Home Painting Answers

   Taking on the task of painting your new home can be a rewarding and money saving DIY project. It can also be a nightmare. I have just a few questions you should give some thought to before you take on this project.  #1  Just how much money will you save?    Here in the mid-west the normal cost for a professional paint job (including labor and materials) on new construction is  3% of the cost of constructing the new home.    Example, if the construction cost of your new home is $250,000 it would be $7,500. Of that cost the materials will account for about $2,500 to $3,000. #2 What are your (as the painter) Responsibilities? Sight clean up.    If you have ever entered a new home after the dry wall has been just finished the mess left behind is huge. Scrap dry wall, dry wall dust and miscellaneous debris fill the home. Check with your general contractor on who's responsibility it is to remove this debris and clean the floors.    Disposal of the empty paint buckets.  Ju

  Proper Roller work on your new DIY paint job is critical for a nice finished product. Please .....Please do not roll your walls as pictured here.    Not only will your finished job not look as nice as it could but you may spend the rest of the day in bed or on the couch with back pain.    Use a rolling pole as pictured here. After you have done the edge work with the brush, roll from the top to the bottom. Do not stop half way down the wall. Do not roll from side to side.    The person pictured here is doing two things wrong though. Get everything out of the way. You do not want to be half way along the wall and have to stop and move things out of the way. This mistake could give the paint you just put on the wall just enough time to start to dry and that could cause a lap. Second do not start in the middle of the wall. Start at a corner. What to look for in the Paint Brush for your DIY painting project.  

   The kid's found the crayons and have just made an art project of their bed room walls. Clean it off? Sorry there is a 99% chance this is a waste of time. Your going to have to repaint and do a better job of hiding the crayons. Step one is lightly sand the crayon marks on the wall. This not to remove all of the crayon marks but simply get some of it off so the texture of the crayon marks do not show through your fresh paint. You will need to prime. If your facing a project as large as pictured you will need to prime the entire wall. Some latex primers will seal the marks out but ask the paint supplier for their recommendation for sealing crayon marks. It is a possibility you will need to use a oil based primer. Oil based primer/sealers are the best for this job but do present there own set of problems.     The smell is likely #1 on the hassle's of oil based primer/sealers,#2 slow drying times and clean up.   So do some work and find a latex primer/sealer that will do

Considering doing an accent wall in the room you are looking to paint but having a difficult time choosing that perfect accent color?    It is most likely your accent wall will be the darker of the two colors you choose. A simple way to help you make this decision is to choose the lighter color first then from the same color sample strip select a color that is the darkest.      This reduces the chance of a clash between the two colors. Selecting a color from a different color strip can be risky.   The two colors may look good in the paint store but when you gat a full room of the colors they may not coordinate as you had hoped.   Keep in mind also that the darker of the two colors may likely need 2 or more finish coat to get the color depth needed. Darker colors contrary to popular belief do not cover as well as most lighter colors today.   The long story made short for this is that the tint used in todays pant is not as good as previous years in terms of coverage.  Select

Looking to update that vintage 1970's furniture with a coat of paint?  For a nice finished product these few steps will help. Step 1 CLEAN!  All of the years of furniture polish, wax, and heavens knows what else that is on the surface of the furniture must be eliminated.    A good detergent like (Mean Green) works well for this first step. Don't saturate the wood with water and detergent just wipe it on and wipe it off. Use lots of clean rages for the wiping off step. All the cleaning in the world does nothing if you don't wipe off with a clean rag. Step 2 Sand. The surface of the furniture is not likely to be ruff but this step helps your primers and paint to bond. 100 grit sand paper should do the job well. You can use steal wool also for those tight spots. Step 3 Vacuum off the dust from the sanding process. Take your time and get all of it. Step 4 Apply the primer. I recommend a product called (Stix) It's a water based bonding prime. I have had v

We have all seen them. The painters kit. That all in one kit with all you need to make that DIY painting job go fast and easy.  Well not so fast. The kits like you see here is selling you convenience and a low price. What it's not giving you is the proper tools to do a nice job.     I have nothing against saving a little money but the few dollars you save on a "painters kit" is long lost in the time and problems you will have with one of these kits. The roller cover is pure junk, it will leave lent in your fresh paint and on your walls.    The brush is the quality that you would use to paint a fence in the back yard and not your living room. The roller frame will crack at the handle  if you just barley over tighten it to the rolling pole. Expect to pay these prices for the painting tools of the quality you need to do a nice job. ROLLER COVER $5.00 ROLLER FRAME $5.00 2.5 INCH BRUSH $9.00-$12.00  

What is the correct brush for your DIY painting project you have at hand?    If the project your preparing to do is the walls in a typical bedroom this is the brush I would recommend. A 2.5 inch square tip brush.  This brush is big enough to get those spots to small for a roller. But not so large that it creates problems in those tight corners close to your trim work.   It is polyester as you can tell by the light color of the bristles. A nylon bristle brush would have black bristles. A nylon brush of the same size and with the square tip will work just as well. But as a personal preference I find the polyester brush bristles a little softer.   If you are painting the trim then this is the brush I recommend. If you are painting your trim with (latex) paint.    It is the same 2.5 inches wide and also polyester but has a tapered end. It's often referred to as a sash tool.    The tapered end make getting paint the groves and corners of the trim a litter easer.  

