Three kinds of day
In an average year at Huntington/Tri-State, about 8 miles from Huntington, NOAA counts about 483 hours with the wet-bulb temperature above 73°F and about 1,699 hours above 67°F.
NOAA's climate normals for the Huntington Tri-State Airport station count about 25 days a year with highs of 90°F or more and about 90 days with lows at or below 32°F.
Those figures are quoted as NOAA publishes them. They frame three kinds of day a painter has to think about: hot ones, humid ones and frosty ones. Each affects paint differently, and a crew that understands all three will time the work to suit the product.
Hot afternoons
Paint applied in strong heat or full sun can dry before it levels, leaving lap marks where wet and dry edges meet; on dark colors, it can blister. Most exterior labels set an upper temperature as well as a lower one, and many advise against coating a surface that is hot to the touch. On hot days, a careful crew follows the shade, painting each wall while the sun is off it. Ask how your painter sequences the sides of the house when it's hot.
Humid hours
Wet-bulb readings combine heat and humidity. In general, the more humid hours, the longer water-based paint takes to give up its water, and the greater the chance of surfactant leaching: the sticky tan streaks that sometimes appear on fresh latex when moisture reaches it before it cures. Usually they wash off, but they are a sign the coat wasn't ready for damp. Late-afternoon painting with evening dew on the way is the classic cause.
Frost nights
A night at or below freezing matters beyond the night itself. Many labels require the temperature to stay above a minimum for a period after application, and dew or frost on a coat that hasn't set can spoil it. On cold mornings, siding stays wet with dew well after sunrise. Ask how your painter decides when to start and stop on a cool day, and whether they check surface temperature as well as air.
Judging a painting day
Put those together and the rule of thumb is about conditions, not dates:
- exterior paint goes on when air and surface temperatures sit inside the label's range at both ends, the surface is dry and no rain or dew is due before the coat sets;
- stain on decks and fences follows the same rules and also needs dry wood;
- interior work fits around all of it, and is often easier to book when outside work isn't possible.
Our exterior painting and deck and fence staining pages cover the outside work; interior painting covers rooms.
West Virginia's code line on painting
West Virginia's Contractor Licensing Act says the term contractor does not include a person who performs landscaping or painting services for commercial or residential customers. That is West Virginia Code 30-42-3 as worded, and this page draws nothing more from it.
Whoever you hire, the written proposal and your own questions carry the weight: what's being painted, how it's prepared, which products, how many coats and who handles any repair work.
Questions for the painter
- What temperature range do your products need, and how do you check it on the day?
- How do you avoid painting into evening dew?
- How do you plan the walls around sun and shade on a hot day?
- What will you do if the coat shows streaks after a damp night?
- Can I see proof of your liability coverage?