5 Things To Consider Before Painting Your Home Black
If you take a drive around your town, there's a chance you'll see at least one home painted black. This trend, which Allied Painters Inc. says started in 2017, is still gaining momentum — but why? For one, both an advantage and a disadvantage, those black walls absorb heat, reducing your heating bills in the winter but also making your home hotter in the summer.
The other reasons have more to do with aesthetics, it seems. Allied Painters Inc. continues with the fact that the color black ensures the lines of your home stand out more, makes your landscaping pop, and you'll join other cultures in style, as places like Japan have been embracing the black house for a very long time. Even if you're not goth and don't celebrate Halloween all year, you can join this trend, but there are some things you should know before you start painting.
1. There are many different shades of black
According to Color Meanings, there are over 100 shades of black, and not all of them will likely be available in paint options. Not only that, but you'll specifically be investing in exterior paint, which may limit your choices even more.
When it comes to picking the right shade for your home, the biggest things you want to consider are what you're pairing the hues with and whether you want a deeper black or something darker than gray. You can also find black shades with undertones of other colors, like blue. Amelia Lawrence Style & Design shares some of the shade options available for interior and exterior paint jobs, including BM Soot with that blue undertone that gives it a coolness. Pair black with gray undertones with white shutters and rich blacks with gray shutters to provide the angles of your home with even more emphasis.
2. Your neighbors may hate it (and so might you)
You may want to consider what your neighbors will think of your home once it has a black exterior. While you don't always have to appease your neighbors, you also don't want to have them complaining about you to other people in your neighborhood or on social media. Why not ask their thoughts, gauge their feelings, and then pick a shade that might be a little friendlier if they seem very against your choice of exterior paint hues?
You may not like it either, so take some time to look at black homes online and get a feel of how it will look on your house. And, of course, if you have a homeowner's association, you'll need their permission, too. Maximum Exposure Real Estate says that design changes like exterior paint are often regulated, and it's better to get approval first instead of repainting when you get in trouble!
3. Your roof and doors matter
Consider the colors and style of your roof and doors. If you have a shingled roof that is not already black or gray, will black still go with it? Your Own Architect points out the importance of shingle colors, noting that dark shingles look best on dark-colored homes, giving them a more dramatic look and possibly even making your home look larger than it is. Even a lighter-colored roof on a black house can be striking, unlike the washed-out look that it can give a lighter-colored home. But what if your roof is some shade of brown? Fashion says you can mix the two, according to Vogue.
As far as your doors go, you can stick with black, but picking a striking color that stands out will make people look twice at your home. Out of some of the favorite door colors from HomeBNC, some excellent choices to go with black include blue shades, olive greens, and natural wood tones.
4. Your style of house determines the shade and sheen
While dark black can give a modern home a sharp look with distinguished lines, according to Paintzen, it may not be perfect for all homes. Too dark on a rustic home may not look as good — it takes away from that rustic appeal. Whereas something mimicking the Japanese Shou-sugi-ban method of burnt wood would look good on a rustic-style house.
As the sheen of the paint goes, Paintzen points out that those rustic-style homes, as well as houses that were built a long time ago, would benefit more from a matte black. Save the shinier stuff for modern homes. Though, they also point out that matte can better make the lines and details stand out on your home if it has a lot of architectural elements that you want to be enhanced — those will get lost in a glossy sheen. As you can see in the picture, gloss also acts almost like a mirror, so you'll see the reflection of the scenery around your home when you gaze upon your exterior, something else to keep in mind.
5. Picking the right painter
While you can, of course, make painting the exterior of your home black a DIY job, there are reasons why picking the right professional to do the job for you is a great idea. You may pay a little more money to cover labor, but you have a better guarantee of a job well done through the eye of someone who does this regularly and has all the equipment needed at the ready.
When picking the right person to paint the exterior of your home, look for someone with ample experience and who knows all about painting with the color black. Chesapeake Painting Services suggests looking at reviews and talking to local folks about paint jobs you like. Getting suggestions from people who liked the work they got done will definitely help in picking the right pro for the job. Of course, the cost of the paint job will depend on the paint type, how big or small your home is, and whether you need any extras, like shutters and doors, done.