Professional exterior painting
Exterior work is weather work. We watch the forecast, wash the surface, deal with what is failing underneath, and paint when conditions allow. Siding, trim, soffits, doors, shutters, railings and porches, on homes across northern Delaware.
Serving Wilmington, northern Delaware and southeastern Pennsylvania. See every area we cover.
What the job covers
- Siding, trim, soffits, fascia, doors, shutters and railings
- The surface washed before any prep starts
- Failing paint scraped and sanded back to a sound edge
- Bare and repaired areas primed
- Gaps caulked where they need it
- Planting, walkways and driveways covered while we work
How it runs
We walk the whole exterior
Every elevation, including the ones you cannot see from the street. The proposal comes after that walk.
Wash first
Dirt, chalking and mildew come off before anything else happens. Paint does not stick to a dirty wall.
Prep what has failed
Scrape, sand, prime. Where the old finish is sound we leave it alone rather than making work you are paying for.
Paint, then walk it
We finish, clean up, and go round the house with you before the crew leaves.
Surfaces we paint outside
An exterior quote is really a survey of what the house is made of. Four elevations can carry four different materials, each one fails in its own way, and the preparation is what changes rather than the paint.
Wood clapboard, shingle and cedar
The oldest stock and the most demanding. Wood moves, it holds water at the end grain and along the bottom edge of every board, and it lets paint go from underneath rather than from the surface. It gets cut back to sound wood, filled and primed before a finish coat is worth putting on.
Stucco and parged masonry
Common on the older stone houses through the Brandywine valley and on the boroughs over the state line. Stucco is porous and has to be able to dry outward, so what goes onto it matters more than how many coats it gets. Cracks are opened up and filled rather than bridged with paint.
Brick and stone
Brick that has been painted before is a different job from brick that never has. Once masonry is coated it has to be recoated, and that is not a decision to make on the morning of the estimate. We say what we think about it before you commit.
Vinyl and aluminum siding
Both can be painted. Aluminum chalks as it ages, so the chalk comes off in the wash or nothing will stick to it. Vinyl expands and contracts with temperature and will not hold a color much darker than the one it was made in, and we say so at the quote rather than in July.
Trim, soffits, fascia and composite
The parts that fail first, because they are the parts water finds. Composite and cellular PVC trim take paint perfectly well and take preparation shortcuts very badly.
Metal railings, doors and shutters
Metal fails by rusting rather than by peeling. The rust is taken back and the bare metal primed for what it is, which is a different product from the one going on the siding.
When exterior work can be done
Exterior painting is weather work, and the weather decides more of the schedule than we do. None of this is a reason to wait, it is the reason a good exterior job gets planned around a forecast instead of a date.
The working season runs spring to late fall
Around here that is when overnight temperatures stay up and surfaces get a chance to dry between rain. The shoulders at either end are workable, they just need more watching.
Overnight temperature, not the afternoon
A warm day is no help if the surface drops below what the coating needs after dark. That is the number worth checking, and it is the one most often ignored.
A wet surface is the usual delay
Wood, stucco and masonry hold water well after the rain has stopped. Painting a surface that has not dried through is the most common reason a finish lets go early.
Shaded and north facing elevations
Under mature trees and on the north side, moss and algae take hold and the wall stays damp far longer than the sunny side. That elevation gets washed harder and given more drying time before anything goes on it.
Getting on the schedule early
Exterior work is booked into the weather rather than around it. Coming to us early in the season leaves room to move a day when the forecast turns, which is better for the finish than pushing on.
Common questions
What time of year can exterior painting be done?
Most of it happens between spring and late fall, when overnight temperatures stay up and surfaces get a chance to dry between rain. The shoulders at either end are workable, they just need the forecast watched more closely.
Do you wash the house before painting it?
Yes, and it is not an extra. The surface gets washed before any preparation starts, because paint does not bond to dirt, chalk or mildew. Where washing is preparation for a repaint it is quoted as part of that job.
Do you paint vinyl and aluminum siding?
Both, yes. Aluminum chalks as it ages and the chalk has to come off or nothing will stick to it. Vinyl will not hold a color much darker than the one it was made in, so that conversation happens at the quote rather than afterwards.
Will you paint over paint that is already failing?
No. Failing paint is scraped and sanded back to a sound edge and the bare areas are primed first. Where the existing finish is still sound we leave it, because stripping paint that is doing its job is work you would be paying for.
Where we do exterior work
Exterior work is decided by what the house is made of, and that changes street by street. The brick colonials and split levels either side of Concord Pike in North Wilmington are consistent enough that one elevation tells you most of what the others will need. The stone and stucco along the Kennett Pike through Greenville and Centreville is the opposite, and no two of those houses want the same specification.
Wartime and post-war housing in Claymont and the close-set frame stock in Elsmere are mostly wood preparation. Over the line, the large detached houses through Garnet Valley and Concord Township are siding and composite trim, and the eighteenth century stone around Chadds Ford is stucco and lime and a longer conversation than either.
The full footprint is New Castle County in Delaware and Chester and Delaware County in Pennsylvania.
Customers on this work
- Google review4/24/2025
Very fair estimate for a challenging exterior job, and quote was honored in full. The crew was outstanding, working extra hours to finish within the projected time. And the work was done with such care and such evident pride, that it was really pretty moving…
Bob H.
- Google review7/02/2025
Justin and his team did a fantastic job painting the exterior of our brick house. The house looks so great, they paid attention to all the details. They did it on the hottest two days of the year, and even though after that it rained for 4 days straight, the paint has stayed perfectly intact and as fresh as the day it was painted. We’ve gotten so many compliments from neighbors. Would definitely recommend.
Caroline B.
- Google review11/26/2022
HIGHLY recommend Modern Image Painting. Justin and his team did an amazing job painting the exterior of our house. Justin is great at keeping a line of communication (rain delayed the job a bit). The crew did an amazing job and completed our entire project in only four days…
Kristen M.
Get a free estimate
Tell us about the project. We assess it in person, or online when that suits the job, and your written proposal follows promptly. Call or use the form, whichever is easier.