DIY Safety Tips! Painting and decorating.

[julian]

DIY Safety Tips! Painting and decorating.

It's fairly obvious that if a surface is smooth and well prepared it will look better when painted or papered than one that is lumpy and greasy. What isn't obvious, or at least wasn't obvious to me, is just how big the difference is. If you assume that you need to spend five times as long in preparation than in painting, you'll get better results that if you assume that the actual painting will be the long part of the job.
Masking tape is widely used to protect areas adjacent to the area to be painted. If you take the masking tape off when the paint is too wet it will run, and make a mess. If you take it off when it is too dry, the edge of the new paint will come off with the tape. The window of opportunity between the `too wet' and `too dry' stages lasts about two minutes with modern, quick-dry paint. The more paint that ends up on the masking tape, the worse the problem is. If you use slower-drying paint, and don't assume that the masking tape can be freely painted, you can get good results so long as you pull the tape off at just the right time.
If you stick masking tape onto a painted area, if you're really unlucky you can pull off the old paint as well as the new paint when you take it off. This problem is particular apparent if the area to be masked has not been painted properly. For example, you can apply gloss paint directly to wood in good condition, and it will look fine, but even masking tape will pull it away from the wood.
Paintbrushes come in only two useful varieties: the shockingly expensive type that you cherish and pamper for many years, and the cheap nasty ones that you throw away after one job. Anything between these two extremes is not worth buying. Every time you clean a mid-priced paintbrush, the bristles get looser, and the next job is made harder. A really expensive brush can be cleaned over and over again and never lose a bristle.
Cheap brushes shed most of the bristles they are likely to shed in the first few strokes. Make those strokes somewhere where you can't see them.
Decorators' merchants and big DIY shops will make paint to an exact colour. You don't need to be buying a huge amount for this to be worthwhile. If you like a particular paint colour but it's only available in a `designer' range that costs the Earth, find it on the manufacturer's colour chart and get the colour made up from unbranded paint. It will cost about half as much, included the cost of mixing.
Stripping wallpaper is one of the most unpleasant decorating jobs that you are likely to encounter. A steam stripper will make it a bit easier. A really heavy-duty stripper can be hired for about the same price as buying a cheap one.
Plaster and filler all shrink as they dry. If you are filling cracks and holes in plaster prior to painting, don't worry too much about getting the surface perfect on the first attempt, as it will shrink anyway. Filling always needs at least two passes.
It's easier to find all the defects in a plastered wall if it has a coat of fresh paint. If you plan to paint anyway, apply the first coat before repairing the plaster. But see below...
Patching plaster and filler are usually white. With dark-coloured paint, if you paint before filling the defects in the surface, the white filler will be visible through the paint even after two further coats. The solution is to mix the powdered filler with paint, rather than water. Beware, however, the drying agents that are used in modern paints. A plaster that would normally set in thirty minutes with water may set in 10 minutes with paint.

[Tumbleweed]

Julian,
Hope you don't mind that I moved this.

Those are really great tips and advise.

One thing I might add about removing painters tape aside from finding that perfect time to remove it is to always pull it off on top of itself like this:



and NOT like this:

[barb]

My daughter was eager to get into the place she is in now so she left the painter's tape in place thinking she could remove it later. It won't come off. When you try it just makes a mess, leaving strips of tape, sticky residue, etc. Any ideas on how to get it to come off without using a scraper and ruining what is underneath?

[Tumbleweed]

I'll be the first to admit I have done that before and it is a big pain to get off. One thing....if it seems it is tearing where it is butted up against where she painted, paint may have built up there and that may be keeping it securely stuck. She may need to carefully run a razor or sharp utility knife along the edge. I used hot water to soak it and it got most of the tape and residue but not all the residue. Other than that, all I know is to pick and pick and pick at it.

[barb]

I haven't tried the hot water. For some reason I just assumed the sticky stuff wouldn't loosen with water. Maybe if we do that and then use mineral oil or baby oil on the residue, it will work.

[Tumbleweed]

Mar 26, 2008 22:55:53 GMT -6 barb said:

I haven't tried the hot water. For some reason I just assumed the sticky stuff wouldn't loosen with water. Maybe if we do that and then use mineral oil or baby oil on the residue, it will work.

I'm sure mineral oil or something should work. Certainly worth a try.

Mar 19, 2008 19:02:42 GMT -6 julian said:

DIY Safety Tips! Painting and decorating.

Decorators' merchants and big DIY shops will make paint to an exact colour. You don't need to be buying a huge amount for this to be worthwhile. If you like a particular paint colour but it's only available in a `designer' range that costs the Earth, find it on the manufacturer's colour chart and get the colour made up from unbranded paint. It will cost about half as much, included the cost of mixing.

One thing I want to add to this. Although I agree that getting the "designer color" isn't worth it and you are better off going the route Julian mentioned, but I want to caution you to not go for the cheapest paint either. Cheap means you will very likely have to go over the whole job with a second or even a third coat. Find a paint that has around 45% pigment and resins per volume and one coat should do it. I'm sure you have also seen on T.V. design shows that often they will have their base coat tinted. I definitely suggest doing this if you are, for example, painting over a bold color like red or intending to paint a wall red.

[Nigel]

Brushes: I only buy ''angled'' brushes anymore & the higher priced ones are better quality.

Wallpaper: I have had succes painting over wallpaper. Beware of painting a colour lighter then the WP. You can use ''Killz'', a special paint used to cover over dark area's/spots etc. Or just paint over it 2-3 times, to me this is faster then messing with what's under the WP. Sometimes it's the original and the wall is Very rough then you have to spend hours & hours & hours sanding the wall smouth. NOT FUN.

Taping: I stopped doing this a while back. It's So time consuming. That's where the angled brushes comes in handy. Buy a variety of sizes from the smallest (1/2 inch I think) to the largest. The hardest is where the walls meet the ceiling. Use plenty of light, a sturdy ladder and Go Slow.

When you need to stop painting for several hours and don't have time to clean up your brushes you can wrap then in plastic wrap and stick them in the 'frig {not the freezer} for up to 12 hours. Make sure they are well covered in paint, to not wipe any paint off.

[Tumbleweed]

I don't tape either Nigel. Those angled brushes are great. I just keep a damp paper towel handy if I mess up but I usually don't. Once you've painted a few times you get pretty good at cutting in with those brushes.

Well, I don't paint over wall paper but then I'm really an odd duck. Somethings I'm really nit-picky about and somethings I'm not. Like I MUST get down to a bare wall or floor. However, if I'm building something I'll take all the short-cuts I can find.

[snoop]

One time I painted over wallpaper and it needed a few coats. I guess the wall paper got so wet it started bubbling.