Will We Ever Finish Painting This Old House?

I realized we haven't given an update on the exterior paint in a while. We're about two-thirds of the way done. What's left is mostly up high, reachable with a ladder. Eventually we may need to rent a cherry picker to reach the highest corners.  

It's been a painfully slow and tedious process painting our 1940's house.  Mainly the slow-down is due to how much paint is peeling and sloughing off in big chunks when we run a scraper across the surface.  Huge chunks of paint are falling to the ground, yet we are not finding any rot so far (knock on wood), which is a testament to the use of high quality paint years ago.  I think the last time this house was painted was in the late 1980's.

While we could have hired someone to do the job for us, there's something to be said for the pride we'll feel when we accomplish the job ourselves. (Yep, you're right - that does sound like crazy talk, I hear it now, too. Perhaps I've been exposed to paint fumes too long?)  Friends have offered to help and we've declined...so I'm thinking it must be pride in a job done ourselves? We're certainly able to paint it, and we'll also save about $20,000 by doing it ourselves. During this pandemic, being frugal by doing as much as we can under our own steam seems a wise approach.

But still, every day I ask myself how will we ever manage to get this big old house painted before the rainy season starts?  Then I tell myself that we have to just keep plugging along, a little at a time, moving slowly from section to section until eventually it will be done.  One day we scrape and primer an area.  Then the next day we cover that area with paint. And then we stand back and admire the transformation as we reveal a pretty yellow house.

We're looking forward to sharing the final photos when the job is done. Hopefully this year before the rain starts.