PAINTING

6 Tips for Successful Painting and Decorating

 by  BEN the Painter

To be sucessful at painting and decorating, one must possess the basic knowledge and skills. Here are a few simple rules that you should know before you get started.

1- Proper Prep-work

Remember to always prepare surfaces before slapping a coat of paint on them. Fill holes, Sand down rough surfaces, replace rotting/cracked/damaged wood. Make sure everything is properly prepared before starting to paint or decorate.

2- Buy good quality tools

A common mistake many homeowners make is to buy cheap equipment. Cheap equipment can often lead to a sloppy and unprofessional job.

When painting and decorating, always purchase the best quality equipment that you can afford, especially concerning paint brushes and roller sleeves.

3- Estimate the amount of materials you will need

Before beginning to paint or prep, try to estimate how much paint and other materials you will need to have in hand to successfully complete your job. You don’t want to run out of paint half way through a job, and have to stop and leave the site to go for more, as this would make you waste a lot of time. Simply make the point to always buy more paint than needed.  It’s always better to purchase extra materials than to not have enough when you need them. You can always return the unused paint, or save it for future renovations.

4- Buy good quality paints

Remember to invest in high quality wall paint.  Cheap paint leads to more coats, making you use more time and effort; whereas a bit more expensive, but higher quality paint will deliver a smoother finish coat, and decrease coat numbers.

5- Take safety measures

Make sure to always read the small print in the paint cans, to find out if you need to take any precautions to protect yourself from toxic fumes. It is always good to wear gloves and use goggles to protect your body from harmful chemicals.

6- Take your Time

Make sure to work within your comfort zone. If you feel like you do not possess the skill to accomplish a certain technique, don’t attempt to do it.

Take your time, and make sure your cut-lines are straight and smooth. Never rush a job. Remember: “Slow and neat is better than fast and sloppy.”

Give the paint a proper amount of time to dry in between coats.

The above are guidelines to aid you in accomplishing your goals of painting and decorating a house.

Follow these tips and I guarantee you a smoother and easier job.

Painting and decorating can be extremely tiring and nerve-racking at times. If you begin to feel frustrated, simply take a break. Who knows maybe you will come up with a brilliant new idea on how to decorate your living room while you relax and sip some coffee.  Don’t get discouraged if you make mistakes, remember that practice makes perfect, so if this is your first time hang in there!

Thank you for reading Tips on painting and decorating. I hope the information provided in this article was beneficial for you the reader.

Some Useful Exterior House Painting Tips

Posted on August 21, 2011 by obadias

By Ben the Painter

Are you considering exterior painting your house?


Exterior house painting can be extremely time consuming, and hazardous if you don’t possess the knowledge, time and basic materials required to complete such a task. I would recommend you search for a qualified painting contractor in one of the best painting companies. In this article, I am going to cover some of the basics you should know about exterior painting.

The first thing you need to know when endeavoring the exterior painting of your home, is to find out what kind of siding you have installed on your house (aluminum, vinyl, steel, fiber-cement, wood composites, stucco, stone, etc. ) Different types of siding require special products. Once you figure this out you will be able to choose the products and paints best suitable for your needs.
Now let’s cover some of the basic steps about exterior house painting.

1- Power wash
If you do not own a power washer, you can call a painting company and request a power wash. This is usually an inexpensive task.
Power washing your home with a pressure washer before painting it is very important, as it will remove mold, mildew, and grime, making the scraping of your siding much easier.
When power washing, there are two types of chemicals to use, Bleach and TSP. Spray the siding with the TSP/Bleach solution and let it soak in for a few minutes, next spray the siding down with clean water rinsing it thoroughly.

2- Scraping
Scraping is the most important and difficult step in exterior house painting. Properly preparing the surface that you wish to paint will make or break your job. Make sure to scrape off all loose/peeling paint and that your siding is not wet, dirty or greasy when you paint it. Paint not adhering correctly to siding once finished, is usually a result of improper prep work.

Now let’s cover some of the tools you will need to paint your house.

1- Paint Scraper
2- Putty knife
3- Paint Brush
4- Extension pole
5- Paint Tray
6- Roller Cage/Sleeve
7- Power-Washer
8- Ladders
9- Drop Sheets
10- Sanding block/Sand Paper

Once you have purchased the above tools and prepared your house for painting, you can begin.

 

Depending on the kind of siding you have, most likely you will have to first apply a primer to all scraped and bare areas of siding.
Start by cutting in the edges; always work from top to bottom, as this will avoid drips and runs onto already painted surfaces.
Once everything is cut in, you can begin to roll. Rolling –as most painters and decorators know–, is the least time consuming part of the job, but it is also very energy-consuming and tiring.

You will most likely want to use 2 coats of paint. Sherwing Williams is my favorite brand, both for the bonding primer and the paint.

Posted in Ben the Painter, Painting | 3 Comments

Learn How to Paint a Room Like a Professional

Posted on August 12, 2011 by obadias

By Ben the painter

In this article I will cover the basic work methods and tools that you will need in order to learn how to paint a room.

So maybe you’re moving out of your leased apartment, and you need that down-payment back. Maybe your daughter or spouse is simply tired of the color in his/her bedroom. Either way, if you want to learn how to paint a room without calling in a painting company, here is the spot to learn.

 

Basic tools and materials you will need to paint a room

Alright, let’s begin with the basic materials you will need to purchase or borrow before you endeavor to paint the room:

Paint brush

Roller cage/Roller sleeve

Paint tray

Drop sheets

Extension pole

Wall putty/Putty knives

Wall paint

Cut can

 

4 Important steps to take to prepare the room before painting it

1. – Place your drop sheets on the floor, remembering to keep them tight up along the wall, as this will prevent spills/drips from accumulating on the floor. Remember to always keep your paint cans on a drop sheet, as failing to do so will often result in hard to clean paint spills.

2. – Remove all objects from your walls, such as paintings, pictures , nails, screws, and all face plates from the plugs and light switches.

3. – Now search for cracks/holes in your walls, and fill them using your putty knife and wall putty. Wait for the putty to dry and then sand it down lightly with a sanding sponge, making sure it’s smooth and leveled to the wall.

4. – If there is lint or dust on your walls it would always be smart to use a pole sander. Run the pole sander lightly and smoothly along the walls, as there is no need to scrub the walls vigorously.

Interior Painting in a Nutshell: Cutting and rolling

Alright now that you have finished preparing your room to be painted, it’s time that I begin to elaborate on how to paint a room.

To begin with you will need a “cut can” (this is a clean empty can). Fill your “cut can” with 2-3 inches of wall paint.  Insert your paintbrush into the paint and begin to “cut” in the wall.

Watch the tip of your brush as you position it for a smooth glide and straight line. Make sure to “cut” in corners, along the ceiling and the baseboards.

Now that you have finished cutting in the corners and edges of the room, it’s time to begin rolling your room out!

Remove the roller sleeve from the plastic packaging, insert the roller cage into the roller sleeve and pour some wall paint into the roller tray.

Roll out the walls of your room. Make sure to remember not to press too hard on the roller, as doing so would leave streaks on your walls.

Once you have finished painting your room, wait for it to dry.  Later on check to make sure that it covered in one coat, and if not, repeat the same steps.

Once finished, pour any unused paint back into the paint can and clean up.

Thank you for reading and learning how to paint a room!  I hope the information in this article was useful for you!

 

Posted in Ben the Painter, Home Renovations, Painting | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments
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