Wood Rot/exterior

Before any exterior painting project there should be an inspection for roting wood,whether its in the window frames,door frames handrails or the siding it should be delt with before painting. Painting over these areas will end up being costly in the long run, especialy if it gets to the band board or sill plate where you would have to jack up the house and (sister) a new board there! Its a whole lot less painful to fix it first. Exterior exposed hand railings require  a lot of attention as well, they just get beat up by the rain,snow,sleet,freezing rain, and sunblistering. Most boards on the exterior can be replaced with PVC,or vinal products, Masinite siding can be replaced with (cement boards) hardyplank. I highly recommend this, Most wood products bought at a home improvement store are fingerjointed and DO NOT hold up.Using fir and PVC is the way to go.