Homeowners often face trouble to choose between solid stain and paint, when it comes to refinishing their house siding. Wood siding is considered the best way to provide both beauty and protection to a home. It also brings a warm and traditional feel to any home. If you want to safeguard the gorgeousness of natural wood siding, the exterior surface of the siding should be painted or stained regularly.
Is Solid Stain Better Than Paint for My House Siding?
Paint or stain prevents moisture entry, wood rot, and pest entry. It also keeps your house siding looking its best. However, the big question is whether to use paint or stain when it comes to maintaining the house siding.
Difference between Paint and Stain:
In bare eyes, we cannot identify any differences between solid stain and paint, since they are almost identical to each other. Paint and solid stain, both create a layer on the wood surface where they are applied and they don’t have the tendency to penetrate the wood. Both solid stain and paint are available just about any color and they provide the longest and strongest protection for house siding.
However, the most important advantage of stain is that it will expand and contract more with the wood and it also ensures the changing weather better. Unlike the paint, stain is more breathable and allows more natural airflow through the wood. On the other hand, paint will dry quickly in a thicker coat and provides a more extensive barrier.
Stain or Paint – Which Product To Use?
It will be wise if you stick to the same product that was previously applied, whether paint or stain. This is especially required in case if you have currently painted siding because it needs a lot of sanding and priming in order to stain the wood siding that was previously painted. However, if your home was previously stained, it is not a very laborious task to switch to paint.
Typically, if you have a newer home, the product you choose for your house siding should be based on your goals for how it is going to look and how often it will need maintenance. If you want to get the most out of the normal quality of the wood siding, you can use semi-transparent stain. On the other hand, to get a solid color and longer protection, you should use solid-color stain since it requires lower maintenance, or if you want a heavier barrier, you can go for paint.
If you are in Westchester NY or Fairfield County CT, give us a call and schedule an in-home consultation.
