Can You Paint Vinyl or Aluminum Siding? A NJ Painter's Guide

Yes, you can paint vinyl siding, and you can paint aluminum siding. Both hold paint well when the surface is sound, washed free of chalk and mildew, and coated with a 100% acrylic exterior paint. On vinyl, stay at or lighter than the original shade unless you use a vinyl-safe color, or the panels can warp in the sun.

Painted siding fails in predictable ways. Almost every failure we are called to fix traces back to chalk that was never washed off, a dark color on vinyl that could not handle it, or siding that should have been replaced instead.

We are a family-owned painting company in Morganville, painting exteriors across Central Jersey for more than twenty years. A lot of that work is faded vinyl on newer colonials and the baked-enamel aluminum on post-war capes, ranches and split-levels. This guide is what we tell homeowners on those estimates.

We refreshed this guide on 15 November 2026. Every new technical figure in it is quoted from a document we fetched that day: Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore guidance and data sheets, a National Association of Home Builders paper on vinyl distortion published by Penn State, the vinyl siding industry association, and federal ladder rules. The cost figures further down are national guides, attributed and dated; none are our own prices.

The Short Answer

• Vinyl: yes, if it is flat, solid and uncracked. Wash it, let it dry, and use a 100% acrylic exterior paint from a line approved for vinyl. Sound vinyl usually needs no primer.
• Color on vinyl: the same shade or lighter, unless the color comes from a vinyl-safe palette (Sherwin-Williams VinylSafe or Benjamin Moore Colors for Vinyl). The vinyl industry says ordinary grades can soften from about 160 to 165°F, and darker colors get there first.
• Aluminum: yes, and it usually paints well. The job is washing off every trace of chalk, spot-priming bare metal, then two coats of acrylic. Dark colors are fine.
• Weather: Benjamin Moore's vinyl guide says not below 40°F; some Sherwin-Williams lines are rated to 35°F. Avoid hot, sunny walls and late-day dew.
• Lifespan: This Old House estimates 5 to 10 years for painted siding.
• When not to paint: warped, cracked, loose or water-damaged siding needs a siding contractor first.
• Older homes: NJ Painting Co. is not an EPA Lead-Safe Certified firm; on a pre-1978 house, ask every bidder for its firm certification.

The Quick Answer for Each Material

Vinyl siding can be painted if it is flat, solid and not cracked or warped. Both major paint makers publish guidance for it. Sherwin-Williams' vinyl siding guide says vinyl siding in sound condition does not need to be primed before its Emerald exterior paint, and it warns that going darker than the original shade risks warping. Benjamin Moore's professional guide says that in most cases a primer is not necessary because its exterior products used with its Colors for Vinyl palette are self-priming on properly prepared vinyl.

Aluminum siding is, if anything, easier to paint well. The factory finish is a baked enamel that eventually oxidizes into a chalky powder. Wash that chalk off completely, spot-prime any bare metal, and a quality acrylic topcoat bonds to it very well. This Old House's aluminum siding guide recommends an acrylic primer made for metal surfaces and says acrylic paint is the best choice for the finish coats. Unlike vinyl, aluminum does not soften in the sun, so you can go darker.

Fiber cement (Hardie board) is a different material again, with its own rules on cut edges, caulk and cleaning pressure; see our guide to painting Hardie board and fiber cement siding.

Vinyl vs. Aluminum Siding: What Changes When You Paint

The two look similar from the curb and behave very differently under a brush.

The repaint-cycle figures come from This Old House: its vinyl siding cost guide says painted vinyl typically lasts 5 to 10 years depending on climate and paint quality, and its aluminum guide says a fresh coat every 5 to 10 years keeps the house looking newly painted. On the shore side of Monmouth and Ocean counties, where salt air and wind-driven rain work the south and east walls hard, plan for the shorter end of that range on those elevations.

Before You Paint: Four Tests We Run on Every Siding Job

These four checks take about fifteen minutes and decide whether the job is a paint job at all.

1. The chalk test

Rub a damp dark rag, or the palm of your hand, firmly across the siding on the sunniest wall. If it comes away white or colored with powder, the surface is chalking. That powder is degraded binder and pigment, and paint that goes over it sticks to the chalk, not to the siding. This Old House recommends the same test with a dark cloth. On aluminum siding from the 1950s through the 1970s, heavy chalk is close to universal, and it is not a problem as long as it is washed off.

