Exterior Painting · Medford, Oregon
Exterior House Painting in Medford, Oregon
Southern Oregon sun is hard on paint. Travis Sheets has spent 35 years repainting Rogue Valley homes the slow way: washing, scraping, wood rot repair, caulking, priming, and two full coats of Benjamin Moore. Licensed, bonded, and insured, Oregon CCB #237413, and LBPR licensed for pre-1978 homes.
Why Prep / 01
The Five Year Job and the Fifteen Year Job
Two painters can put the same Benjamin Moore on the same house and get very different results. One power washes and starts rolling. The other scrapes every loose edge, replaces the soft wood at the bottom of the trim, caulks every joint, and primes bare spots before the first finish coat. The first paint job starts peeling in a few summers. The second is still protecting the house a decade later.
Rogue Valley summers make the difference bigger. Long stretches of hot, dry sun bake the south and west walls, open up joints, and find every spot where water got behind the paint. Prep is where an exterior paint job is won or lost, so it is where most of our time goes.
- Full and partial exterior repaints
- Siding, trim, fascia, soffits, doors, and windows
- Fences, gates, barns, and outbuildings
- Wood rot replacement and surface repair before painting
- Lead-safe work on pre-1978 homes, LBPR licensed
Process / 02
How We Paint a House Exterior
Every exterior gets the same sequence. It takes longer than wash-and-roll, and it is why the paint stays on the house.
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Walkthrough and written bid
Travis walks the house with you, looks at the condition of every side, and writes an itemized bid that lists the surfaces, the repairs, and the products, so you know exactly what is included.
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Wash
Dirt, chalking, and mildew are washed off so primer and paint bond to the surface instead of to the grime on top of it.
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Scrape and sand
Loose and peeling paint is scraped back to a sound edge and sanded smooth. On homes built before 1978, this is done with lead-safe practices under our LBPR license.
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Repair wood rot
Soft siding, trim, fascia, and sills are cut out and replaced. Painting over rot only hides it for a season.
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Caulk and prime
Every open joint is caulked to keep water out from behind the paint, and bare wood and repairs are primed with the right primer for the surface.
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Two full finish coats
Two coats of Benjamin Moore exterior paint, not one heavy one. Windows, roofs, walkways, and landscaping are masked and covered, and each side is painted when it is out of the hottest afternoon sun.
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Final walkthrough and cleanup
We walk the house with you, touch up anything that is not right, and leave the property cleaner than we found it.
Older Homes / 03
Lead-Safe Painting for Pre-1978 Homes
Medford, Jacksonville, and Ashland are full of homes built before 1978, and many of them have lead-based paint somewhere under the newer layers. Oregon requires any contractor who disturbs that paint to hold a lead-based paint renovation (LBPR) license. Travis Sheets Painting is licensed, so the scraping and sanding an older exterior needs is done safely for your family and your neighbors.
Older homes also tend to have the details worth saving: original wood siding, wide trim, divided-light windows, and layers of paint that need careful work rather than a fast spray. That kind of prep-heavy job is exactly what this crew is built for.
Stain & Wood / 04
Exterior Staining, Cedar, and Decks
Not every exterior should be painted. Cedar shingles, stained siding, and natural wood decks need stains and clear finishes that soak in and protect without hiding the grain. We strip, sand, and re-stain worn wood, and refinish decks with oil stains, including a fifty year old redwood deck that is still going strong.
That includes the front door. A stained entry door takes more weather than anything else on the house, and we have brought them back from the sun with stripping, staining, and fresh clear coats. See that work on our cabinet and wood refinishing page, and deck building and repair on the painting services page.
- Cedar shingle and stained siding refinishing
- Deck, porch, and railing staining
- Fence and gate staining
- Front door refinishing, painted or stained
Cost / 05
What Exterior Painting Costs in Medford
Exterior jobs are priced by the work in them, not by a flat rate per square foot, so an honest number requires seeing the house. These are the things that move the price:
- Size and height. A single story ranch is a different job than a two story house with tall gables that need ladders or lifts.
- Condition of the existing paint. Sound paint gets washed and spot-primed; peeling, chalking, or sun-baked paint needs more scraping and sanding, and that prep is where the labor goes.
- Repairs. Wood rot replacement, failed caulk, and damaged trim are fixed first and listed separately on the bid.
- Detail and colors. Trim, shutters, doors, and accent colors add cutting-in time. Stain and clear finishes are priced differently than paint.
- Age of the home. Pre-1978 homes need lead-safe work practices during prep.
Whatever the scope, the bid is free, written, and itemized, so you can see exactly what you are paying for and compare it fairly against other quotes. When you compare, check what each bid says about scraping, wood repair, priming, and number of coats. That is usually where a low number comes from.
Call (541) 531-8980 to set up a walkthrough. Exterior season books up, so the earlier you call, the better your choice of dates.
Recent Work / 06
Exterior Painting Around the Rogue Valley
Exterior work is one part of the job. See interior painting, cabinets, and deck work on the Medford painting services page, check the towns we serve across the Rogue Valley, or read about the Forest Service lookout Travis restored.
FAQ / 07
Exterior Painting Questions We Hear in Medford
- How long does an exterior paint job last in southern Oregon?
- It depends far more on the prep than on the paint. The same house can get a five year job or a fifteen year job, and the difference is washing, scraping, sanding, replacing rotten wood, caulking every gap, and priming bare spots before two full finish coats go on. South and west walls take the most sun in the Rogue Valley and usually show wear first.
- When is the best time of year to paint a house exterior in Medford?
- Exterior paint and stain need dry surfaces and moderate temperatures to cure properly, so exterior work is scheduled from spring into fall. In the heat of a Rogue Valley summer we work around the sun, painting each side of the house when it is out of direct afternoon light. Good painters book up early in the season, so the best time to call is before you need the work done.
- Do you repair wood rot before painting?
- Yes. Rotten siding, trim, fascia, and window sills are cut out and replaced as part of the prep, along with caulking and surface repair. Painting over rot only hides it for a season, so it gets fixed first and listed on the written bid.
- My house was built before 1978. Does that change anything?
- It can. Homes built before 1978 may have lead-based paint in the older layers, and Oregon requires contractors who disturb it to hold a lead-based paint renovation (LBPR) license. Travis Sheets Painting is LBPR licensed, so scraping and sanding on older homes in Medford, Jacksonville, and Ashland is done with lead-safe practices.
- Do you stain cedar siding, shingles, and decks?
- Yes. Stained and clear-finished wood is a specialty, including cedar shingle refinishing, stained siding, fences, and decks. Decks are sanded to bare wood where needed and finished with oil stains that soak in and protect.
- How much does it cost to paint the exterior of a house in Medford?
- It depends on the size and height of the house, the condition of the existing paint, how much repair the siding and trim need, and whether the job is paint, stain, or both. Every estimate is free, written, and itemized so you can see exactly what you are paying for. Call (541) 531-8980 to set up a walkthrough.
- Can you paint just the trim, or only part of the house?
- Yes. Partial repaints are common: trim and doors only, the sun-beaten south and west sides, a front door, or fences and gates. The bid spells out exactly which surfaces are included.