How to Paint Victorian Houses
Choosing the appropriate paint scheme for a Victorian house enhances its beauty and charm. Using the correct repair and painting techniques increases its appearance and function. With careful consideration, planning and organization, modern homemakers can create great curbside appeal for their Victorian treasures.
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Things You'll Need
- Extension ladder or scaffolding
- Step ladder
- Flat bar
- Lengths of clapboard
- Plastic wood
- Work gloves
- Plexiglas goggles
- Face mask or respirator
- Rotary or disc sander
- Wire brushes
- Electric paint removers, optional
- Caulk gun
- Caulk
- Putty knife
- Putty
- 4-inch Chinese bristle brush
- Primer in light neutral shade
- Finish primer in darker neutral shade
- Paint in desired colors
- Clear wood preservative, optional
- Boiled linseed oil
- Turpentine
Instructions
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Select house colors based on style of home, amount of contrast desired and porch treatment wanted. If home is Federal, Classical or Greek revival style, opt for light, pastel tones such as white, off-white, buff, pale yellow or soft gray on exterior walls, contrasting color for trim, and dark green for shutters and doors. If home is Queen Anne or similar style, select natural tones such as green, brown, rust and dark gray with one or two complementary or contrasting colors on trim and gingerbread. If early Georgian style, choose dark buff, blue or brown for walls and trim colors with less contrast to the walls. Use several colors for porch and fretwork, or feature ornamental glazed tiles on porch walls and polished red tiles on floors. Alternatively, imitate nature by painting porch ceilings light blue and floors white, gray or green. To avoid painting porch floors, use tiles or wood preservative.
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Paint walls. Repair any damaged sections of wall, gutters and eaves. Caulk minor cracks in clapboards. Replace old clapboards by using bar to pry them out from under good one above. Check that no cut nails or splintered pieces remain behind damaged clapboards. Butt new clapboard against neighboring board; mark cutting location. Make slight back cut to angle surface toward outside of joint to prevent opening between boards. Slip new clapboard under board above; nail into place.
Wearing gloves and face mask, use rotary sander to scrape and sand old boards. If desired, apply electric paint remover to soften old paint in small areas. Caulk joints with caulk gun where surfaces meet. Fill nail holes with putty and putty knife. Apply primer to all surfaces. Apply one coat of finish primer. Let dry from 12 to 48 hours. As soon as finish primer is dry, apply finish coat of main paint color. For each coat, load brush well and paint the underside of two or more clapboards. Load brush again and paint vertical surfaces. Repeat until walls are painted.
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Paint trim. Repair or replace damaged trim pieces. Fill cracks with plastic wood and caulk door and window frames. Wear gloves, goggles and face mask. Scrape off old paint. Use wire brushes to remove loose paint from irregular surfaces and feather edges between old paint and any bare spots. Paint in desired color as for walls. Back-prime--paint surfaces not directly exposed to weather--all trim before attaching to provide extra protection and stabilization, and to reduce warping and curling.
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Paint porch. Repair any damaged sections of ceiling, floor, fretwork, railings and steps. Wear gloves, goggles and face mask. Use stepladder to reach ceiling. Scrape off old paint; paint in desired colors as for walls. If using tiles, grout and set tiles. If using wood preservative, apply one coat. Follow with mixed linseed oil and turpentine. Allow mixture to soak into and penetrate wood. Avoid raw linseed oil because of its slow drying time.
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Tips & Warnings
Study historical records to identify original colors of house or common color schemes for house style. Select colors as historically accurate as possible.
Old paints contain lead. Use extreme caution to avoid inhaling paint dust or working near children. Lay tarps or drop cloths under work area and vacuum regularly. Do not work on windy days, or smoke or eat in work area. Wash work clothes separately.
Use proper techniques when working with scaffolding or ladders. Lean extension ladders at safe angles to the wall. Only use appropriate planks on scaffolds and attach them firmly to a stable anchor. Ensure step ladders are fully open, locked and evenly set before using.
