First coat
Bond and coverage
The first coat is doing a different job from the second. It bonds to what is underneath and it tells us where the substrate is still drinking, which is information you only get once paint is actually on the wall.
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Pressure washing and soft washing, greater New Orleans
Washing is either preparation for a coating or it is a finished job in its own right, and the two are not done the same way. Cleaning a surface you are about to paint has a different standard than cleaning one you are not.
What this covers
Pressure Washing, end to end
Washing is either preparation for a coating or it is a finished job in its own right, and the two are not done the same way. Cleaning a surface you are about to paint has a different standard than cleaning one you are not.
Siding and stucco Brick and masonry Driveways and patios Prep wash before painting
How washing is run
Pressure is the last thing to reach for, not the first
High pressure aimed at old wood siding, soft brick or stucco drives water straight into the wall and takes the surface off with it. Because the damage shows up months later as a coating failure, almost nobody connects the two events.
The surface decides the method
Soft washing does more and harms less on old wood, soft brick and stucco. Flat work like concrete, pavers and flagstone is straightforward and is not all treated the same way.
A prep wash goes further than a clean-up
A surface that merely looks clean can still carry chalk, salts and organic film that a new coat will not bond through, so tell us which job this is when you call. The two are quoted differently.
Mildew gets treated, not blasted
Rinsing organic growth off a shaded north elevation removes what you can see and leaves what you cannot, and it grows back through the new coat. That is the single most common reason a repaint on a shaded wall fails early.
Then the wall has to dry
Paint over a damp or chalky wall fails from behind. On this coast the dry-out is part of the schedule, not an afterthought.
Why the quote says two
A coat and a job are different things
Painting a house here is a different job from painting one in a dry climate. Humidity changes how long a coat stays open, and it decides how much film you need on a wall before the weather starts taking it back.
Second coat
Color and film build
The second coat is where the color goes true and the film reaches the thickness printed on the tin. One coat over a sound wall looks fine from the driveway and looks thin on the north side by spring.
What actually grows here
Two different problems, two different answers
Organic film and mildew
Anything that stays damp grows something, and shaded elevations stay damp longest. Treatment, not pressure, is what removes it for good.
Industrial deposit
Along the River Road corridor in St. Rose and Destrehan the deposit is industrial, having settled out of the air off a stretch that has carried heavy industry since the 1920s. A rinse with a hose is genuinely not a clean on that side of the parish.
No salt problem
Lake Pontchartrain is brackish and the Mississippi is fresh, so what looks like salt damage almost never is. It is grime and mildew on a damp surface, and it is fixed with preparation and the right product.
How a job runs
Three steps, from the call to the clean up
The same three whether the job is one room or a whole elevation.
- 01
Scheduling
Book your free consultation by phone or through the form. Ask for references at any time.
- 02
Free Consultation
You get a project schedule and an accurate quote, whatever the size of the job.
- 03
Work Starts
Your painter starts, keeps you updated, and tidies up when the job is done.
2,500
Jobs finished
12
Cities covered
2
Coats quoted as standard
$0
Cost of an estimate
Rated by our satisfied customers
Questions we get asked
Before you book the estimate
These are the ones asked about pressure washing specifically. If yours is not here, ask it on the call.
Not answered here?
Ask it on the estimate call. No charge, no obligation.
Mon to Fri, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Sat and Sun closed.
Will pressure washing damage my siding?
It can, and on old wood, soft brick or stucco it often does. Pressure driven into a wall takes the surface with it and pushes water where it should not go. We soft wash those, which cleans better and does no harm.
Is a wash enough before painting?
A wash on its own is not the same as preparation for a coating. A prep wash goes further and the surface then has to dry properly, because paint over a damp or chalky wall fails from behind.
Why does the green come back on my north wall?
Because rinsing removes what you can see and leaves the growth in the surface. It has to be treated. Otherwise it comes back through whatever goes on top.
Do you wash driveways and patios?
Yes, and those are straightforward flat work. Say what the surface is when you call, since concrete, pavers and flagstone are not treated the same way.
Where we do it
Pressure Washing in all twelve towns
The New Orleans metro, across the lake on the north shore, and up the river as far as Baton Rouge. Which ground you are on changes the schedule more than the size of the job.
Shade keeps moisture on a wall long after the sun has moved off it. Under a heavy oak canopy the recoat window stretches out, and the shaded elevation is the one that sets the schedule for the whole house.
A canal, a levee or a lakefront behind the house holds humidity at ground level. Two ends of one street can be ready to coat at different hours, so the order of the day matters more than the size of the crew.
Old siding, old millwork and old paint mean most of the day goes into preparation. On an older frontage the finish is only ever as good as what was scraped, filled and primed underneath it.
See every townAll twelve towns shown.
Either way
Small room or whole elevation
Whether you have a small interior project or a large-scale exterior makeover in mind, Big Easy Paintings is your partner for the work. Talk to us about the project, get a quote, and we will tell you plainly what it takes.
Free estimate
Tell us where you are and what needs painting
On site or remote, in all twelve towns. No charge and no obligation. If it is quicker to talk, call 504-226-6252 and we will pick up.
- A written quote for two coats, itemized
- The prep spelled out, not assumed
- A start date we can hold
- The same crew from first day to last
Request a free estimate
Or call 504-226-6252
Two coats, quoted up front
No range, no surprise second visit to finish what one coat could not.