How to Give Your Home a Little Refreshing Paint

For those who are looking for a way to update the look of their home, one of the recommended solutions is to touch up the walls and refresh the indoor paint. By refreshing, you don’t need to add several layers of paint or repaint your whole house, you can just re-do a particular section or touch up to cover dirt, damage, or stains.

Painting your home is not a difficult job, if you have made your mind, it’s the covid-pandemic going on and you must have got a lot of time to work on your house and its decoration. Initially, it will sound a bit complicated but i believ that if you start off with a small patch, then gradually things will automatically fall in place. Hiring a painter is not the only option, but along with the painter’s work there are several other things that need to be taken care of before and after painting.    

If you’re not adept with a brush and can of paint, it is best to call in the professionals. When choosing a painter, it is ideal to find one in your own neighborhood or community. You’ll be letting this person inside your home, after all, so it’s better to err on the side of caution. Besides, earlier clients can vouch for his character and the quality of his work so you’ll have an easier time finding the right one.

In the meantime, here are some steps you can follow to create a cleaner, fresher atmosphere inside your house.

Clean your walls with a dust cloth.

Do you expect your painter to come and clean your house’s walls? Of course not, therefore it would be wise of you to clean and dust the walls in time. Select a day before the arrival of the painter’s team and ask your family members to help you in dusting each wall of your beloved home. But if you have a business and are looking for a cleaner but aren’t too lucky with the results, you’ll be more than welcome to contact the office cleaning London and learn some more.

It would help if you had a microfiber dust cloth to remove dirt, dust, and cobwebs that are known to shorten your paint life. This cloth can be placed in a long-handled sweeper so you can reach the highest part of your walls, and you must do it once or twice a month. There’s no need to move pictures and pieces of furniture since these covered areas don’t get very dirty. It would be best if you dusted the ceiling as well because some airborne dust can stay there. This step will only take around 10 to 15 minutes for every room. 

Bathe the walls and wash your kitchen. 

Your kitchen and bathroom are vulnerable to stains and residue because of cooking and steamy showers. The painted area of these rooms must be cleaned at least once a year to keep their pleasant look. This step must be done in places that are used by children or one of your family members who smoke. 

Cleaning your kitchen and bathroom after the painting session will not be possible for around three to four days, cleaning these areas and covering your tiles and floors with a plastic sheet is important, otherwise those beautifully designed tiles will get some extra designs on them, that will not look as good as the original ones.   

If you own a wood-burning stove or a fireplace, their walls must be washed as well. Washing must start from the bottom, and you can use a soap and water solution and a natural sponge to remove the stains effectively. As soon as you are done with one area, you can move to a higher portion until you have thoroughly washed the entire wall. Prepare an old towel for drying. Woodwork can be cleaned, too.

Clean and wash high-traffic areas. 

Some homeowners don’t have time to wash the entire room. If you are in the same boat, you are recommended to clean and/or wash high-traffic areas. These areas could be around thermostats and switches since every part of the family goes back and forth in these spots. Also, check the space behind your sofa because hairs can leave a greasy place there. Get rid of the possible build-up of dirt and dust by regular cleaning and washing. Once you have cleaned them it is time to cover them, you can use plastic sheets or simple tape to cover them and do not uncover until the paint is dry. It may sound a bit annoying but I will recommend using an extension wire rather than using all the essential sockets of your house when your rooms are being painted..   

Retouch damaged areas.

No one can avoid cracks and scrapes on painted walls. However, the best way to deal with this concern is to retouch damages as soon as you find them. The earlier you attend to the damage, the better you can save your wall paint. If you find holes, fill them before coating with a stain sealer. 

If peeling and bubbling happened due to leaks,  have the source of the leak fixed beforehand. Once these things are done, the painter will scrape and sand the area, then repaint it. If you have paint leftover from the original work, that will be great. However, if that is not possible, you can have the painter use the exact or nearest-possible color to your paint — unless you plan to really brighten up space and add a pop of color.

You don’t have to prepare a big budget to keep your house looking great. Sometimes, simple washing and cleaning can bring a significant change.  These are just some of the steps that you can do to keep the paint inside your house looking like new. They won’t take too much of your time, and you don’t have to do them every day. Lastly, you must aks the painter about the paint shades and colors, discuss it with them, even though if you cannot visit the shop, you should try to have a video call with the service providers, all these works need to be done on time and before the painters arrive at your place.  

FAQs and Tips on Wall Painting

Q: Is it possible to avoid lap marks when painting a wall?

A: Lap marks are the bad looking stripes that uneven layers of paint cause. They appear when you’re rolling a new layer over another layer that is only partially dry. Keeping a “wet edge” will help you get rid of the lap marks, as every stroke of the roller will cover the previous stroke before paint is beginning to dry.

Q: Is the wet edge difficult to obtain?

A: For keeping a wet edge, you should begin close to a corner, running the roller up and down the full height of the wall, while you’re moving slowly with every stroke. Keep in mind to move backward for an evening out any runs or thick spots. Make sure that your roller is never dry, reloading as often as possible.

Q: Is the tinted primer necessarily to use for every painting job?

A: Professionals will begin by filling the patch cracks and holes with joint compound. When you’re painting right over it, the mixture sucks the moisture out of the paint, which results in a flat and dull appearance (“flashing”). The spots will always look different from the rest of the wall. Priming the walls before painting will reduce the flashing.

Tinted gray or a color similar to the finish paint can be used as a primer. Tinted primer is excellent at covering the current paint color, making the finish coat more vibrant and requesting fewer layers. Use the introduction, especially for colors like red or orange.

Q: Do you finish a wall before starting another?

A: For some, it makes perfect sense to do every corner and trim in a room, and go back for a second layer afterward. However, professionals obtain an ideal look by painting one wall and then roll immediately the same wall. It’s how you make the rolled and brushed paint blend better.

As you’re switching between the brushing and rolling, make sure you cover it with a damp towel so that your tools and paint don’t dry.

Q: What’s the best way to obtain the same color for a big room?

A: It’s always possible that paint color differs from one can to another. Sometimes, you may have to open a new can right in the middle of the wall, but the risk for having different colors is quite high. The best way to obtain the same color is to mix the cans. Ideally, you should know how much paint you will need, use a 5-gallon bucket for the “boxing.”

Q: Is there a trick to use for preparing the right amount of paint?

A: If you don’t know how much paint you will need, it’s better to have more than less for your painting job. You will be able to pour it back into cans if it’s too much. For the more significant projects, it’s easier to use a roller screen and not a bucket instead of a roller tray. Loading the roller with the screen gives you speed and ease of use, unlike utilizing a roller pan.

Q: What do you paint first?

A: Professionals have a specific order when painting a room. Remember to start with the trim, then the ceiling, and leave the walls for last phase. You should follow this order as it’s easier and faster to tape off the trim, and tape off the walls afterward.

It would help if you didn’t struggle to be neat while painting the trim. It’s more important to focus on obtaining a smooth finish on the wood. Obviously, it’s not a problem if the paint goes over the walls, since you’ll paint them soon enough. After you’re done with the trim (let it dry for 24 hours), you should tape it off and paint your ceiling and walls.

Q: What’s the best way to obtain a consistent texture?

A: Use a brush for corners and areas close to trim, even if the texture will be different than when using the roller. You should brush on the paint for a consistent texture and turn it right away before it dries.

Q: How to prepare the work surface for the spatters and spills?

A: No matter how meticulous or careful you are, spatters and spills will always happen when painting. It’s easier to prevent the spills, so use canvas drop cloths in the work area as they stay in place and don’t need taping. You may use them to cover any areas.

Plastic drop cloths are typically slippery to walk and keep on moving. On top of everything else, paint spills don’t dry on plastic fast, so you will be carrying them on your shoes in the entire house.

For the hard floors, you should use rosin paper and not canvas, which gets slippers.

It doesn’t matter which type of solution you choose; you will always have to wipe up large spills immediately so that they don’t seep through. Use cloth rags or paper towels for cleaning the spills.

Q: Why should you feather out paint?

A: For the massive areas like ceilings or very tall walls where continuous strokes are difficult to make, you should feather out the paint along the edges that are difficult to maintain wet. A thin and feather coat of paint will reduce the risk of buildup, which leads to lap marks.

For the large areas, you should roll close in various directions, along the dry edge, as you’re trying to feather out the paint as you go. Once you’re done with the length of your ceiling, you should move on to the next area, painting over the feathered edges. Use the opposite direction when applying the second coat. The crisscrossing paint method will reduce the lap marks.

Q: Do you only use natural light or not?

A: Missing a spot when the painting is possible, especially if you’re working with similar colors. You should buy and use a work light, continually checking your work as you finish an area. Around the edges is where you’re missing the spots most of the time, and you should use a brush and not a roller for the job.

“Holidays” (missing a spot when painting) are easy to repair as you go and really annoying to fix after you’ve packed all your tools.

Q: How do you get the most precise edge?

A: After the paint is dry, you shouldn’t pull the tape off the trim right away. The paint will turn into a film between the wall and the tape, and you will definitely tear small pieces of dried paint while pulling off the tape. It’s better that you cut the tape before pulling it.

Keep in mind to wait 24 hours before removing the tape; you might want to use a sharp utility knife for the job. Begin with a subtle area to ensure that the paint is hard. You will create a big mess if you’re cutting the paint when it’s still gummy. Also, use a 45-degree angle for pulling up the tape.