2. The flatness check

Sight down each wall from the corner. Vinyl that has already rippled, bowed or pulled loose from its nail hem will not flatten out under paint. Look especially at walls facing a neighbor's windows: the Polymeric Exterior Products Association (formerly the Vinyl Siding Institute) documents that sunlight concentrated by reflective low-E windows has distorted both light and dark vinyl siding. The association says this has happened to "light and dark siding" alike and that color "is not a major factor." If you already have a melted stripe, painting will not fix it. Its suggested fixes are about the light, not the siding: "blocking the path of sunlight, either to the window or between the window and the siding," with landscaping or window sunshades, or screening on the offending window.

3. The damage walk

Cracked vinyl, old satellite-dish holes and dents in aluminum show more after painting, not less, because a fresh uniform sheen draws the eye to every flaw. We mark each one on the estimate.

4. The adhesion test (previously painted siding)

If the siding has been painted before, we press a strip of painter's tape firmly onto a cleaned spot, then rip it off fast. Flakes of old paint on the tape mean the existing coating is losing its grip, and the new coat will only be as good as the layer under it. Those areas get scraped back to a sound edge before anything else happens.

How to Clean Vinyl and Aluminum Siding Before Painting Without Damaging It

Both paint makers start the job with a wash. Sherwin-Williams' vinyl guide names a house-and-siding cleaner and says "you can use this cleaning solution manually or in a pressure washer," followed by a hose rinse and a full dry. Benjamin Moore says "the best way to clean vinyl siding is either by hand scrubbing or power washing." Neither tells you to blast it, and on lap siding the way the water is aimed matters more than the pressure.

In our experience, the rules that keep a wash from causing problems are simple:

• Let the detergent do the work. Apply the cleaner at low pressure, let it dwell without drying, scrub the worst walls with a soft brush, then rinse.
• Aim down, never up. Each course of vinyl overlaps the one below it to shed rain. Spraying upward drives water behind the laps and onto the sheathing, where it stays.
• Keep the wand back from the wall. Close, narrow-tip spraying can scar vinyl, lift the factory finish off aluminum, and push water past window and door flashing.
• Mind the openings. Vents, light fixtures, outlets and the gaps around windows and doors are where water gets in.
• Give it time to dry. Water that got behind the panels drains out slowly. A full dry day, more after a cool night, before the first coat.

Washing off mildew is part of the prep; treating a recurring mould problem is not something we do, and our guide to mildew on painted walls and siding explains the difference. For what a professional wash involves on its own, see our power washing guide.

Can You Paint Just One Side of the House, or Touch Up Painted Siding?

Usually not well. Factory vinyl and old aluminum fade unevenly, so the sunny south and west walls are often a shade or two lighter than the shaded north wall. A new coat on one elevation, even in a "matched" color, tends to stand out at the corner where it meets an unpainted wall. In our experience a full-house repaint, or at least ending at natural breaks such as an inside corner or a change of material, is what looks right from the street.

Touching up siding that has already been painted is easier, provided you kept the paint and its color formula. Touch up whole pieces, a full course from lap to lap, rather than dabbing spots, and expect a small sheen and color difference until the patch weathers in.

Warranties: What to Check Before You Paint Vinyl

You will read online that painting vinyl always voids the warranty. In reality it depends on the manufacturer and the specific warranty language, which is why Sherwin-Williams tells homeowners to check with their siding manufacturer whether painting will void any remaining coverage. Find your paperwork, or the manufacturer's name on the back of a spare panel, and read the exclusions before you commit.

How We Paint Vinyl and Aluminum Siding, Step by Step

The sequence is the same for both materials, with differences at the primer stage. This is the process our crews follow on an exterior painting job.

