Pro tip: Don't use regular house paint on container walls outside...

I painted my container home's exterior last fall with standard latex house paint. It looked great for about two months and then started peeling off in big sheets this spring. Turns out the metal expands and contracts way more than wood or drywall, and regular paint just can't handle it. I ended up having to sand everything down and use an industrial grade marine paint that cost me $180. Has anyone else run into this problem with container paint peeling?

2 comments

2 Comments

burns.brooke16d agoTop Commenter

Regular paint just can't handle it" pretty much sums up how most products fail when you push them past what they were made for. Standard house paint is designed for stable wood or drywall walls indoors, not metal that's baking in the sun and freezing at night. It's the same reason you don't use normal glue on a car bumper or regular tape on a hot engine part - people just assume one paint fits all surfaces.

dixon.nathan15d ago

Hausepaint can't handle metal" is probably the closest. Most standard house paint actually works fine on metal if you prime it right. The real issue is exterior durability - sun and temp swings wreck cheap paint on any surface, wood included.