Painting - Painting Exterior - DIY?

Considering painting the house myself. 1 story 1100 square foot stucco house, all walls reachable with an extension roller. I know this is a DIY project but I can't think of anything I enjoy less than painting.

On the pain in the :eek: scale, is this project closer to 1 or 10?

IMO it's a piece of cake....... but I am a painter by trade :D

I think the biggest mistake that diyers make when painting is trying to stretch the paint - making a roller full of paint go too far. If you keep the roller full of paint [dip it often] the paint will act as a lubricant and the roller will glide across the wall.

Unless it is smooth stucco, a 1"-1.5" roller nap would be the size to use.

Maybe I'll give it a shot. How do I paint near the foundation? Three of the four sides have flower beds close or at the foundation walls.

Very carefully :D:D

Obviously you will need to cover them, probably with something light weight so you don't damage them. I like to use an old sheet. Don't use plastic - heat can build up under the plastic and hurt the plants :eek:

That takes care of painting above them. Behind them you basically gently pull them away from the wall with your hand or maybe a short piece of cardboard. Hopefully when you turn them loose, they won't stick to the paint.

I am going to hire someone. Can you recommend a quality exterior paint?

Benjamen Moore makes a good exterier paint.

SWP also sells quality coatings. Most painting contractors will have 1-2 stores that they prefer to deal with. Most paint manufactures make several grades of paint - you should be fine using one [from most any paint store] of their higher lines of paint. The main thing is to stay away from contractors that either use bottom line coatings or buy their paints from a big box - a real painter would know better.

Hired a pro who uses Benjamin Moore paint and could not be more pleased. There is NO WAY I could have done as well as they did.