1. Wash. Siding gets a detergent wash and a low-pressure rinse. For vinyl, Sherwin-Williams' surface preparation FAQ calls for power washing or warm soapy water to remove dirt and chalk, and Benjamin Moore recommends hand scrubbing or power washing. Our power washing cost guide explains what that step involves on its own. For chalky aluminum, This Old House suggests a mix of 1 cup chlorine bleach, 1 cup TSP and 1 gallon of water, and rinsing from the bottom up while spraying at a downward angle. That downward angle matters: blast upward into the laps and you push water behind the siding onto the sheathing.
2. Re-test for chalk. After the wall dries, we run a dark rag over it again. If it still picks up powder, it gets washed again. This is the step most often skipped, and it is the reason most painted aluminum peels.
3. Let it dry completely. Both paint makers say the surface must be completely dry before painting. Water trapped in the laps of vinyl or behind aluminum needs a warm, breezy day to leave.
4. Repair what paint can cover. Small dents in aluminum get an exterior-rated filler, sanded and spot-primed, and open joints in aluminum trim coil at outside corners get re-sealed. Cracked, loose or missing panels are siding work, not painting, so we mark them at the estimate for a siding installer to deal with before we start.
5. Prime where needed. On vinyl, prime only pitted or porous areas, which Benjamin Moore says must always be primed; it names its Fresh Start High Hiding All Purpose Primer for this step. On aluminum, spot-prime any bare metal where the factory finish has worn through, using a primer rated for aluminum. Where a wall still feels slightly chalky after repeated washing, a bonding primer over the whole wall locks the residue down.
6. Caulk. Seal open trim joints and corner boards with an exterior acrylic or siliconized acrylic caulk. We do not caulk the horizontal laps of vinyl or the J-channel; vinyl has to be free to move, and siding needs to drain. Re-caulking around windows and doors is not part of our scope; if those seals have failed, that is a job for a window or door contractor.
7. Two finish coats. We spray and back-roll or brush, working with the lap so the bottom edge of each course is fully coated. Sherwin-Williams' vinyl guide says to "apply two coats of paint on new, bare siding or one coat on previously painted siding"; Benjamin Moore says two coats "is typically the recommended application for exteriors." On a color change we plan two.

Should You Spray, Roll or Brush Vinyl Siding?

All three work, and most professional siding jobs use all three. Sherwin-Williams' vinyl siding guide says "a paint sprayer will cover the most area quicker than other application methods," with a roller for large flat areas and a brush for detail. The catch with spraying lap siding is that a straight-on spray pass lands on the face of each course and misses the underside of the lap, where the next course overlaps it. In our experience the fix is to spray and then back-roll or brush each section while it is wet, working the paint into the bottom edge and along the texture.

Spraying a house also means controlling overspray: windows, doors, lights, the roof edge, plants, the driveway and the neighbors' cars all have to be masked or moved, and spraying stops when the wind picks up. Rolling and brushing the whole house is slower but needs much less masking, and it is the practical route for a homeowner or for a single elevation.

How Many Coats Does Vinyl or Aluminum Siding Need?

Usually two. Sherwin-Williams says to "apply two coats of paint on new, bare siding or one coat on previously painted siding," and Benjamin Moore says two coats "is typically the recommended application for exteriors." One coat over previously painted siding works only when the color is staying about the same and the old paint is sound. A color change, faded factory vinyl or chalky aluminum all call for two. For the general rules on when one coat is enough and when to prime, see our guide to how many coats of paint you need and when to prime, and for the products themselves, our guide to the best exterior paint for New Jersey homes.

Choosing a Color Without Warping Your Vinyl

This is the part of painting vinyl that has no equivalent on aluminum, and it is the one that causes the worst failures.

Vinyl siding is a plastic, and its factory color was chosen with its heat tolerance in mind. A darker paint absorbs more solar heat than the original color did. Sherwin-Williams says plainly that using a color darker than the siding's original shade risks warping and other defects. Its VinylSafe color collection explains the history: homeowners used to be limited to the same color or lighter, and VinylSafe now offers 100 colors, including a limited selection of darker shades formulated to resist warping or buckling when applied to a sound, stable vinyl substrate. Those colors are available in several of its exterior lines, including Emerald, Duration, Resilience, Latitude and SuperPaint. Benjamin Moore's answer is its Colors for Vinyl palette of 75 hand-picked colors for use with select Benjamin Moore exterior paints.

A few practical rules we follow on vinyl:

• Know your LRV. Every paint color has a light reflectance value, a number from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) printed on the chip or listed on the maker's site. The higher the number, the less heat the color absorbs. If a color's LRV is lower than your current siding, you are going darker, and it has to come from a vinyl-safe palette.
• Do not trust a color match on a computer screen. We hold physical samples against the siding on the south and west walls, in afternoon light.
• Treat the sunniest walls as the test. A south-facing wall with no shade, or one facing a neighbor's low-E windows, sees the most heat. If a color is marginal there, it is the wrong color.
• Trim and shutters are different. Aluminum trim coil, wood trim and doors can go darker without the same risk. A lot of the "dark house" look people want can come from deep shutters, a dark front door and contrasting trim over lighter vinyl. Vinyl and PVC trim do carry their own color limits, which our guide to painting fascia, soffits and exterior trim lists by manufacturer.

