How to Paint Exterior Raw Wood

Exterior raw wood lasts longer if it's painted properly.

Exterior raw wood is painted to preserve the wood from the weather. Leaving the wood exposed can cause the wood to warp and discolor. Painting the wood also beautifies it. The most common areas to paint on the exterior of a home are the door casings and door trim, beneath the edge of the roof eves (this area is called the soffit), around windows and any trim on the exterior of the home. If wood siding was used to cover the body of the home then this will also need to be painted.

Things You'll Need

• 100-grit sandpaper
• Dust brush
• Tack cloth
• Exterior caulk
• Caulking gun
• Wood putty
• Putty knife
• Painter's rags
• 120-grit sanding block
• Wood primer paint
• Hand-held paint holder
• Paintbrush
• Mini roller
• 5-gallon bucket
• 9-inch roller frame
• Roller cover, 1/2-inch nap
• Extension pole
• 120-grit sandpaper
• Exterior finish paint

Instructions

Sanding, Caulking and Puttying

1. Sand all rough wood surfaces with 100-grit sandpaper or 100-grit sanding blocks until these areas are smooth. Common areas where sanding is needed are where two pieces of wood come together to form a joint. Dust the surfaces with a dust brush and a tack cloth.

2. Load a tube of caulk into a caulking gun.

3. Scrape a plum-sized ball of wood putty out of a tub of putty and hold it in your hand.

4. Fill all of the nail holes, scratches, dents or gouges in the woodwork with wood putty using your fingers and a putty knife.

5. Caulk all cracks, seams and joints between the woodwork with caulk. Run your finger over the bead of caulk to smooth it out. Wipe the excess caulk off of your finger onto a wet painter's rag. Use a wet rag to wipe off any excess caulk from the woodwork. Allow the caulk and wood putty to dry for 24 hours.

6. Check holes and cracks to see if the putty or caulking has shrunk. Reapply putty and caulk in areas where it shrank. This shrinking is normal. Fill the hole or seam until it is flush with the surface of the wood. You may have to repeat this a few times in problem areas until all of the woodwork looks like one solid piece. Allow the caulk and wood putty to dry another 24 hours.

7. Sand the ares where wood putty was used until smooth using a 120-grit sanding block. Sand any rough wood areas while you are going over the wood-puttied spots until the woodwork on the entire home is smooth. If there are areas that are meant to be rough, leave those alone. Dust the woodwork with a dust brush and a tack cloth.

Priming and Painting

1. Pour a few inches of wood priming paint into a hand-held paint holder. The paint holder should be large enough to handle a paintbrush and a small paint roller.

2. Dip the bristles of a paintbrush and a roller in the primer until both are loaded with paint. Roll the roller up and down on the inside surface of the paint holder to sponge the paint into the nap fibers.

3. Prime all of the woodwork on the home. Use the paintbrush to get the areas where the roller won't fit and use the roller for the larger surfaces. If the home has large ares of unpainted raw wood, use a 5-gallon bucket and a 9-inch roller frame equipped with a 1/2-inch nap roller cover. Screw an extension pole into the handle of the roller for hard-to-reach areas. Allow the primer paint to dry for 24 hours.

4. Sand the primer coat of paint with 120-grit sandpaper. Fold a piece of sandpaper up in a square and hold it in your hand while sanding the primer coat. Sand enough to remove the rough feeling on the wood, but not so much that you remove the primer paint. Dust all surfaces using a dust brush and a tack cloth.

5. Apply the finish coat of paint over the primer coat using the paintbrush, small roller and 9-inch roller. Do this in the same manner you applied the primer paint. Do not sand the finish coat.

6. Apply a second coat of finish paint 24 hours after the first coat has dried.

Tips & Warnings

• Work from the top of the house downward when sanding, puttying, caulking and painting.

• Avoid sanding areas where caulk has been applied, to avoid gumming up the surface.