What Color Should A House Foundation Be?

Every house ever built has a foundation. It’s the one thing that every structure needs in order to stay up. Depending on the type of foundation, some might be more exposed than others. Adding color to a foundation, whether it can be seen or not from the outside, can provide numerous benefits for a relatively cheap cost.

The best color for a house foundation would be a dark neutral color. Neutral colors would be gray, black, navy blue, dark brown, etc. The ground would easily stain anything bright, and those types of colors also tend to capture the eyes, which takes attention away from the house itself.

In this article, we’ll be mainly going over the main benefit of adding paint to a house foundation and other ways that finishes are used to complement foundations. Read on if you plan on doing a renovation, a paint job, or if you just want to learn more about foundation as a space.


Can you paint house foundation?

Yes, you can have your house foundation painted. You can have it painted either during the construction or after the house is finished depending on the type of foundation you have.


When to paint house foundation

House foundations should be painted, especially if parts of it are exposed. Painting your foundation can make it more aesthetically pleasing and cleaner looking.


Benefits of painting your house foundation

The properties of paint could definitely help your house foundation in terms of maintenance and longevity. Paint is relatively cheap as a finish, and the main benefits that it provides include:

Weathering protection

Paint provides a thin barrier between the bare material and the elements. It can help keep out moisture and sunlight, both of which tend to be the main culprits behind the deterioration of materials.

This isn’t to say that paint is some sort of miracle finish that will instantly weather-proof your foundation. Instead, it offers extra protection as an added benefit and should be treated as such.

Insect damage identification

Since paint is a very visual finish, any signs of damage to the material will easily show up. Wooden structures are the most vulnerable when it comes to insect damage. The best way to determine if your wooden posts are getting eaten away by termites is to look at the paint.

Weathering is usually random, while insect damage tends to follow a certain pattern. For termites, small little holes will start forming on the post. Paint helps identify these little holes and allows you to do the necessary interventions.

Slow down wood rot

This is actually a benefit that mainly stems from weathering protection; however, paint also contributes a bit more to wood longevity. Wood rot is caused by multiple factors. The specific benefit that paint brings to wood is that paint can also act as an added sealant.

Wood always needs to be treated before construction. This includes making sure that no water is left inside the wood and that it’s completely dry. Wood varnish is used to seal up the wood, but paint can also contribute to this sealing process and allow for the wood to last even longer.

Cleanliness

Paint helps prevent dust and other particles from building up on the foundation. This would help maintain a cleaner finish and looks more aesthetically pleasing.


How to make the most out of paint

You should have two priorities when using paint, which is what the paint can provide in terms of practicality and what the paint can provide in terms of aesthetics.

This all depends on the type of paint that you use and the properties that it has.

  • Some paints are oil-based, while other paints are water-based.
  • Some may be glossy, while others may have a matte finish, both of which will produce different textures.
  • Some paints will be thicker, and others will be thinner.
  • Some paint may be sprayed-on while others need a brush.

The key to choosing the right type of paint for you is to identify these properties and know what they entail.

Below is a guide table as to what the different properties of paint entails:

PropertiesEffects
Oil-based vs Water-basedOil-based paints are very viscous compared to water-based. This is because the solvent used is very organic as compared to water. Oil-based paints tend to become harder when they dry compared to water-based. However, this hardness would also mean that the paint can crack, especially if applied to materials that expand/contract due to temperature.
Glossy vs MatteGlossy paint tends to exaggerate a material’s texture, while matte paint tends to tone it down. The quality of the construction and your foundation’s current state should be considered when choosing between the two. The exaggeration comes from the fact that glossy paint tends to capture light more compared to matte paint.
Thick vs ThinThe thicker the paint, the harder it is to work with, and the longer it will take to dry. While the thinner the paint, the more the actual material will be seen. Finding a balance between the two, considering the type of paint you’re using, is the best way to go.
Spray-on vs brushThe main concerning difference between spray-on paint and brushed paint is the manpower and effort needed to paint the surface.

Sprayed on paint is much faster but provides very limited options, while brush paint is much slower, but pretty much any type of paint can be applied with this method. Brush painting can also provide much more control as compared to spray on paint.

Actionable Steps

If you’re reading this, you’re most likely either having a home built, or you already have a built house.

If you plan on having a home built, consult with the construction manager as to when is the best time and way to apply paint on the foundation. They’ll be the ones who know what’s the best type of paint to apply to the foundation, and most likely, they’ll already have procedures and standards that they can refer to.

If you live in a built house, then what you can do is assess the parts of your foundation that are exposed or accessed. This is, of course, assuming that you have either a basement foundation or crawlspace foundation.

Since you’re not as pressed for time as a mid-construction paint job, what you can do is see what material you’re foundation is made out of, the conditions it experiences, and then research the best type of paint to use is and how to apply it. It’s not the end of the world if you do a sloppy paint job on your foundation; it’s just one of those small factors in improving your house.


Conclusion

Painting your foundation is just one of the many ways that you can improve your house. When it comes to house design and looks, little details add up and often make up the bigger picture. Maintaining the different parts of your house and giving them a touch up is an inexpensive way of making your house look good as compared to renovations.

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