On aluminum siding, none of this applies. Aluminum does not soften at sunlight temperatures, so a charcoal or deep navy over a 1960s pastel is fine. For palettes that suit New Jersey colonials, capes and ranches, see our roundup of popular exterior house colors in NJ. For help picking a palette, our free estimates include an in-home color consultation.

Why Dark Paint Warps Vinyl Siding: What the Research Says

The warping risk is not a rumor; it is the physics of the material. A 2014 paper by David N. Crump of the National Association of Home Builders, published by Penn State's Pennsylvania Housing Research Center, puts the numbers plainly: "The Vinyl Siding Institute (VSI) states that temperature ranges beginning at 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit can soften normal grades of vinyl siding. Darker colors absorb more heat, and will soften before lighter colors of siding."

Painting changes the color the sun sees. Sherwin-Williams' vinyl siding warp article for contractors gives the likely cause of warped repaints as "vinyl siding was repainted with a darker color paint than the original color," because "dark paint tends to absorb the heat of the sun, transferring it to the substrate," and "when vinyl siding expands dramatically, it is not able to contract to its original dimensions." Its advice, if you are not using a VinylSafe color, is to "paint vinyl siding in a shade no darker than the original color of the siding," and it adds: "Whites, off-whites, pastels, and other very light colors are good choices." It also says "oil-based coatings are not recommended on vinyl siding due to poor flexibility."

Reflections from a neighbor's windows

The second source of heat is not the paint at all. The same NAHB paper explains that double-paned windows can bow slightly and focus reflected sunlight, and that "the heat from double paned low-e window reflected sunlight has been measured in excess of 200 degrees Fahrenheit at its point of focus." It notes that clear glass reflects about 10 percent of the sun's energy while low-e glass reflects 30 to 50 percent, citing the Department of Energy. The industry association's page on solar reflection says that concentrated reflected sunlight "can create enough heat to melt the siding surface" and that remedies involve "blocking the path of sunlight," including screens on the offending window.

For a painter, that means two separate checks. A color that is safe in direct sun can still distort on a wall that catches a neighbor's window reflection, and no paint color fixes that. Before painting, look for existing distortion in a pattern, often a vertical streak or oval, on walls facing other houses. If it is there, the reflection has to be dealt with first, and the damaged panels replaced by a siding contractor.

Painting Aluminum Siding on Older New Jersey Homes

Aluminum siding went onto an enormous number of houses in the post-war decades. Plenty of the ranches, capes and split-levels in towns like Middletown, Hazlet, Freehold and Toms River still wear it, often in a faded original color. On those houses, painting is usually a better value than stripping and re-siding, and there are a few things specific to aluminum we watch for.

Oxidation is the whole game

The old baked enamel on aluminum chalks heavily. On the aluminum-sided homes we paint, the wash stage often takes longer than the first coat of paint. We do not rush it, because this is the difference between a job that lasts and one that sheets off in strips a few winters later.

Bare metal needs primer

Where the factory finish has worn through, usually on the sunniest walls, at corners and on the bottom course where mowers and weed trimmers hit, the aluminum is exposed. Paint does not bond reliably to bare aluminum without a primer rated for it. Those spots get cleaned, scuffed and spot-primed before the finish coats.

Prep and primer for aluminum, from the data sheet

Manufacturer data sheets are specific about aluminum. Sherwin-Williams' data sheet for Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel, which is rated for exterior metal and trim, says for "Aluminum and Galvanized Steel": "Wash to remove any oil, grease, or other surface contamination. All corrosion must be removed with sandpaper, wire brush, or other abrading method." Its system for aluminum is "1 coat All Surface Enamel Latex Primer" under two finish coats. The siding itself usually takes a 100% acrylic house paint rather than a trim enamel, but the prep logic is the same: clean metal, no white corrosion, primer on anything bare. Its general prep note applies too: "Recognize that any surface preparation short of total removal of the old coating may compromise the service length of the system." On aluminum that is painted over a chalky factory finish, that is the honest limit of any repaint.

