Well it’s that time of year again. To paint or not to paint, that is the question. The outside of the house that is.

This year we’ve decided to paint.

When I say ‘we’, I paint everything at ground level and Peter paints everything that is higher than 3 rungs on the ladder. I don’t do heights.

It’s 2 years since we last did it, and certain areas are looking pretty shabby when you start to look at them closely. So yesterday I made a start and managed to make some decent progress, finishing part of the conservatory and 3 out of 4 coats on the kitchen window. You’ve probably guessed we don’t use gloss paint anymore, let me tell you why.

Many years ago we lived in a house in an exposed position, where it was obvious that the front of the property would take the full force of the weather. So, not long after moving in we spent a small fortune on some good exterior gloss paint, Dulux Weathershield as I recall.

We were very disappointed when after the first winter the elements had all but stripped the paint from the woodwork at the  front of the house. What a waste of time and money.

Having learnt from this experience we now use timber care paint, you know the sort of stuff designed for sheds, fences and wooden outdoor structures. It has several advantages over conventional gloss paint, and the finish is more than acceptable even though it is ‘matt’.

Firstly it is very easy to apply, dries quickly and several coats can be applied the same day, so the fact that it might need several coats is not a problem.

Secondly it is cheap in comparison to gloss paint and finally you can wash your brush in soap and water. No messing about with smelly white spirit.

OK,  so it needs re-doing every 2 years, but then so did the Weathershield.

I’ve still got quite a way to go, but now I’ve started I’ll get my head down and get the job done.