BUILD A BEAUTIFUL DECK

SKILL LEVEL 1

EASY

When it’s time for your next home painting project, consider this advice before you ever pick up a paint brush. This article covers the basics of the job and offers insight from experienced professionals.

1 PLANNING

The first step is to plan for supplies and equipment.

For unpainted surfaces, plan on using a good Sealing Primer before painting. A Sealing Primer achieves the truest color for your paint and also offers stain- and odor-blocking properties.

For unpainted drywall, use a PVA primer. This Polyvinyl Acetate primer helps to equalize the paper face and joint compound, so dissimilarities don’t show up as much in the paint coat. To seal wood knots, use a shellac-based primer to lock in tannin bleed.

If you’re dealing with water stains, apply a waterbased, stain-blocking primer before painting (allow it to dry completely before painting).

Priming may not be necessary when re-coating a previously painted surface, but it will never hurt. If you’re going to paint a darker color over a lighter one, use a tinted primer to reduce the number of paint coats required to achieve the desired color. When changing to a lighter color, a white primer can be equally important.

Should you pay for “Primer and Paint” in one can? Paints that “include primer” indicates the paint can be used as primer, but if you read the fine print, you might find some surfaces still require a separate primer. In fact, these “all-in-one” products make most sense when a primer isn’t really necessary, as when painting over similar type (latex to latex) finishes that are clean, dry, dull and in sound shape. These products typically have more resin in the formula than standard paint, so they stick better but cost more. Although they may prime the surface using the same product you’ll be using for a top coat, do you really want to use your paint–which costs three times as much as a primer–as your primer?

DIY GUIDE: INTERIOR PAINTING

THE BEST BRUSH

When painting with water-based or latex paints, always use a synthetic filament paint brush. China bristle paint brushes made from animal hair have traditionally been used for oil paints, but for interior house painting, oil paint is rarely used anymore, and China bristles don’t leave a good edge in latex.

LATEX- OR OIL-BASED?

For interiors, you should stick with a latexbased paint. In fact, the EPA is trying to steer the industry away from interior oil-based or “alkyd” paints due to health concerns. Waterbased paints will emit fewer chemicals and lower levels of chemical vapors than oil-based.

If your project requires a hard, furniturequality finish, consider one of the new hybrid paints on the market, such as Benjamin Moore Advance, which is a waterborne alkyd paint with low-VOC even after tinting.

s For interior painting, high-quality latex paints work better than ever, while oil-based products are becoming a thing of the past. If your project requires a hard, furniture-quality finish, consider one of the new hybrid paints on the market, such as Benjamin Moore Advance, which is a waterborne alkyd paint with low-VOC. THE RIGHT ROLLER

Rollers are categorized by the height of the pile (aka thickness of the nap). Use a short-nap cover such as 3/8-in. for a smooth finish on interior walls. A 1/2-in. plus pile height is ideal for a stippled effect common to most home interiors. To coat rough surfaces like brick or cinder-block, use a larger nap for more efficient paint pickup and release.

SHEEN MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Choosing paint sheen should be a careful decision. Flat paints conceal imperfections in walls and other surfaces, making them a good choice for ceilings and rooms that aren’t exposed to moisture (bedrooms, living rooms). However, flat paint is more porous and prone to water spots and mildew, making it a bad choice for a bathroom or other moisture-prone areas. Each step up in sheen makes imperfections in walls and woodwork more visible. High-gloss paints highlight imperfections but they are durable and stain-resistant—and much easier to clean than paints with less gloss. High-gloss sheen is an ideal trim paint for windows, baseboards and moldings.

COLOR MAKES AN IMPACT

Lightly colored ceilings and walls will make rooms look larger and more open. Want a room to look bigger? Go for cool paint colors like greens, blues and violets. If you’re going to use multiple colors in a room, use the darker color lower and the lighter color higher. With high ceilings, however, you can use bolder paint colors without feeling closed in.

When making your color selection, view the options firsthand at the paint store rather than rely on a computer screen. Your best bet is to narrow down to a few selections, then apply a sample to your walls in 2- or 3-ft. testing swatches so you can make final selection in your own lighting conditions. Varying light conditions can make a dramatic difference in the way a human eye perceives a certain color.

