Common Painting Mistakes You’re Probably Making
People assume painting is something anyone can do, but attempt a DIY paint project without knowing these common mistakes and you might find yourself wishing you never attempted doing it yourself! As a professional painter of over 25 years, let me spare you some heartache. Do not be ashamed if you have made these mistakes – they are all too common!
Skimping on Prep Work
Oh man, this one is something I must fix all the time. People fail to realize that a painting project is 75% and 25% actual painting. So they often skip scraping, filling holes, sanding, taping, priming, covering, etc. They think this will save them time and money, but what often happens is people destroy a piece of furniture they forgot to cover, or apply paint without primer so 6 months later it begins to flake off… you get the gist!
Using Flat Paint in Bathroom and Kitchen
I too have made this fatal error. Bathrooms and kitchens are the higher traffic areas of our home. The paint must hold up to steam from showers or high heat from ovens, etc. Flat paint will show grease, water and heat damage more quickly than anything else. Be sure to use semi-gloss or high-gloss paint!
Painting in Every Direction
Many people think that if the wall is covered with paint, the direction from which you approach the wall with your instrument does not matter. Wrong, my friend! Not only will you end up with an inconsistent-looking color, but your wall will almost look patchy. Do yourself a favor and start by painting in an upward direction and coming back down in an “M” formation. You do this so you slightly overlap your previous stroke. You don’t want to roll down initially because this will cause roller drips, etc.
Painting a Second Coat Too Soon
Leave at least two hours for drying between coats. You may think your paint is dry before, but trust us on this one! Applying a second coat of paint before the first one is dry will undo all your hard work – resulting in painting pulling off and awful visible brush strokes.
Applying Too Much Paint
You may think you’re saving yourself time by applying thick paint on your walls, but that’s how you get globs of dry paint that looks like a poor texture job! Use a paint screen if you are using a roller to help wipe off excess paint. If using a brush, don’t dip it in too far. Less than half of your brush should have paint on it. You will save yourself a lot of paint and cleaning time this way!
Using Interior Paint on Your Home’s Exterior
You may think you will never make this mistake, but it’s easy to do. Quite honestly, you can probably fix it by running another coat of the same color in the exterior color in most cases. This is assuming the prep work was all done correctly and primed well.
If you need help repainting your home, we are here in Durango for you anytime at (970) 903-4305. We promise to do a fantastic job and take any guesswork out of your next residential or commercial paint project!
Sources: DIY Network, Huffington Post