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Painting accessories
Painting the interior of a house is a task that is within
the abilities of the average do-it-yourselfer. With a
minimum of organization, brushes and rollers, you should be
able to radically alter the appearance of your home in no
time at all.
Paintbrushes and rollers are available in different
qualities. It goes without saying that quality accessories
are likely to yield more beautiful finishes while easing the
application of paint.
Roller
painting
To paint efficiently with a roller, proceed rectangle by
rectangle, one small area at a time. Trace a "W" starting in
a corner and fill in the "W's" open areas by tracing an "M".
You may have to charge your roller once for each letter.
Spread the paint by going back over the surface vertically.
The final stroke from top to bottom is always in the same
direction, with no pressure on the roller and with the
roller bar on the same side, otherwise, reverse the stroke
direction.
Masking knots before painting
Knots in finished wood will appear sooner or later after
painting. Before painting, seal the knots with a lacquer. It
is the only liquid sealant that will efficiently seal in
knot resin, without discoloring the finishing paint.
Choosing the right paint texture
Each paint finish has its own properties. The more matte the
finish, the more it hides imperfections and uneven
reflections, but it's less washable. The glossier the
finish, the more washable it is, but also the more sensitive
to imperfections and it will mask less efficiently. In
order: glossy, semi-gloss, pearl, eggshell, satin, matte.
Semi-gloss is best for hall walls and for windows and
frames; use matte on ceilings and satin and pearl for the
rest. Kitchens, bathrooms and basements have their own
antifungal paints.
Ready-to-use paintbrushes
Restore flexibility to your old paintbrushes by soaking them
for a few hours in a mixture of water and ammonia. Rinse
them thoroughly under running water before letting them dry,
bristle side up.
Masking streaks
When painting, if you run across a partly dried streak, let
it dry completely. You'll then be able to scrape it lightly
with a scraper, a clean spatula or a straight blade, before
retouching it with the paintbrush.
When paint rollers lose their fibres
To prevent your paint rollers from losing their fibres, roll
them on the back of a length of masking tape before
painting. This sticky surface will trap the loose fibres
before they mix with the paint and appear on your freshly
painted walls.
Clean paint roller trays
To dispense with the chore of cleaning the paint tray, cover
it with a piece of aluminum foil, making sure to press it
firmly into the grooves so that it won't tear under the
roller. This way, cleaning won't be as long as the painting
itself.
Painting: uniform shades
When you're using more than one gallon of paint of the same
color, a sage piece of advice says that you should mix the
last quarter of the can to the next one of the same color,
to be sure that the color going on the wall is uniform. An
important element to consider before the paint dries on the
wall.
Removing paint on glass and windows
It is well known that dried paint can be removed from glass
with a razor blade. If the glass objects are textured or
uneven, soak them in water and dishwasher liquid for a few
hours.
Doing clean touchups
During light painting jobs, put a "Zip Lock" type sandwich
bag in a plastic margarine tub and fold the bag edges over
the rim. Pour the paint into the bag of your "paint tray"
and once the job is over, remove the bag and seal it, or
throw it away.
Filling holes with flour
To quickly fill small nail holes in walls, mix flour with
the paint that colors the wall to make a paste. With a putty
knife or a spatula, fill the holes in the same way that you
would using joint compound and wipe off the excess. This
colored paste will fill the holes and you won't have to get
out the paintbrush. |