Dents and damaged panels

Small dents can be filled with an exterior-rated filler, sanded and spot-primed. Deeply creased or torn panels are better replaced by a siding installer, though finding a matching profile for older aluminum siding can take some looking. On a whole-house repaint, a few swapped panels disappear under the new color.

Salt air on the shore

On houses near the water in eastern Monmouth and Ocean counties, salt residue settles on the siding and is part of why the wash matters so much. A thorough rinse, and a second rinse on the ocean-facing walls, keeps salt from being trapped under the new paint.

Lead Paint and Pre-1978 Homes

Many aluminum-sided homes in New Jersey were built before 1978, and that year matters. The EPA's guidance for homeowners says homes built before 1978 are more likely to have lead-based paint, that renovation projects which create even a small amount of lead dust are enough to poison a child, and that it recommends hiring a contractor certified and trained in lead-safe work practices.

On an aluminum-sided house, the concern is usually not the siding itself but what is around and under it: painted wood window sills, door casings, porch posts, soffits that were never covered, and the original wood clapboard that is often still on the wall behind the aluminum. Scraping or sanding any of those surfaces is the kind of work the rule covers. Under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting program, anyone paid to disturb paint in pre-1978 housing generally has to be certified, with a minor-maintenance exception for exterior work that disturbs 20 square feet or less.

NJ Painting Co. is not an EPA Lead-Safe Certified firm. If your house predates 1978, ask any painter you are considering how they handle lead-safe work before you sign, and if you are doing the work yourself, This Old House recommends testing with a lead test kit first. Our guide to lead paint in older New Jersey homes explains the rule and the questions to ask.

When Not to Paint: Replace the Siding Instead

Paint is a finish, not a repair. We tell homeowners to put the money toward new siding, not paint, when:

• Vinyl is warped, buckled or rippled across whole walls. Paint will make it look fresher and just as wavy.
• Panels are brittle and cracking in cold weather. Old vinyl can become brittle, and every New Jersey winter's freeze-thaw cycles will keep breaking it.
• Siding is loose or falling off, or the problem is behind it. Soft sheathing, water stains inside, or mold behind the panels means the wall needs to be opened up, and painting would only hide the evidence.
• Aluminum is badly dented or torn on most elevations. A handful of dents is a repair. A house that has been hit by years of hail or ball games is a re-siding job.
• You want a dark color that is not available as a vinyl-safe shade. If only a deep color will make you happy and no vinyl-safe equivalent works, new siding in that color is the honest answer.

Can You Paint Textured or Wood-Grain Vinyl Siding?

Yes. Most vinyl siding carries an embossed wood-grain texture, and paint follows it. In our experience the texture changes two things. It takes more paint, because the surface area is larger and the grain holds paint, so expect coverage at the low end of the range. And a sprayed coat on its own tends to bridge the grain, which is another reason to back-roll. Smooth vinyl shows lap marks and roller texture more; textured vinyl hides them.

The other common type, vertical board-and-batten or Dutch-lap vinyl, paints the same way. What does not paint well is vinyl that has gone brittle and chalky right through, or panels already cracked at the nail hem. Paint will not make them flexible again.

Painting Vinyl Shutters, Trim and Soffits With the Siding

A siding repaint usually includes the trim around it, and each piece has its own rules. Vinyl shutters can be painted, and they carry the same heat-and-color limits as vinyl siding; our guide to painting garage doors, front doors and shutters covers them in detail. Aluminum and vinyl soffits, fascia and corner trim are covered in our guide to painting fascia, soffits and exterior trim, which lists the color limits PVC and vinyl trim makers publish. Wood siding and cedar shakes are a different job again; see painting wood siding and cedar shakes.

Window trim and sills are not part of our work, and neither is re-caulking around windows and doors. If those need attention, a window or door contractor should do it before the siding is painted.

Can You Paint Vinyl Siding Yourself?

Many homeowners do a single-story ranch themselves, and the prep steps above are all within reach. The parts that go wrong for DIY painters are predictable: skipping the second wash on chalky siding, choosing a color darker than the original, painting in full sun, and working off a ladder that is set up wrong.

The ladder part is not a small thing on a two-story house. OSHA's construction ladder rule, 29 CFR 1926.1053, written for paid workers but sensible for anyone, says an extension ladder should be set so the distance from its base to the wall is "approximately one-quarter of the working length of the ladder," that ladders reaching an upper landing should "extend at least 3 feet (.9 m) above the upper landing surface," and that ladders be used "only on stable and level surfaces unless secured to prevent accidental displacement." Stay well clear of the service line to the house.

