What Valley Heat Does to Siding
Ask anyone who works in a winery what happens to an empty oak barrel left out in the heat. The staves dry out, shrink, and the seams open up. Wood siding does the same thing. Paint is what slows that down, by keeping the sun off the boards and keeping moisture from rushing in and out.
The valley tests that paint hard. Up in St. Helena and Calistoga, summer afternoons in the high 90s are common, and west walls catch the worst of it. Down in south Napa, mornings come in cool and damp off San Pablo Bay. A wall that bakes all afternoon and sweats every morning wears through paint quickly, and once the film cracks, water gets into the wood every winter.
Our Work, Inside and Out
Exterior House PaintingWood siding, stucco, trim, doors and eaves. Loose paint comes off, cracks get filled, bare wood gets primed, and then the finish coats go on.Exterior House Painting →
Interior PaintingBedrooms, living rooms, hallways, ceilings and trim. We mask carefully, cut clean lines, and leave each room usable at the end of the day.Interior Painting →
Kitchen Cabinet PaintingKeep your cabinets and change the color. Doors and drawers are degreased, sanded, primed and sprayed with a hard finish made for daily use.Kitchen Cabinet Painting →
Commercial PaintingTasting rooms, winery buildings, offices and storefronts. We work early, late or between events so your doors can stay open.Commercial Painting →Why Valley Homeowners Pick Us
- We fix the rot first. Fresh paint over soft wood peels within a season or two, so we probe trim, sills and fascia and repair what's gone before we paint.
- You see the color on your own wall. We brush out sample patches so you can check them in morning and afternoon light before you decide.
- We follow the shade. On hot days we paint the side of the house that's out of direct sun, because paint that dries too fast doesn't bond well.
How a Job Runs
- Get in touch. Call us or send the form. A line about the project and your town is plenty to start.
- We see the house. We look at every surface, note any repairs, go over colors and sheen, and write up exactly what we'd do and what it costs.
- Prep, then paint. Floors, plants and fixtures get covered, repairs and sanding come next, then primer and the finish coats.
- Final look. Before we leave for good, we check the work with you, wall by wall, and fix whatever you point out.
Free estimate, no obligation.
Call (707) 520-6736Where Our Crews Work
Our crews paint all over the valley. In Napa, that means Victorians and Craftsman bungalows near Fuller Park, where the trim work takes patience, along with plenty of ranch homes on the north side. American Canyon is mostly newer stucco houses that catch the wind coming off the bay. Homes in Yountville and St. Helena sit right next to the vineyards and take the full summer sun. Up at the top of the valley in Calistoga, it's hotter still. Each one needs its own prep plan, and we build it from what we see at your house.
Common Painting Questions
Yes, and a lot of homes around Napa and American Canyon are stucco. It takes a different approach than wood siding. We wash it, fill hairline cracks with an elastomeric patch, and use a masonry primer where the surface is chalky or bare. Stucco soaks up paint, so it usually needs a heavier coat. Done right, the color stays even and the old cracks don't show back through the new finish.
Start with what isn't changing: the roof, any stone or brick, and the landscaping. Then look at samples outside, on more than one wall, at different times of day. Colors look lighter and brighter in full valley sun than they do on a paint chip indoors. If you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, check their approved list first. We'll brush sample patches onto your house so you're not guessing.
Flat or matte hides wall flaws and works well on ceilings and in bedrooms. Eggshell is a good middle ground for living rooms and hallways, since it wipes clean without much shine. Kitchens and bathrooms do better with satin, which handles moisture. Trim and doors usually get semi-gloss so they hold up to hands and bumps. Kitchen cabinet painting uses its own harder finish, made to take daily use.
We do. Commercial painting covers tasting rooms, barrel rooms, offices and the outside of winery buildings. Those jobs come with their own schedules, so we plan around harvest, events and visitor hours, and paint one area at a time when a room can't close. Inside production areas, we go over the products we plan to use with your team before any work starts.
Often it's one of the better things you can spend money on before listing. Fresh paint covers years of scuffs, makes rooms look brighter in photos, and tells buyers the house has been looked after. Neutral colors on the walls and a clean, solid exterior usually do the most work. If you're short on time, we can focus on the rooms and walls buyers notice first, and price just those in writing.