  What paint roller cover to use on your DIY painting project may not be the biggest decision you ever make but it is worth a little consideration.  How thick of a (nap) should you use? In the vast majority of cases a 1/2" nap works the best.   Deeper naps may be needed for a ruff or textured service but for the drywall in your home 1/2" works well. But what if I am using an eggshell or a satin finish or possibly even a semi-gloss paint?    Yes a 1/2" is still your best overall choice. A 3/8" nap is what many paint suppliers recommend for paints with a (shine) when finished. Their reason is that a 3/8" roller cover leaves less stipple. Giving you a smoother finish.      No matter how little stipple you make with the paint you are applying. The stipple that is already on the wall is still there and will show thru the paint you are applying. So the advantage of less stipple with a low nap roller cover is gone. Secondly a 1/2" roller cover allows

  We have all heard the saying the devil is in the details. Todays tip may appear as a minor and almost meaningless detail but it could save you a lot of problems with that DIY painting project you have planned.   A paint roller frame?      Something as simple and basic to painting today as a brush. What could possibly be a detail that is a need to know? Just take a look at these two examples of roller frames I have here. See the difference?    One has a metal ring at the point where the rolling pole screws in and one does not. Well that chrome ring is not there just for good looks.    That ring helps prevent the plastic handle from cracking when you screw the roller handle into the frame.    Screw that rolling pole in just a little to tight in the frame with out the metal ring and it WILL crack and it will no longer work. Just picture yourself just about to finish the last wall and that happens.    Not only do you have to stop and go back to the paint store buy a ne

Your kitchen cabins looking a little dated and worn? Priced a new set and found out it's more than you new car. Well there is an answer. You can paint your stained and varnished kitchen cabinets/bathroom vanity  and bring new life to them at a fraction of the cost of replacing them. This is a project for those of you who have some experience in panting. It can be done however the problems are numerous. Making this a project best left to a pro. Just a short list of must do's for this project Clean...Clean... and clean again! Get all of the grime off your cabinets. Lightly sand,  odds are the finish currently on your cabinets is smooth so sanding should be a breeze. Remove the draw pulls, handles and hinges. Don't forget to label the doors as to where they go! Failure to do this will make a huge problem when you reassemble them. Use a "bonding" Primer, adhesion is the name of the game on cabinets. Use a satin finish for a "shine" similar to many

So you want to paint that garage floor. A word of advise "DON'T DO IT" You are asking for problems. Even the high tech epoxies have future problems you don't want to deal with. Constant moisture from rain and snow.....Road Salt's...Hot tire pick up, Oil leaks from you car or truck all are attacking any paint you put on your garage floor. It's relentless  and unforgiving. You freshly painted garage floor will in a very short time turn into a pealing ugly eyesore in less than a year. If you garage floor is just plain ugly use a stiff broom and a degreaser and some elbow grease and just clean it and live with it. Paint has it's place but your garage floor isn't one of them. Now that you have some extra time on your hands try this Halloween coffee recipe.

   Do I need to Prime?  Most likely the answer to that question is ...no actuality. Priming is needed for two main reasons. Adhesion and coverage. So if your painting project is a simple repaint of you bedroom walls and ceiling with out a strong color change Priming is not really needed.   The paint on the walls before you start is likely a flat, or and eggshell/satin finish. Sometime even a semi-gloss. Todays paints will bond to these finishes with out the time and additional expense of priming.    Coverage is the most likely problem you could have in an repaint. One hint that could help is that "the darker the color the better it covers " is NOT the case! As a matter of fact very dark colors often require additional coats. I will not bore you with the details but it's the way paint is tinted today.    One clue you can use to determine how well your color selection will cover is look at the "base" of the paint that is used to make your color selection, Th

  Smoke/nicotine stains are a challenge for even the most experienced painter. So as a do it yourself project be prepared. This will not be fun or easy.   First things first. If the wall you are painting have a "flat" finish, washing the walls before priming is a waste of time and money. You will only spread around the nicotine and soak it deeper into the paint that is on the walls now.  If the walls have an "eggshell" or "satin" or "semi-gloss" finish washing can be helpful to a small extent. Areas you should concentrate on is where the stains are the heaviest. This is most often where pictures were on the walls and corners.  Do not invest a lot of time in this step. Just get the heaviest stains removed as best you can.  MATERIALS   You will need a (stain blocking) primer. This is critical as a standard primers will not do the job properly.   This type of primer is most effective if it is oil based. Some brands offer a latex stain block

   Like many people your looking to reduce your electric bill by replacing your standard incandescent bulbs will LED or florescent lights.   Some think you should consider first. You invested a lot of time and expense in the paint on your walls. Changing you light from incandescent to florescent or LED. Can change the appearance of the color you walls are painted.  The standard incident light put out a light that has a yellow/gold color. Many florescent bulbs will put out a light pink color. LED light are a more white light than the incident or the florescent bulbs.    Changing to a florescent light in a room that is painted in a pastel or an off white wall color can change the appearance of that color drastically. The typical off white color will pick up a pink hue to it. A pastel color (especial light grays) will look purple.  The LED bulb will wash out a pastel color making it look several shades lighter in color.    Keep this in mind if and when you elect to switch you lig

  First things first, Clean the siding. If you have a power washer use it or consider renting one. What ever you decide, the siding must be clean. Failing to clean the siding properly will result in problems.     Use care in your color selection. The siding on your home expands and contracts with temperature changes. Changing from a very light color (white) to a very dark color can cause your siding to expand to much during hot weather (even on the shady side of the house). This will cause your siding to buckle. You do not want this to happen.   There are seams where you siding overlaps. Use caution and do not apply to much paint at these lap points. To much paint can prevent the needed siding movement and cause your siding to buckle.   After you apply the first coat it is likely that the siding may contract overnight as the temperature cools. It is likely you will find a small (miss) at you lap points. The siding contracted as it cooled and exposed a section that was covere