When to paint a house exterior in Raleigh, NC
When to paint in Raleigh, NC
A short season: book early and expect weather delays. The painting window is April to June, and even that is thin, with 0 good months a year. The best month is September, at about 12 painting days. Book a painter by February.
If you want the house done in April to June, call for quotes in February or earlier; a job pushed past June is likely to wait until next year. For a deck, the months with enough staining days to spare are Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct.
- 1Jan
- 2Feb
- 4Mar
- 8Apr
- 11May
- 10Jun
- 4Jul
- 6Aug
- 12Sep
- 10Oct
- 3Nov
- 1Dec
Month by month
| Month | Painting days | Staining days | With low-temp paint | Avg low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1 | 1 | 4 | 32° / 56°F |
| February | 2 | 2 | 6 | 35° / 61°F |
| March | 4 | 4 | 12 | 41° / 68°F |
| April | 8 | 7 | 17 | 48° / 76°F |
| May | 11 | 7 | 15 | 58° / 83°F |
| June | 10 | 8 | 10 | 65° / 90°F |
| July | 4 | 3 | 4 | 70° / 93°F |
| August | 6 | 3 | 6 | 69° / 91°F |
| September | 12 | 8 | 13 | 63° / 86°F |
| October | 10 | 8 | 20 | 51° / 77°F |
| November | 3 | 3 | 11 | 40° / 67°F |
| December | 1 | 1 | 6 | 36° / 60°F |
Deck stain does best in September. Low-temperature paint adds about 53 days a year here.
Towns near Raleigh compared
Every one of the 6 closest places lands within three days of Raleigh's 70 a year, so the season here is the regional season. Knightdale, Garner, Cary, Morrisville, Rolesville, Wake Forest are read from the same station as Raleigh, so their numbers match; the real difference is the distance from that station.
| Place | From Raleigh | Painting days a year | Window | Station |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knightdale, NC | 9 mi east | 70 | April to June | same station |
| Garner, NC | 10 mi south | 70 | April to June | same station |
| Cary, NC | 11 mi west | 70 | April to June | same station |
| Morrisville, NC | 11 mi west | 70 | April to June | same station |
| Rolesville, NC | 12 mi northeast | 70 | April to June | same station |
| Wake Forest, NC | 12 mi northeast | 70 | April to June | same station |
How Raleigh ranks in NC
Of 91 NC places with 10,000 people or more, Raleigh (population 499,825, 2nd largest) ranks 68th for painting days, 7 days below the state median of 77. The longest season in the state is Greenville, 123 days, 73 miles east. The shortest is Boone at 50. Switching to low-temperature paint here is worth 53 extra days, more than most of the summer months on their own.
Where these numbers come from
Daily records from Raleigh-Durham International (8.9 miles away), 2015 to 2024, NOAA Global Summary of the Day. A month is good at 12+ painting days and possible at 6+.