Biggest Diy ( Do It Yourself) Painting Mistakes To Avoid

A fresh coat of paint is the cheapest and easiest way to give a fresh and modern look to your living space. If you believe you can handle painting a small part of your home , you should avoid these common mistakes. We suggest you read “ Do it yourself painting techniques “ in the Blog section on our website. Even a small painting project requires serious planning. If you don’t have a good plan and preparation , you might end up making a messy painting job. It means getting surroundings dirty and having an amateur result.

Painting is all about preparation . If you don’t prepare well , redoing the job and fixing mistakes can be costly.

Failure to Achieve a Good Preparation

We wish getting a gallon of paint and a brush would be good enough to start a painting project. Painting requires lots of supplies and materials. First of all you need to empty the space and cover the floor and fixtures to avoid splashing and getting dirty. A professional painter knows the importance of proper preparation. That’s why preparation and masking takes a long time. These are the simple steps of good preparation before starting to paint.

Fixing surface issues and imperfections ; When you start painting you will get surprised how much imperfections start standing out. It is not pleasant but the wall surfaces should be completely fixed , patched and smoothened nicely. The fresh coat of paint will react with the wall surface and you might start seeing nail pops , dents , scratches and pinholes. Some broken corners and rough edges need to be fixed . You can use drywall compound and caulking to fill the cracks and holes.Applying the paint with rollers and brush is the easiest part of a painting job.

Cleaning wall surfaces ; When you look at the wall surfaces closely , you will discover the dirt in the finish. It causes the wall paint to look worn. The walls get dirty because of hand prints , dust , smoke and cooking steams in the environment. If the wall surfaces are not cleaned properly to make grease and dirt free, these might bleed over the new paint coats. , and that built up grime just might bleed through your new paint coats. You should make sure to perform a detail cleaning before applying the paint coats.

Covering light fixtures, furniture and floors ; Ignoring this step will cause a big convenience and cleaning surroundings and making them dust free will take lots of hard work and extra time. Protecting the floor and other parts to avoid spillage will make you save time at the end. Even if you use latex ( water based ) paint , don’t think cleaning the spillage , splashes will be easy.

Using Low quality paint and amateur tools will be the most expensive option

Without using the right tools and a high quality paint , getting a good result is almost impossible. Even professional painters crew would fail with low quality paint , there is no exception. Leaving roller and brush marks , having a rough finish can be caused by not only poor quality workmanship , poor quality roller and brushes will cause these imperfections. Professional rollers and brushes are designed to hold and release the paint smoothly with least possible splash.

NECESSARY SUPPLIES TO USE WHILE PAINTING

Paint tray carrier and liners (they make your life easier)

Microfiber rollers , semi rough finish for the walls

For all paints , 2.5 inch angle brush

2’ to 4’ extension pole for up to 9 feet high walls

Using Blue Painters Tape for Accent Walls Joints

If you desire to have perfectly fine edges you should use blue painters tape for making the joints when you are painting door trims and accent walls. When there is a big jump between two different wall colors , even if your wall joints are pretty sharp , it is still very difficult to make perfect edges. A high quality blue painter’s tape will give you a perfectly sharp line. You should be removing the tape without waiting for the paint to completely dry. You will achieve the sharpest and cleanest lines. Removing the tape gently and before the paint is completely dry , makes you avoid peeling.

Priming Is Necessary in Some Cases

PRIMING THE WALL SURFACE WILL GIVE PAINT A SOLID BASE TO STICK ON

Priming helps to level the surface and hide patches and imperfections. It gives a smoother and flawless look

It will make the finish / top coat to stick strongly

Priming helps to cover the old paint evenly

Some nationwide home improvement stores carry paint including primer. Professional painters prefer to use a separate primer coat for newly installed drywalls.,rougher surfaces such as wood or concrete. If you don’t apply a primer coat in these caes , you can end up by applying several coats of finish.

Using Low Quality Paint or Wrong Sheen

When you find the perfect shade of the color you desire for your home ,you also need to decide which paint sheen is the best. Choosing the wrong sheen might make you regret it even if you really like the color.

Paying attention to the old paint and the one you will apply on top is important. If you are trying to cover shiny oil paint without priming first , very likely you will experience cracks and peeling in the future. Painting over oil based paint with latex paint requires a special preparation. Please read the other articles about painting over oil based paint in the Blog section on our website.

You should pay attention if your home has high traffic and you will need to wipe the walls when it gets dirty. If it is the case , you need a washable paint which can handle heavy use and heavy traffic. Some parts of your house which have heavy traffic and moisture (kitchen , foyers, mudrooms,laundry , playrooms, etc.), need a washable paint that can handle heavy use and abuse. Eggshell, low sheen and satin finishes work best in wet and busy areas. They can be wiped down without using strong chemicals and detergent . Flat / matte sheen paints are usually best for large rooms that walls don’t get touched much or you don’t have kids and pets.

Shiny paint reflects the lights strongly. If you have pot lights or your home gets lights of daylight directly better to use flat sheen paint. Flat paint hides the imperfections better but not easy to clean when it gets dirty. Recoating or touching up can be the best option.

Leaving Brush and Roller Marks While Painting

Most common mistake is applying a thick layer of paint on the surface. It is necessary to apply thinner layers and go a couple rounds. This mistake wastes paint and makes a messy painting job. Leaving improper brush and roller marks will be very difficult to fix. Applying a thick layer of paint will not give you better coverage.

If you are not sure about your painting skills , call / message us for a no obligation , free consultation.

C&S Painting has been delivering high quality painting projects since 2000.

We directly hire highly skilled painters and do the job with our employees. We never subcontract. How we ensure our competitive prices.

C&S painting offers a 2 years warranty on every painting project. We have liability insurance and WSIB clearance.