QUANTITY AND QUALITY EQUAL COVERAGE

Calculate how much paint you’ll require based on the area of the room(s) and the

When selecting a color, observe large swathes of your sample paints on the walls of your home. Varying light conditions can make a color tone look dramatically different at the store than it does in your home.

manufacturer’s coverage recommendations. A can of paint should be expected to cover no more than 400 square feet, and if it does, then you’re applying it too thin. And keep in mind that two coats perform better than one.

You also get what you pay for… According to HIR‘s go-to painting expert, Ritchie Hamilton of Home Fix-Up, “If you’re paying any less than $20 a gallon, then you’re probably buying paint intended for rental units to maintain the same color. With all the extra coats the paint will require, you’ll spend more money trying to save money.”

PLAN FOR TOMORROW

For future touch-ups and repairs, use the same batch of paint and method of application that was originally used, if possible. But a can of paint won’t last forever, so keep a list of paint used for each project, including the manufacturer, color and number.

Pro Tip: If you need a new batch of matching paint, purchase it from the same supplier of the original batch. Different paint suppliers may have their mixing equipment calibrated differently, so to achieve the closest color match, return to the original supplier.

2 PREP WORK

The key to a successful paint project is preparation, so don’t skip these steps.

Clear away items that will get in the way of your prep work and painting (switch plate covers, window treatments, etc.) and store them along with their respective fasteners. Protect all interior surfaces in the room with drop cloths.

Paint doesn’t stick well to dirty walls. Before your paint, you should clean the surface free of dust and debris using a dust mop. For heavy oil or smoke damage, wash with a moderate amount of soap and water then allow to dry.

Surfaces with a high-gloss sheen can make it tough for the new coating to stick. Scuff-sand gloss with light sandpaper, then wipe away dust with a damp cloth and allow the surface to dry before painting.

DIY GUIDE: INTERIOR PAINTING

Spackle all damage, smooth the surface, then prime all repairs with your top-coat paint. For light-duty repairs, you can reduce sanding dust by smoothing the spackle patches with a damp, abrasive sponge.

Any imperfection you can see from five feet away in normal lighting should be scraped or spackled, then sanded. Keep in mind that vinyl spackling or lightweight joint compound used as repair filler will likely shrink as it dries and require reapplication before painting. Sand all repairs for a smooth finish, then vacuum up any dust and debris. Prime the repairs by spot-coating them with the same paint you’ll be using for the top coat.

If you’re prepping a bathroom with existing mildew, apply a 3:1 mixture of water and bleach to the infected area (plus a 1-ft. margin). Allow the bleach to work for 20 minutes then rinse off with clean water. Rinse the bleach thoroughly, otherwise the bleach can leave a film on the surface that will prevent the paint from bonding.

TO TAPE OR NOT

If you plan to use painter’s tape, consider painting the trim first and the walls or ceiling afterward (because it’s easier to tape off the trim than to tape off the walls). Use a putty knife to smooth the tape after you apply it. Burnishing the tape will stop paint bleeding at the edges. If you have window grids, don’t worry about taping each window square; just use a razor blade to scrape away stray paint left on the glass (interiors only!).

Skip the painter’s tape? Many pro painters bypass the tape to save time because over the years they’ve developed the finesse to cut in the edges of a paint project free-handed. “Cutting in” is painting a straight line that separates two colors using only the paint brush, without masking.

As Hamilton of Home Fix Up, explains, “Tape still has its place, but I mainly keep it handy for tight areas.”

CONDITIONING

Professionals will often condition latex paint to help it flow. Although manufactured paint

Precondition your roller nap by removing lint with painter's tape then rinsing the nap thoroughly with clean water.

s conditioners are available at paint stores, you might find success by thinning your latex paint with a 1:10 ratio of water to paint to improve its workability and achieve a smoother finish.

You should also pre-condition your paint roller. First step: Use a strip of painter’s tape like a lint roller to remove any fuzz or loose fibers from the dry nap. Second: Dampen the roller nap before use, then spin the water out to facilitate the “paint load.” This extra step eliminates dry rolls and minimizes lint and particles that can be transferred onto the paint.

Choose a proper painter's tape to mask your project. Frog Tape (pictured) uses super-absorbent polymer technology that reacts with the water in latex paint to form a gel that seals the tape edges, preventing paint bleed.

DIY GUIDE: INTERIOR PAINTING

3 APPLICATION

Improper application can lead to thin spots, a blotchy finish, paint runs and even peeling top coats. Follow these tips for a pro finish.

