Austin Painting Contractor for Heat-Tough Exteriors & Flawless Interiors

Chalking happens when UV breaks down the paint binder and leaves a powdery residue on the surface. Colors wash out, gloss goes away, and the film gets thin and porous. Once it's chalking, paint stops shedding water well, and a fresh coat won't bond properly unless the chalk is removed first.

Austin's UV index stays high for much of the year and often hits 10–11+ in summer. On south and west walls, surface temperatures can go past 140°F. Dark colors absorb even more heat, so the dark board-and-batten and charcoal trim that's so popular right now fades first. Builder-grade and low-end acrylics hold up worst. They often look tired within 3–5 years, which is about half of what the same paint would give you in a cooler climate.

• White powder comes off on your hand when you rub the siding
• West or south walls look noticeably lighter than shaded walls
• Trim has lost its gloss or looks flat
• Dark accent colors have turned blotchy or uneven
• Rainwater no longer beads up on the surface

This shows up most on 2000s-era homes in Teravista, Avery Ranch and Falcon Pointe, and on newer dark-exterior builds in Leander and Manor. Exposed lots on the hilltops in Steiner Ranch and Lakeway get hit especially hard.

Our fix: We pressure-wash off the chalk, prime where it's needed, and apply premium UV-resistant 100% acrylic at the correct film thickness. On hot elevations we'll suggest heat-reflective color options.

Wood rot is fungal decay that starts when water gets past failed paint or caulk. It softens fascia boards, soffits, sills and door trim. If it isn't repaired, it spreads into framing, lets pests in and leaves paint nothing solid to hold onto.

Heavy rain in Flash Flood Alley comes between long dry spells, so exterior wood keeps swelling and shrinking. That cracks caulk joints and lets water in at the end grain. The 2023 ice storm also left a lot of damaged fascia, soffits and gutters in neighborhoods with tree canopy. Hardboard and T1-11 siding on 1970s–80s homes is especially prone to rot at the drip edge, where water sits.

• Soft or spongy wood when you press it with a screwdriver
• Paint peeling in strips at board ends
• Dark stains or gaps around window sills
• Swollen or crumbling bottom edges on siding
• Gaps or sagging where the fascia meets the gutters
• Wasp nests or insect activity in trim gaps

We find it often on hardboard and T1-11 siding in Shady Hollow, Wells Branch, Lost Creek and older parts of Round Rock and Cedar Park. Wood-sided bungalows in Hyde Park and Travis Heights rot around the porches and sills.

Our fix: We cut out the rotted wood, replace it with sound lumber or fiber-cement where that makes sense, seal every joint with elastomeric caulk, then prime and paint so the new wood is fully sealed.

These are hairline-to-wide cracks in walls, ceilings and stucco, along with nail pops and trim corners pulling apart. They're usually caused by the house moving. If you paint over them without proper repair, they show back up within months.

East of I-35, homes sit on expansive Blackland Prairie clay. It swells when it's wet and shrinks a lot during droughts, so foundations shift a little every season. That movement shows up as diagonal cracks above doors and windows, separated crown molding and cracked stucco. Normal spackle won't stretch with that movement. Flexible patching materials and the right prep make the difference between a repair that lasts and one that keeps coming back.

• Diagonal cracks running from door or window corners
• Nail pops dotting the ceilings
• Gaps between baseboard or crown and the wall
• Stucco cracks in a spiderweb pattern
• Doors that started sticking at the same time cracks appeared

This is common in Pflugerville, Manor, eastern Round Rock and parts of East Austin around Mueller, especially after a summer drought ends with fall rain. Allandale and Crestview ranch homes with plaster interiors show it too.

Our fix: We cut out and tape larger cracks, reset popped fasteners, re-caulk trim with flexible sealant and patch stucco with compatible materials before priming and painting. If cracks are severe or keep getting worse, it's a good idea to have the foundation evaluated.

Mildew is fungal growth that looks like black, gray or green spotting. Pollen and fine dust also form a film on the surface. Both trap moisture, discolor the paint and stop new coatings from bonding if they aren't washed and treated first.

