How to paint my old fence?

Dayna14

I’d like to paint this crappy old fence and trialed some colours out today, using Wattyl Solaguard (low sheen). This pic is just one coat of each colour and it wasn’t completely dry yet. 

I’ll purchase the cheapest paint gun I can and get stuck in but any tips before I go buy 10 litres of paint and the gun? Plan to stick with Wattyl Solaguard and maybe go the $49 Ozito spray gun? How do I keep overspray from hitting my neighbour’s washing lines / sheds etc? I’ve seen people holding some cardboard up to prevent that? 

Part of our fence is currently the very light grey colour and part of it is a terrible washed out green (and the very back fence is cream colourbond). 

Any and all tips very much appreciated! 

PS: I’ve been told this is not asbestos which is a relief! 

EricL

Hello @Dayna14, 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about painting your fence.

The first thing that came to my attention was the material of your fence which reminded me of the old asbestos fences used many years ago. If you have had your fence tested and it came up negative, then painting over it should not be an issue.

The Ozito spray gun should be sufficient to use for this particular project. My best advice is to clean the spray gun thoroughly after end of day use. Under no circumstances should you allow the paint to sit inside the spray gun or the reservoir tank overnight. It will clog up the spray channels and will render your spray gun unusable.

I propose speaking to your neighbour about your plan. Tell them that you'll be covering part of their shed with painters drop sheet to protect the back of their shed and that you'll also be covering their laundry lines as well to protect it from overspray. Give your neighbour an exact date and time when you'll begin so that they can adjust their schedule as well. You can use masking tape along with bricks to prevent the painters drop sheet from flying off.  

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric