Prep Like a Pro: 5 Steps Before You Open a Can

Ask any veteran painter what separates a five-year paint job from a fifteen-year one and you'll get the same answer: what happened before the lid came off. Here's the prep sequence we run on every project — and that you should run on yours.

Step 1 — Wash the Surface

Paint won't bond to dust, chalk, salt film or mildew. Exteriors get a full pressure wash (with a mildew treatment on shaded walls) and at least 24–48 hours to dry. Interiors get a wipe-down — kitchens and bathrooms especially, where grease and residue quietly ruin adhesion.

Step 2 — Repair and Patch

Fill nail holes, skim dents, and patch stucco cracks with the right filler — spackle inside, elastomeric or masonry patch outside. Sand patches flush once dry. A patch you can feel with your palm will be visible from across the room once paint hits it.

Step 3 — Caulk Every Gap

Caulk where trim meets wall, where siding meets windows, and anywhere two materials touch. In Florida this isn't cosmetic: every unsealed gap is a moisture entry point that will bubble your paint from behind. Use a paintable siliconized acrylic and tool it smooth.

Step 4 — Prime the Right Spots

You rarely need to prime everything, but you always need to prime something: bare drywall and patches, stains (with a stain-blocking primer), bare or chalky stucco, glossy surfaces after scuff-sanding, and any dramatic color change. Skipping spot-prime is the #1 reason patches "flash" through the finish coat.

Step 5 — Mask and Protect

Good masking is speed, not fuss: crisp tape lines at ceilings and trim, floors covered wall to wall, outlets and hinges taped or removed. The ten minutes spent taping a bathroom saves an hour of scraping specks off tile.

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