application. Thank you so much for suggesting it. :thumbup: This one I'm not flipping but I'm doing it for an acquaintance of mine so I want to do the best I can for her. I'm going back to the SW store today to pick up some PrimeRx. I'll post pics so people can see side-by-side results to compare.
> 
> I visited your website. That before/after is astounding. I had to keep looking back at the before shot to be sure. That was all paint wasn't it?


You looking at the pic of the exterior in my testimonial section? If so that was very bad t-111 siding that was peeling bad. I used prime rx to spot prime then a full prime of Problock Latex then Duration Flat. Plus all the vertical boards were caulked after primer.


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

I would take and use the BM primer over SW any day, all day, every day.:whistling2:


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