Victorian exteriors
Bays, brackets, gables and shingles
This page covers the outside of a San Francisco Victorian or Edwardian, from the roofline to the sidewalk: what needs to happen, in what order and how long it takes.
You need it when paint is peeling at the bays, when the trim has gone gray and bare, or when a house has been one color for too long. A scheme and a repair list come first, then the scaffold.
Prep checklist
What every exterior gets before paint
Scrape and vacuum
Loose paint comes off with hand scrapers. A HEPA vacuum on the tool catches the dust.
Repair the wood
Soft trim and split shingles are replaced to match, not covered over.
Caulk and fill
Open joints at casings and corner boards are sealed. Holes are filled and sanded.
Prime bare wood
Every patch of bare wood is primed so the finish coat dries evenly.
Mask and cover
Glass, hardware, plants and the sidewalk are covered before any color goes on.
Walk the list
You get the repair list with photos and locations before the scaffold comes down.
Finishes
Which sheen goes where
Brand-neutral, and always with the product data sheet in your hands.
Body and shingles
A low-sheen exterior paint. It hides small flaws in old wood.
Trim and casings
Satin or semi-gloss, which sheds water and wipes clean.
Sash and doors
Semi-gloss, for edges that get touched.
Small details
Gloss for brackets, rosettes and carved pieces, where light should catch.
How long it takes
Days on the scaffold, as ranges
Ranges you can edit, by house size. Your written estimate gives the days for your house.
- 5 to 8 days
Flat-front, two stories
Three colors, ordinary repairs, one set of scaffold.
- 8 to 14 days
Bay and gable, three stories
Five colors, a bay, brackets and a second body color.
- 14 days and up
Tower, scrollwork and shingles
Seven colors, where the details set the pace.
Weather days are not counted. Terms, limits and exclusions of the warranty are in your written warranty.
Questions about exteriors
How long does a Victorian take?
Most two- and three-story houses are on the scaffold for one to three weeks, depending on how much wood needs repair and how many colors are going on. You get a day range in writing, not a promised date, because fog and rain move the days.
How many coats, and what sheen?
Bare wood gets primer, then two coats. Body and shingles take a low-sheen exterior paint, trim a satin or semi-gloss, sash and doors a semi-gloss, and small details can take gloss. Ask for the product data sheet for any paint we propose.
What does weather do to the schedule?
Dry months from May to October are the exterior season. Summer mornings are foggy, so we start the sunny sides first and wait for walls to dry. A rain day is a day off, and the schedule moves instead of being squeezed.
What does the warranty cover?
Peeling and blistering of the paint we apply, under the conditions in your written warranty. Terms, limits and exclusions are in your written warranty, which we hand you before work starts.
Start with a walk around the house
We look from the sidewalk and from the roofline, then write down what we see.