If you are weighing it up, our guide to painting your house yourself or hiring a painter goes through the decision, and This Old House's DIY figure for paint and supplies is in the cost table below.

Can Vinyl or Aluminum Siding Be Stained?

Not in any useful sense. Stain is made to soak into wood; vinyl and aluminum have nothing for it to soak into, so a "stain" on them is really a thin paint that wears off quickly. If you want a stained look, that is a wood siding question, and siding staining is not a service we sell. Solid-color acrylic is the right coating for both vinyl and aluminum.

What It Costs to Paint Siding in 2026

Published national cost guides give a useful starting point. We have attributed each figure to its source and the date of its data; none of these are our own quotes.

This Old House's vinyl figures come from its cost to paint vinyl siding guide, which also says painting costs, on average, about half as much as full siding replacement, and that vinyl-safe paint runs $30 to $80 a gallon and covers roughly 350 to 400 square feet per gallon. The aluminum figures come from Fixr's aluminum siding painting cost guide; its data is older, so treat it as a floor rather than a 2026 price.

Why New Jersey quotes land higher

Expect Central Jersey quotes to sit at or above the upper half of those national ranges. Painter wages in New Jersey run about 20 percent above the national median, and overall price levels in the state are well above the national index; we lay out the government data behind both in our guide to how much it costs to paint a house in NJ. On siding specifically, three things push a number up:

• Chalk and mildew removal. A heavily oxidized aluminum house can need two full wash passes and a drying day in between.
• Height and access. Two-story walls, walkout basements and steep lots mean more ladder and staging time.
• Trim, shutters and doors. A siding-only price is rarely what people actually want. Trim, soffits, fascia, shutters and the front door are usually added.

For more pricing detail by service, see our painting cost guide. The only accurate number for your house comes after someone walks it, and our estimates are free.

When to Schedule a Siding Repaint in New Jersey

Weather decides whether paint on siding cures properly. Benjamin Moore's vinyl guide says not to apply its paint when air and surface temperatures are below 40°F, and to avoid painting in direct sunlight, since the surface should not be hot to the touch. Some products go lower: Sherwin-Williams lists its Duration Exterior Acrylic Latex for "low temperature application down to 35° F." Always go by the data sheet of the product actually on the wall. In practice that means we follow the shade around the house: east walls in the afternoon, west walls in the morning.

Late-season jobs carry a specific risk called surfactant leaching. Sherwin-Williams explains that moisture and cool temperatures slow curing and let water-soluble ingredients float to the surface, leaving tan, brown or clear streaks that can feel soapy or sticky. On a cool October evening in New Jersey, heavy dew on fresh paint is a common trigger. It usually rinses off with water, but the better fix is scheduling: we stop early enough in the day for the paint to set before dew falls. Our guide to painting in cold weather in NJ covers the fall cut-off in more detail.

What We Do, and Do Not Do, on Siding

• We do paint vinyl, aluminum, wood, cedar and fiber cement siding, with the trim, fascia, soffits, shutters, front doors and garage doors that go with it, through our exterior painting service.
• We do wash siding before painting, including power washing, and fill small dents in aluminum.
• We do help with color, including vinyl-safe choices, as part of the estimate.
• We do not replace, re-hang or repair siding panels, replace sheathing, or repair rot. We point it out at the estimate so a siding contractor can deal with it first.
• We do not paint window trim or sills, re-caulk windows and doors, or treat mould. Mildew is washed off as part of the prep; our guide to mildew on painted walls and siding explains the difference.
• We do not stain siding, and vinyl and aluminum cannot usefully be stained anyway.
• We are not an EPA Lead-Safe Certified firm. On a pre-1978 house, ask every bidder for its firm certification number.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you spray paint vinyl siding?

Yes. Sherwin-Williams says a paint sprayer "will cover the most area quicker than other application methods," and both major paint makers approve spraying their vinyl-rated acrylics. A spray pass alone tends to miss the underside of each lap and bridge the wood-grain texture, so professionals usually back-roll or brush each section while it is wet. Spraying also means masking windows, doors, plants and cars, and stopping when the wind picks up.

Can you paint vinyl siding on a house?

