Why Paint Walls, Wood & Metals in our homes & work places
All structural framework and fixtures that made up the building we live in such as walls, roofs, doors, windows and gates will inevitably deteriorate over time. Like part of nature, materials such as wood may rot; metals may rust and corrode, so there is no exception to the paint on your walls that may crack or peel over time.
Painting is not only necessary to enhance the interior or exterior of your homes aesthetically but also to upkeep the condition of your walls, wood furniture & frameworks like doors & windows, & metal fixtures like gates, fences, ironmongery and if you are staying in landed property, your terracotta, concrete or metal roofs as well.
Preserving Condition & Prolonging Life span of substrates surfaces
Inter-partition walls are made up of bricks, mortar & plaster cement, and structural walls are erected out of concrete. The partition walls of your home, mainly those that configure your internal bedrooms and demarcating them from your living and dining room areas were plastered with cement before the first coat of paint was ever applied.
Over time, hairline cracks can be seen appearing on the walls & concrete spallings on ceilings; at random areas around your house. If nothing is done, these hairline cracks will eventually worsen into bigger and longer cracks, leading to the paint peeling off. Cracking or peeling tends to occur at areas where constant fluctuations of temperatures and humidity and moisture are experienced. For example, a certain living room wall where the heat from an afternoon sun hits on every day, a ceiling of a bathroom where hot water vapour rises to through evaporation each time someone takes a shower, or a gypsum board or plywood box up encasement that conceals the air-conditioning pipe. When temperature differences happen, whether it is due to air-conditioning or climatic conditions, the paint coat on your walls expands and contracts accordingly. No matter how flexible some water based emulsion paints are, the frequent movements of expansion and contractions will cause the paint layer to eventually lose its elasticity and snap, leading to cracks. When paint gets into constant contact with water or condensation from steam, warping or bubbling of the paint layer may also occur. No matter how waterproof the paint is, the binding polymers will ultimately break down, causing the paint covering to become more porous and hence moisture is absorbed.
The extent of paint cracks and peels also depends on the thickness of the paint coat that was applied before. The thicker the paint coat is, the deeper the cracks and dented marks it will leave behind upon peeling.
Paint deterioration also depends on how well you prepare the surfaces before the paint was applied. Very often by ensuring that the substrate surface is clean and free from dust and particles, application of the primer paint will adhere well to the surface, followed by optimal lamination of the overlying paint coat. Preparation & priming works prior to painting is critical as it affects how durable and tough your final layers of paint will be.
Protection against deterioration
Painting is also a means of protecting your furniture and fixtures. Metal objects around your home like your water pipes, metal window grilles and gate fences are prone to external weather conditions like rain and shine. If we do not paint them from time to time, they will rust not just because they are in contact with water, but also due to oxidation with air. Once the underlying metal surface starts to rust, the paint shell above loses adhesion and hence starts peeling off, revealing unsightly rust patches beneath. If rusty pipes or grilles are not repainted, corrosion of the metal itself takes place, leading to the metal piece eroding away ultimately, and replacement of the pipe or metal fixture is then needed.
Likewise for wood surfaces of doors or wooden furniture, especially outdoor ones are exposed to moisture and heat from the weather. Wood, like any other natural material, will over time have mold or mildew growth, and eventually decay and decompose. Or it can simply be scuffed off by daily use, wear and tear. Painting with primer and top coat paint over timber surfaces forms a shield against deterioration for the wood substrate. Primers help to bind together wood fibres, and even out the substrate’s surface for even application of the top coat. It also acts as a barrier for any chemical reaction that may take place between the top paint coat and the wood substrate. Therefore, painting does save you an unimaginable amount of money in maintaining your home.
We talked about painting to preserve the condition of your partition brick walls. How about structural walls, columns and beams? While most of us who stay in HDB flats do not have the issue of maintaining your exterior walls or parapets along the common corridor, we should not neglect other structural components that run within your flat unit. These supporting structures have metal reinforcement bars in them before concrete is grouted to reinforce their strength so they can withstand other loadbearing elements to form the main framework of the building block. These reinforcement bars or “rebar” in short, are usually made from unfinished tempered steel that is susceptible to rusting. When exposed to moisture and gases in the air (carbonation), concrete can crack (concrete spalling) due to the acidity in the environment, poor installation or structural stress. The crevices in the concrete create channels for the rebars to be exposed to the air and rust. Over time, rusting increases and deteriorates the structural integrity. Painting is not to be underestimated. It can do protective as well as preventive works. By painting over the concrete substrates from time to time, we are minimizing the risk of concrete cracks being exposed and affecting the reinforcement metal bars within, measuring up to living safety.
Enhancement of Living & working environment
When it comes to furnishing our homes, most of us fear the troublesome chores of decorating the spaces. Many do not realize that painting is so versatile in achieving the countless effects you want to achieve as what wallpapers, sideboards, and other built in features can bring you. Painting makes almost any wall and furniture design possible. Stenciling, ragging, stippling, dragging are just the few among the ideas.
Painting is also an excellent way to hide or cover up structural flaws; cracks on the walls, flakey paints. etc are all unsightly eyesores you would not want your visitors to look at.
One-stop solution to minor repair works
Believe it or not, painting your homes is a learning experience for many property owners. Painting is the only refurbishing method that leads you to notice every part of your home or office. Many home owners only realize internal leakages from air-con pipes, water pipes and ceilings, conduit, ducting, shelving, skirting giving way due to screws or nails loosening, etc when they are about to paint. While these are the minor issues you come across by chance, there are also problems or unfinished business in the house you knew all along but had been too busy or are incapable to fix. You might have known not all of your lights are working but the problem does not lie with the bulb but the circuit, or there is simply this redundant lighting point you’d rather conceal, or there could be a loose cabinet door that needed fixing. Most of the painting contractors in Singapore are also well versed in carpentry and electrical basics. While you engage them for painting, do also use them for such minor repair works; this will save you money as compared with hiring a wood worker or electrician separately. Thus painting companies can be your one stop solution for other maintenance small jobs.
Increase the value of your property
And why do we need to paint to preserve, to protect and to enhance the condition and appeal of our houses and apartments?
If you are thinking of selling or renting out your property, painting is one of the easiest ways to increase the sales and rental value of your home. A well maintained and aesthetically pleasing exterior of a house instantly adds value in the eyes of a potential tenant or buyer even before stepping in. A well-furnished interior with spaces nicely spruced up will leave a potential customer a lastingly good impression. When homes are well kept in good condition and well decorated, they distinguish themselves apart from the rest of the premises the customers have last viewed. Therefore when it comes to sales or rent negotiation, you know yours can yield higher prices as many would want to live in a place where maintenance is at minimal that translates to long term savings for them. Therefore, if you compare the price of painting your HDB flat with the increase in property value you can yield, the mileage painting your flat could bring you is well worth your little investment.