BRUSH BASICS

When priming and/or painting walls, the first step is to paint the edges. If using painter’s tape, avoid pushing paint into the tape with the brush, which can cause the paint lines to bleed.

Most professional painters cut in the edges with only a paint brush, using no tape. To do so, dip the brush only 1 to 2 inches into the paint to load it. Use the brush to draw a straight line roughly 2 inches wide to separate two paint colors—such as a wall bordering the ceiling or door casing. Begin by letting the paint brush open up into a semi-oval and bring it into the line you are cutting. Apply as little pressure to the bristles as possible. Always keep the brush fully loaded and follow the line until the paint begins to break up. Then repeat, working into the previously painted area. This technique is usually performed while the painter holds their breath, and it’s more difficult to get right than it sounds.

Keep a damp cloth handy so you can wipe away drips and mistakes immediately before the paint dries.

When cutting in a paint project, work out of a small container rather than the paint can. This reduces mess and contaminants, and helps to keep the brush loaded with only a small, workable amount of paint.

Most professional painter's "cut in" the edges of their project without the use of painters tape, which is a skill that takes practice to master. ROLL IT RIGHT

To complete the field of the wall, use a paint roller. Extension handles of varying lengths can make application by roller easier and more ergonomic. For best results, apply the paint in successive columns. With a loaded roller, proceed along the wall painting one column at a time–one stroke all the way up, another all the way down, then back up again for each column. Move on to the next column.

After three columns, it’s important to back-roll the paint back into the new coating, maintaining a wet edge on the wall. It is this back-rolling technique that achieves the millage of the paint, which is the even and continuous thickness of the coating. Working back into the previously painted area will help avoid lap marks. For a seamless finish, paint one wall completely before moving on to another.

Remove any painter’s tape while the paint is still wet. For further coats, reapply new tape.

Allow the paint to dry before applying further coats. Keep in mind that although your paint container says the paint dries in 2 hours, that indication is for conditions of 70 degrees and 70-percent humidity. In low humidity, paint can dry in less than an hour. In high humidity, it can take a whole day. Not waiting to apply the second coat can result in peeling paint or visible brush strokes.

For trim work like crown molding and baseboards, sand the surface between coats for an ultra-smooth finish. This will prevent a grainy texture and prevent any underlying paint color or sheen from showing through.

Two coats of topcoat always achieve best results. All paint “covers” in one coat, but doesn’t necessarily “hide” in one coat. This

DIY GUIDE: INTERIOR PAINTING

In addition to rollers and brushes, paint stores offer a wide variety of low-profile pads and specialty applicators to help apply paint in hard-to-reach areas. Pictured is a Shure-Line paint pad designed to fit into spaces as small as 5/8".

Indoor Dryer Vent

Indoor lint trap for electric dryers

•Does not require water

•Clothes dry faster, saving time and energy

•Double filter system captures lint and dust

•Protects indoor air quality can be a function of the surface and application or color. Apply two coats for maximum millage and durability.

4 CLEANUP & STORAGE

During your project, wrap paintbrushes tightly in kitchen foil or cling film so air can’t get to them, and they’ll be ready for use later.

After your project is over, clean your brushes with water and a “brush comb” to remove any traces of paint and align the bristles before they dry. Add a little fabric softener to your water for cleaning brushes and rollers to help release paint better than soap. Then, store your brushes in their original covers or plastic film.

If you store leftover paint in a dry, temperature-controlled room, it should last until the can rusts. Avoid storing in the attic where it can get too hot or in an outdoor shed where it can freeze. Air exposure will dry out paint,

so it might help to transfer leftover paint into a smaller container for long-term storage.

After the paint project is complete, avoid washing your walls with a damp cloth until two weeks after the final coat dries.

Of course, projects don’t always go as planned, and accidents can happen. There’s no point in crying over spilled latex paint. The keys to complete stain removal are speed and lots of water. As Hamilton of Home Fix Up, is fond of saying: “Dilution is the solution!” Fast blotting with an absorbent towel and repeated rinsing can work, even on carpet. Use a shop vac (with filter removed) to suction away the thinned paint and water from the spill.

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s Cleanup is critical to keep tools in working order. A brush comb can clean and align the bristles to conserve your paint brush. Pictured is the Project Select model available at The Home Depot.