It’s The Holiday Season! DON’T Make These Painting Mistakes!

The kids and grandchildren are back in school. Your home is relatively quiet. Noticing little paint issues around the house now is typical for residents. In fact, the paint may need a major overhaul before the holiday season. If you decide to paint on your own, it’s critical to know the challenges ahead. Don’t make these painting mistakes because an expert, painting contractor has all of the answers to your decor dilemmas.

1. Skipping the Prep

In reality, preparing for a paint job should take longer than applying the color in the first place. Many people don’t realize this fact. A painting contractor will always start out by cleaning the walls and patching any cracks or holes. In fact, a day or longer might be dedicated to prep alone. For this reason, most homeowners hire a professional painter in order to simplify the entire process.

You cannot immediately paint after caulking or filling blemishes on the wall either. Everything must be dried and cured before the fun begins with the color. Don’t forget those edges too. Applying painter’s tape where the walls meet the floor and ceiling is a critical step for a neat look in the end.

2. Ignoring the Current Paint Type

Your walls aren’t ready for color even after cleaning and correcting the blemishes. When you hire a home painter, the professional will survey the interior wall’s existing finish.

There are several finishes that might decorate your walls, such as:

• High gloss

• Satin

• Eggshell

• Semi-gloss

• Flat

If you have a shiny finish like high-gloss types, the new paint won’t stick to it as desired. In fact, it might peel quickly after drying. DYI projects require you to sand these glossy surfaces before applying any color. The texturing action creates tiny peaks and valleys on the walls. When you apply the new color, it grabs onto these surfaces without any peeling in the foreseeable future.

Many homeowners don’t want to deal with messy sanding, so contacting a local painting contractor is the best alternative to a DIY project.

3. Selecting Poor-Quality Tools

If you spend any extra money on this project, the brushes and rollers should be at the top of your list. Consider the job that these tools perform. They must move a uniform layer of paint across a surface in an attractive manner. If you ask for an interior house painter quote, part of the cost will always involve quality tools.

Ideally, don’t select the cheapest brushes or rollers. Look for tools that the professionals might use. These tools will have a median price; they aren’t too cheap or too expensive. They’ll ultimately apply the color with ease while lasting longer than cheaper alternatives. You’ll spend less time correcting the imperfections and moving onto the next steps in your project.

4. Confusing the Tape Types

Walk into any home-improvement store, and you’ll find an aisle that’s devoted to tape. Be sure to use painter’s tape and not masking tape. Painter’s tape is often in a blue hue with large lettering denoting its type. Using any other tape to define your painting area will result in messy edges.

Painter’s tape is designed to adhere to the wall with amazing adhesive. It also releases without much effort, which should give you a perfectly straight edge after painting.

If you use the wrong tape, the paint job will double in effort. You’ll need to paint the area again. Hiring a professional painting contractor can alleviate this issue. They’ll have every tool, including tape, to complete the job in record time.

5. Using a Poor Application Method

You are certainly not a painter by trade, so learning about the proper method for paint application is key to success. Don’t haphazardly start the painting without being aware of how to add it to the roller or brush in the first place. Most painting contractors suggest that only a third of the roller or brush should be covered in paint. As you move the tool against the wall, the paint will blend into the surface.

Filling up the tool with excessive amounts of paint will only create difficulties as you finish off the job. Drips and uneven color will plague the project. A professional paint job takes these worries off your mind. Ask for an interior house painter quote to see your options.

6. Neglecting Primer

Primer isn’t just another paint layer to apply. It acts more like a prepping agent against the wall. This type of paint fills in tiny blemishes and gives the wall a surface for the colored paint to stick to in the end. Primer creates a blank surface for the finish, which means that your color samples from the home-improvement store will look like the same hue on your wall.

Neglecting to add the primer will leave the paint job looking unsightly and with a different hue than you imagined. There are a few paints that come with primer included in their mixture, however. You might try these combinations, but the best method for painting is always applying a separate primer and color afterward.

7. Picking the Wrong Finish

A wall’s location in the home will define which finish to pick. Try flat or eggshell finishes in bedrooms and on ceilings. These finishes are best for areas where there isn’t a lot of wear and tear.

Choose semi-gloss and satin finishes for those areas where you’ll need to wipe down the walls on a regular basis. Kitchens, bathrooms and hallways are good examples of the areas that demand tough paint.

If you pick the wrong finish, the paint won’t last very long. Peeling, chipping and other issues might appear very soon after the project. Professional painters know exactly which finishes to use, which makes their knowledge critical in these areas.

8. Improper Prepping of Wallpapered Surfaces

Ideally, you should strip any wallpaper from the walls before painting. If you have a particularly tough wall to deal with, removing it may not be necessary. The key is to prepare the wallpapered surface before moving forward.

Opt for an oil-based primer. Liberally apply this product onto the wallpapered areas. The oil and primer create a protective barrier on the wall so that the paint finish can go on without any issues.

DIYers discover problems when they choose a water-based primer. Adding water to any wallpapered surface can lead to adhesive activation. The original glue that holds the wallpaper to the surface can turn into a sticky mess. Oil-based primers alleviate this condition.

9. Procrastinating After the Paint Job

Any DIY project is tiring. The color is on the walls, and you’re ready to relax. Stop yourself in your tracks because any procrastination after the paint job will cost you in several ways.

Cleaning the brushes and rollers must be your top priority. Removing the paint from them will make the tools reusable for the next project. Carefully remove any painter’s tape from the walls. Leaving them to dry on the surfaces might make them difficult to remove in the future.

In fact, leaving the paint cans just slightly open will lead to color loss. The paint will dry up unless it’s properly stored away in its original can. Make sure to take time out of your day to keep up with cleanup at the end. It will save you money overall.

Contact Kaleidoscope Paint out of Edmond OK today. They can take care of your painting needs in a quick and professional manner. Let the professionals take over so that you can enjoy the new interior without any stress.