Most interior rooms take us one to two days, and a full exterior usually takes three to five days, depending on weather. Prep, the number of coats and drying time set the pace. In Michigan the weather sets it too, for anything outside.
How long does it take to paint a house inside?
A single room takes one to two days and a whole house interior usually takes several days to two weeks. How many days depends on the number of rooms, the repairs, the trim and the size of the crew.
HomeGuide publishes these painting times per room for 2026. They cover painting only, not repairs or drying between coats.
| Room | Hours |
|---|---|
| Bathroom | 2 to 3 |
| Bedroom | 4 to 5 |
| Kitchen | 4 to 5 |
| Primary bedroom | 5 to 6 |
| Living room | 5 to 7 |
| Open basement | 6 to 12 |
| Trim and baseboards | add 1 to 2 |
Older Detroit houses run longer than the table suggests. Plaster repairs need time to dry before primer, and wide trim and old windows are slow work.
How long does it take to paint the exterior of a house?
A full exterior usually takes us three to five days, depending on the weather and the size of the house. The national figure from HomeGuide is four to five days for an average job.
Washing comes first, and the walls then need time to dry. Scraping and priming peeling areas can take as long as the painting itself. A rainy week stretches the calendar without adding work days.
How long should I wait between coats?
Wait for the time printed on the can. For most latex wall paints that is about four hours between coats, and for oil-based paints it is about a day.
Cool rooms, damp basements and humid summer days all slow drying. If the first coat still feels cool or tacky, it is not ready. Recoating too soon can leave the finish soft and prone to peeling.
How long before I can put the furniture back?
You can usually put furniture back the day after the last coat, kept an inch or two off the walls. Paint is dry to the touch within hours, but it is still soft.
Wait about two weeks before pushing furniture tight to a wall, hanging pictures on fresh paint or setting objects on painted shelves and sills. Soft paint sticks to whatever leans on it.
How soon can I shower after the bathroom is painted?
Wait at least 24 hours before you shower in a freshly painted bathroom, and longer if you can. Steam on paint that has not set can cause streaks and drips of a sticky, brown residue that painters call surfactant leaching.
Run the fan and leave the door open for the first week or two. If streaks do appear, they wipe off with a damp cloth once the paint has hardened.
How long before I can wash or scrub new paint?
Wait until the paint has cured, which takes about two to four weeks for most latex paints. Drying and curing are different. Dry means the water has left. Cured means the film has reached full hardness.
Until then, wipe marks gently with a soft damp cloth and no cleaner. After it has cured, a quality eggshell or satin can be washed normally.
Can I stay in the house while it is painted?
Yes. Most people stay in their home during interior painting. We work room by room, so you keep the use of the rest of the house, and modern low-odor paints make that easier.
There are two exceptions to think about. If the job disturbs old paint in a home built before 1978, the work area is closed off and children and pregnant women should keep out of it until clean-up is done. And if oil-based primers are used for stains, the smell is strong for a day, so plan ventilation.
How long does interior paint last?
No single published figure says how long interior paint lasts, because it depends on the room. Ceilings and adult bedrooms can look good for many years. Hallways, kitchens, bathrooms and children's rooms wear much sooner.
The general figure HomeGuide gives for repainting is every 5 to 10 years. Good prep, two full coats and a washable sheen in busy rooms get you to the long end of that.
How long does exterior paint last?
An exterior paint job should last 5 to 10 years on average, by the national figures, with a full range of 3 to 20 years depending on the surface and the climate.
| Surface | Published lifespan |
|---|---|
| Wood siding | 3 to 7 years |
| Aluminum siding | 5 to 10 years |
| Vinyl siding | 5 to 10 years |
| Stucco | 5 to 7 years |
| Brick, acrylic latex paint | 3 to 5 years |
Michigan is hard on paint. Freeze and thaw, summer sun on south and west walls and damp shade on north walls all shorten its life. South-facing wood trim is usually the first to go.
How often should I repaint the outside of the house?
Plan to repaint the outside every 5 to 10 years, and to touch up sooner. Do not wait for widespread peeling, because by then the wood has been wet for a while and the prep costs far more.
Walk around the house each spring. Look at window sills, the bottoms of door frames, porch floors and the trim behind gutters. Scraping, priming and touching up those spots every couple of years can add years between full repaints.
Call or text (313) 209-8467 for a free estimate and a start date.