Yes. Vinyl siding that is flat, solid and not cracked can be painted with a 100% acrylic exterior paint from a line approved for vinyl. The surface must be washed free of dirt, chalk and mildew and completely dry. Choose a color the same as or lighter than the original, or a darker color from a vinyl-safe palette such as Sherwin-Williams VinylSafe or Benjamin Moore Colors for Vinyl.

What is the best paint for vinyl siding?

A premium 100% acrylic exterior latex from a line the manufacturer approves for vinyl. Sherwin-Williams offers its VinylSafe colors in lines including Emerald, Duration, Resilience, Latitude and SuperPaint, and Benjamin Moore offers its Colors for Vinyl palette in select exterior lines. We use both brands and choose based on the house, the color and the exposure.

Can you paint aluminum siding?

Yes, and it usually paints very well. The key steps are washing off all chalky oxidation, spot-priming any bare metal with a primer rated for aluminum, and applying two coats of 100% acrylic exterior paint. Aluminum does not warp from heat, so dark colors are an option.

Should you paint aluminum siding or replace it?

If the panels are mostly straight and securely attached, painting is usually the better value; This Old House puts siding painting at about half the cost of replacement on average. Replace instead if the siding is badly dented across most walls, loose, or hiding water damage behind it.

Do you need to prime vinyl siding before painting?

Usually not. Sherwin-Williams says sound vinyl siding does not need primer before its Emerald exterior paint, and Benjamin Moore says its exterior paints used with its Colors for Vinyl palette are self-priming on properly prepared vinyl. Pitted or porous vinyl is the exception, and Benjamin Moore says it must always be primed.

How much paint does it take to paint vinyl siding?

This Old House puts vinyl-safe paint coverage at roughly 350 to 400 square feet of siding per gallon, at $30 to $80 a gallon. Divide your wall area by that coverage and double it for two coats on a color change; textured or chalky siding lands at the low end of the coverage range.

Can you paint vinyl siding a darker color?

Only with a color made for it. Sherwin-Williams says any color darker than the original shade can cause warping and other defects, and its VinylSafe collection includes "a limited selection of darker colors formulated to resist warping or buckling" on sound, stable vinyl. Benjamin Moore's equivalent is its Colors for Vinyl palette. Compare light reflectance values: a lower LRV than your current siding means darker.

What temperature do you need to paint vinyl siding?

Benjamin Moore says not to apply its paint when air and surface temperatures are below 40°F, and to avoid direct sunlight, since the siding should not be hot to the touch. In New Jersey that means spring through mid-fall, following the shade around the house, and stopping early enough on cool fall days for the paint to set before dew falls.

How much does it cost to paint vinyl siding?

This Old House puts professional vinyl siding painting at about $1 to $3 per square foot nationally, or $2,500 to $5,000 for a 1,500 to 2,500 square foot home, and says painting costs on average about half as much as replacing the siding. New Jersey quotes usually land in the upper half of national ranges because labor costs more here.

Will painting my vinyl siding void the warranty?

It depends on your siding manufacturer's warranty terms, and that is what Sherwin-Williams tells homeowners to check. Read the exclusions in your warranty or call the manufacturer before painting. Look for the maker's name on the warranty paperwork or on the back of a spare panel. If the siding is near the end of its coverage, or the coverage is already void, painting carries no warranty cost at all.

How long does paint last on vinyl or aluminum siding?

This Old House estimates 5 to 10 years for painted vinyl, depending on climate and paint quality, and recommends a fresh coat every 5 to 10 years on aluminum. In our experience, prep quality and sun exposure matter as much as the paint: sunny south walls and shore houses wear first.

Get Your Siding Looked At

With faded vinyl or chalky 1960s aluminum alike, the first question is always whether the siding should be painted at all, and that is a fifteen-minute conversation in your driveway. NJ Painting Co. is a family-owned, licensed and fully insured painting contractor at 36 Church Rd, Morganville, NJ 07751, and we have been painting homes across Central Jersey for more than twenty years. We use Benjamin Moore and Sherwin-Williams products, put a two-year workmanship warranty in writing, and our free estimates include an in-home color consultation.

We work throughout Monmouth County, Ocean County, Middlesex County and the rest of our service areas; see our local pages for exterior painting in Monmouth County and Ocean County, and our guide to how often to repaint. Browse finished exteriors in our project gallery, then call us at (732) 239-0932 or request your free estimate online, and ask us about the job minimum when you enquire.