I do not like the color of our aluminum siding. Should we just paint it or replace it altogether?

Aluminum siding is already painted, so yes, you can paint over it. The trick is to get good adhesion between the existing paint and the new paint. It's best not to burn through excessively, so it's better to use a fine grit sandpaper. Aluminum siding usually has a texture, so after a general going over with an electric sander to get the easy bits, it really has to be sanded by hand, to get into the spaces. Sanding sponges and scotchbrite pads might also help.





Sanding is extremely important for adhesion. There are all sorts of products which claim to work without sanding, and they'll work well enough to hold themselves. But as paint dries, it shrinks, which puts tension on the previous coat. Each coat of paint increases the tension until finally the point of weakest adhesion breaks loose.





Imagine what's happening on a microscopic level. When you paint, the paint needs to grab hold of something (this is known as a mechanical bond). sanding creates all sorts of little microscopic anchoring points where the paint can grab hold. Sanding is even necessary for primer to have something to grab hold of (primer needs to bond also).





When sanding, it's not enough to just scratch the surface. Scratches are on a macro level compared to the bonding which happens with paint. You have to sand until the entire surface is dulled.





Most paint store employees will tell you that sanding isn't necessary with certain products, because all they know is what the paint suppliers tell them. If paint manufacturers actually told people the truth about sanding, few people would buy the product because most people hate sanding. So most paints tend to downplay the importance of sanding. If they didn't, people would just buy someone else's product that did make claims to the contrary.





After all that, you need to give it a coat of really good primer. I personally recommend Alkyd Modified primers. You'll probably have to call a few paint stores to find one. Most paint stores will either claim that they've never heard of it, or claim that they have something better. For my customers, I have had the best luck with Alkyd modified primers.





Then paint it with a good latex paint, and you'll have a painted house which will hold up as well as any painted house.





That's what it takes to really paint over aluminum siding and get it to work. And then in five years, you can sand that coat, and give it another coat which will hopefully last for another 5 years. And despite all the prep work, there are no guarantees that little bits here and there where you didn't sand perfectly might not flake off eventually.





So, as a fourth generation fine finish painter with over 20 years experience, I am recommending that you buy vinyl sidingI do not like the color of our aluminum siding. Should we just paint it or replace it altogether?
you are better off replacing it with vinyl siding, have to use special paint, if not it will just flake offI do not like the color of our aluminum siding. Should we just paint it or replace it altogether?
you can paint it but it needs to be spray painted to make it look good in the end
painting is cheaper,be sure siding is clean, use preasure washer and t. s. p. cleaner. use 100% acrylic latex exterior paint and high quality primer.sherwin-williams paints such as duration or superpaint.

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