Had a neighbor once who tried to paint their shutters neon green—HOA nearly had a meltdown, so rainbow gutters just cracks me up. Honestly, you nailed it about the paint prep. I’ve seen folks slap on cheap stuff and by spring it’s all peeling off in strips. If the HOA is that wild, I’d double-check if they even know what they’re asking for. Sometimes I think they just want to see if anyone will actually do it...
If the HOA is that wild, I’d double-check if they even know what they’re asking for.
Honestly, half the time I think the board just throws stuff at the wall to see what sticks. If they really want rainbow gutters, they better be ready for the maintenance headaches—multi-color paint jobs are a pain to keep looking sharp. Curious if anyone’s actually had to repaint something wild like that after a year or two? I’ve seen some “statement” colors turn into a patchy mess real fast.
If they really want rainbow gutters, they better be ready for the maintenance headaches—multi-color paint jobs are a pain to keep looking sharp.
That’s not an exaggeration. I once worked on a house with a bold teal-and-yellow trim, and even with high-quality exterior paint, the sun faded it unevenly in less than a year. Touch-ups were constant, and matching the original shades was a nightmare. I can’t imagine trying to keep six or seven colors looking fresh. Has the board even considered how much that’ll cost long-term?
I get where the board’s coming from wanting to add some color, but honestly, it’s not practical. We had a red accent on our gutters a few years back—just one color—and it was a hassle. The paint peeled faster than the main house color, and every touch-up looked slightly off, especially after a summer or two. Multiply that by six or seven shades and you’re basically signing up for a full repaint every year. I doubt anyone’s budgeted for that kind of upkeep.
Honestly, I’m still trying to wrap my head around how we’d even keep up with that many colors. Here’s how I see it playing out, step by step:
1. You pick your six or seven shades (let’s hope the board doesn’t get too wild with the palette).
2. You buy all the paint—probably not cheap, unless you’re cool with the dollar store stuff that flakes off if you look at it wrong.
3. You spend a weekend up on a ladder, painting each section a different color, hoping you don’t mix up the order and end up with a weird pattern.
4. Fast forward a year: the sun’s baked half of them, the red’s faded to pink, and the blue’s looking more gray than anything else.
5. Now you’re out there again, trying to match those original colors (good luck, unless you kept the cans and they didn’t dry out).
I get wanting to brighten things up, but unless someone’s volunteering to do annual touch-ups for free, I’m not sure this is realistic. Maybe there’s some magic paint out there I haven’t heard of? Otherwise, seems like a recipe for mismatched gutters and a lot of grumbling...