Gulf moisture keeps summer mornings humid. North-facing walls under the live oaks stay damp and shaded for most of the day. In winter, cedar pollen coats everything, and oak pollen follows in spring. West of MoPac, fine caliche and limestone dust settles on every surface. Painting over any of that is one of the most common reasons local paint jobs fail early.

• Black or green speckling on north walls and soffits
• Yellow-green film left behind in pollen season
• Chalky tan dust on siding in Hill Country homes
• Musty smell near shaded eaves
• Stains that come back after you rinse them

It's widespread in Tarrytown, Zilker and Travis Heights under heavy oak canopy. Hill Country homes in West Lake Hills, Rollingwood and Barton Creek get it along with limestone and caliche dust.

Our fix: We wash and apply a mildewcide treatment, collecting rinse water properly in sensitive watersheds. Then we use a mildew-resistant primer and topcoat on shaded elevations.

Homes built before 1978 may have lead paint under the newer layers. Sanding, scraping or cutting into it creates dust that's hazardous, especially for children and pregnant family members. Federal rules govern how that work has to be done.

A large share of central Austin's housing went up before 1978. That includes the 1910s–1940s homes in Hyde Park, Clarksville, Travis Heights and Old West Austin, plus the 1950s–60s ranches in Allandale and Rosedale. Many still have their original wood siding and trim under multiple paint layers. Once peeling paint needs scraping, the EPA RRP Rule's thresholds of 6 sq ft inside or 20 sq ft outside are easy to go over.

• Home built before 1978
• Alligatored or cracked paint with many visible layers
• Paint chips around windows, porches and railings
• Friction wear on old windows and doors
• Children or pregnant residents in the home

This applies to most of the historic stock in Hyde Park, Clarksville, Travis Heights and Tarrytown, plus older homes being renovated or flipped near downtown.

Our fix: If your home is pre-1978, we'll go over lead-safe requirements during the estimate and plan containment, cleanup and prep that meet federal rules before any painted surface is disturbed.

Many builders use inexpensive flat interior paint. It hides drywall flaws, but it marks easily, burnishes when you scrub it, and won't wash clean. After a few years of kids, pets and moving furniture, the walls look tired no matter how often you clean them.

Austin's building boom from the 2000s through the 2020s filled Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Leander, Manor and Buda with homes finished this way. Those homes are now reaching their first or second repaint. Remote work makes the scuffs harder to ignore, and with so many listings competing for buyers, sellers want walls that photograph well.

• Shiny spots where you tried to scrub marks off
• Scuffs along hallways and stairwells
• Paint comes off on a damp cloth
• Flashing or patchy touch-ups
• Dingy kitchen and bath walls

We see this all the time in Teravista, Brushy Creek, Avery Ranch, Falcon Pointe, Mueller and newer subdivisions in Leander, Manor and Buda, often when tenants turn over or before a home is listed.

Our fix: We clean, spot-prime the patches and repaint in a durable, scrubbable eggshell or satin with low-VOC options, and use semi-gloss on trim and doors.

Kitchen and bath cabinets can peel, chip or get sticky when they were painted without proper degreasing and bonding primer. Factory finishes can also wear through in heavy-use areas. Then the wood underneath picks up moisture and grime.

A lot of 1970s–90s Austin homes still have solid oak cabinets that are good candidates for refinishing. Owners want modern white, greige or deep green finishes. Humid summers and steam from cooking and bathing wear down poorly applied DIY or flipper paint jobs quickly, and the chipping is worst around handles and sink bases.

• Chips around pulls and door edges
• Paint that feels tacky or soft
• Wood grain showing through worn spots
• Yellowed or greasy finish near the stove
• Peeling on vanity doors in bathrooms

Common in Shady Hollow, Wells Branch, Lost Creek and Allandale kitchens with original oak, and in flipped homes across East Austin and Round Rock.

Our fix: We remove the doors, degrease and sand, apply a bonding primer, then spray a hard-curing cabinet enamel for a smooth finish that holds up to daily use.