Painters guides

25 guides for Pennsylvania homeowners. Every guide lists its sources.

Pennsylvania guides

How much does house painting cost in Pennsylvania?

Published price ranges for interior rooms, whole interiors and exteriors, the extras that raise a quote, and how to compare two painters' prices fairly.

How to choose a house painter in Pennsylvania

A step-by-step way to choose a painter: what to look up, what to ask to see, how to compare estimates, and which warning signs the consumer authorities name.

Questions to ask a house painter before you hire

A list of questions to put to every painter you are considering, grouped by subject, with the reason each one matters and the answer the rules point to.

Signs your house needs painting, and signs it needs something else first

How to read the paint on your house inside and out, which kinds of failure a fresh coat will fix, and which call for a repair or a lead-safe professional first.

Should you paint your own house or hire a painter?

When doing your own painting makes sense, the lead-safe steps the EPA asks of do-it-yourselfers in older homes, and the jobs the safety agencies point toward a professional.

How often should you paint a house, and what time of year is best?

No authority sets a repainting schedule. What the sources say about inspecting paint, how long deck finishes last, and the timing rules that keep new paint from failing.

What happens during a house painting job, and how long does it take?

The stages of an interior or exterior paint job, what a lead-safe certified firm must do in a pre-1978 house, what affects the timeline and what to check at the end.

Do house painters need a license in Pennsylvania?

No state painting license, but painting is named in the home improvement law, the federal lead rule covers painters in older homes, and Philadelphia adds its own checks.

House painting scams and bad practice to avoid in Pennsylvania

Door-to-door offers, big deposits, missing contracts and lead shortcuts: the warning signs the FTC and Pennsylvania's Attorney General name, and what the law does about them.

House painting questions and answers for Pennsylvania homeowners

Quick, sourced answers to the questions homeowners ask most about hiring a painter, with pointers to the fuller guides.

Drywall and plaster repair before painting: cost, permits and old-house cautions

Price ranges for patching drywall and plaster, why the repair matters as much as the paint, which repairs need a permit, and how lead, asbestos and moisture change the job.

How to get rid of leftover paint in southeastern Pennsylvania

Latex or oil-based, trash or collection: the state's rules for leftover paint, what each of the five counties' collection events accepts, and how to pack and store what is left.

Paint fumes and VOCs: how to keep indoor air safer while painting

Why paint gives off fumes, what the EPA knows and does not know about their health effects, how to ventilate during and after a job, and how storage and leftovers add to indoor air.

Painting an older house with lead paint: what the federal rule means for you

Why lead paint matters in older homes, which painting jobs the federal rule covers, what a homeowner, landlord or tenant is entitled to, and the questions the rule leaves to you.

Painting kitchen cabinets: what it costs and what to check before you hire

Cost ranges for professional cabinet painting side by side, how painters price the job, why old cabinets raise a lead question, and what the contract should spell out.

Removing old paint: strippers, heat, sanding and the rules that apply

When stripping is really needed, which removal methods federal and Pennsylvania guidance allow or forbid, how lead and asbestos change the job, and the published prices.

Should you test for lead paint before painting an older house?

What an inspection, a risk assessment and a renovator's test each tell you, who is allowed to do them in Pennsylvania, when a test changes the painter's obligations, and free options.

Staining a deck or porch: which finish, how to prepare the wood and what it costs

Clear sealers, tinted water repellents and semitransparent stains compared, the cleaning and drying steps before finishing, published prices, and old treated wood and lead paint.

Wallpaper removal before painting: cost, methods and what may be underneath

Price ranges for stripping, steaming and soaking wallpaper, why repairs often follow, and what to ask about mold, old paint and plaster before anyone starts pulling paper off.

Why does exterior paint peel so soon, and what should be fixed before repainting?

The causes of early paint failure on wood siding and trim, where the water usually comes from, what to fix first, and how a proper repaint is sequenced.