Paint protects sound material. It does not repair rotten or broken material. That one rule answers most paint or replace questions. St. Louis has plenty of both cases: hundred year old trim that is still solid under bad paint, and newer hardboard siding that has turned to mush at the bottom edge.
Price ranges on this page are national figures published by HomeGuide for 2026. They are not our quotes. Local labor, paint prices and the condition of your own walls, wood and brick move the number up or down. Last checked October 2026.
Should I paint or replace my kitchen cabinets?
Paint them if the boxes are solid, the doors are flat and you like the layout. Replace them if they are water damaged, falling apart or laid out wrong. When people ask whether to paint or replace their kitchen cabinets, the answer is nearly always in the boxes, not the color.
By the national figures, painting is $2,000 to $6,500 and full replacement is $4,500 to $15,000.
Is it cheaper to paint or replace old siding?
It is cheaper to paint siding than to replace it, when the siding is sound. For vinyl, the national figures are $1,500 to $5,000 to paint and $4,800 to $11,100 to replace. For aluminum they are $1,500 to $7,000 to paint and $6,300 to $20,100 to replace.
No such comparison is published for wood, stucco or brick. For those we look at the wall and tell you what we see.
My wood siding is faded, cracked or 30 years old. Paint or replace?
Paint it if the wood siding is still firm. Faded and weathered wood takes paint well once it is washed, scraped, sanded and primed. Age alone is not a reason to replace. Clapboard on Webster Groves and Kirkwood houses has lasted more than a century under paint.
Replace boards that are split through, cupped badly or soft. Hardboard siding from the 1980s is a special case: once it swells and flakes at the edges, paint will not bring it back.
My wood siding has some rot. Do I paint it or replace it first?
Fix the rot first, then paint. Paint over rot traps water and the patch fails within a season or two. Rot is usually local: the bottom course near the ground, boards under a leaking gutter, and joints at corner boards.
Those boards are cut out and replaced, primed on all sides, and then the whole wall is painted. Find and stop the water source too, or the new boards will go the same way.
Rotting or soft trim: fill and paint, or new trim?
Small soft spots in trim can be dug out, hardened and filled. Trim that is soft along its length should be replaced. Window sills, the bottoms of door casings, porch column bases and the lower edge of cornice boards are where rot starts on St. Louis brick houses.
Press a screwdriver into the wood. If it sinks in more than a little over a wide area, plan for new wood.
Can a painter patch dry rot with epoxy or do I need a carpenter?
A painter can patch small areas with epoxy wood filler: a sill corner, a column base, a spot on a casing. A carpenter is needed when the damage is structural or large: a whole sill, porch framing, long runs of cornice, or anything that holds weight.
Epoxy repair done well lasts and takes paint. It is not a way to rebuild a board that is mostly gone. We tell you at the estimate which repairs we handle and which need a carpenter.
My deck boards are grey and splintering. Stain or replace?
Grey is only weathering and can be cleaned and stained. Splintering boards that are still solid can be sanded and coated. Boards that are cracked through, soft or loose at the fasteners should be replaced before any stain goes on.
Often a deck needs a few new boards and then a full clean and stain. That costs far less than a new deck.
My aluminum siding is chalky. Paint it or cover it?
Paint it. Chalky aluminum siding is one of the best candidates for paint, because the metal under the chalk is usually fine. The chalk is the old factory finish breaking down in the sun.
The chalk must be washed off fully, and bare metal spots primed, or the new paint will let go. Painted aluminum siding lasts 5 to 10 years by the published national figure. Many ranches in Florissant, Ferguson and Ballwin have this siding on the gables.
Is a 20-year-old deck worth painting or staining?
A 20-year-old deck is worth staining if the frame is sound. Check the posts, the joists and the board where the deck meets the house. If those are solid, new stain and a few new boards make sense. If the frame is soft or the deck moves when you walk on it, do not spend money on a finish.
An old deck usually takes a solid stain better than a clear one, since it hides wear and mismatched new boards.
A free estimate with a written quote is the only way to get a real price for your job. Call or text (314) 742-3507.