Whats the Most Efficient Way to Paint a Room?
There comes a point in time when you want to give your home a fresh look and feel. One of the ways by which you can do this is to paint it. As such, you might be wondering what’s the most efficient way to paint a room. When you know this, you’ll have an easy time getting your home painted and beautiful in a short time. If you like it, you could save more money in the future by painting your home yourself every single time it needs to be painted. Read on to see what the most efficient way to paint a room is and become a DIY professional, at least as far as paint goes!
Gather Your Supplies
The most important thing to do first, as all painting contractors know, is to gather all the supplies that you need before you start. This will make it easy for you to go from start to finish with the least possibility of making a mess. You’ll also need to take fewer and shorter breaks from working, so this means that you can paint fast. Gathering all the supplies that you need will be the first step you should take when looking for the most efficient way to paint a room, so you shouldn’t ignore it.
It’s actually better to take a longer time preparing your supplies first so that you can cut down on the time you take doing the actual painting. Some supplies you’ll need include a bucket to mix the paint, drop cloths to protect surfaces and furniture, a flexible putty knife to open paint jars and scrape paint off, a stepladder to reach places you’d otherwise have a hard time reaching, and, of course, paint brushes and rollers with handles of varying lengths.
Improvise For What You Can’t Get
You may have made a few trips to your local hardware store already and at the last second, discover that you’re missing a single thing. Rather than head out yet again or be stranded on how to proceed, find a way to improvise. For example, if you’re missing something like a drop cloth which you need in order to keep the floors and furniture free of paint, you could use cardboard instead. It will keep your floors and the other things that you cover with it clean and free from paint damage.
Note that if it’s something crucial like a paintbrush or roller, you may have a harder time improvising, so it’s best to start with the basics when you go out to buy the painting materials that you need. Start by writing a comprehensive list of the items that you need so there’s a low chance that you might forget. If you have everything you need, it will be easier for you to hack the most efficient way to paint a room.
Prep the Room
Next, you need to prep the room that you want to paint. Move everything to the center of the room, and keep some items outside if the room is too cluttered. At this point, it may be a good idea to declutter and actually get rid of unnecessary items permanently. This is going to leave you with a beautiful space once you’re done painting and is the equivalent of hitting two birds with one stone.
While you prep the room, do so effectively. You should ensure that you do your best to avoid damaging the house and fixtures so that you don’t have additional tasks awaiting you after you’re done painting the house. While you may need to do something like carpet cleaning in the end, ensure that it’s not because some paint spilled on it as it can be difficult to remove. Room prep is an important step when you want to know the most efficient way to paint a room, so don’t skip this step either.
Wear the Right Gear
As you protect your floor and furnishings, you also need to protect yourself. Obviously, you’re not going to wear your favorite outfit when painting the house, but you need to minimize the damage to the clothes you’ll wear and your skin itself. Paint protection is therefore an important purchase while you’re doing your best to find the most efficient way to paint a room.
If you don’t want to buy an overall and you have some clothes that you don’t mind throwing away if they get some paint on them, then wear these. Do, however, buy gloves and protective goggles, as well as a bonnet or scarf to cover your head because paint can be a pain to get out of your hair. If you normally wear glasses, consider getting contact lenses for the day or a protective clear face shield to keep paint droplets off your glasses.
Sand Flaws Off
When you start to paint, it’s natural to come across some flaws. This could either be at the very start of your painting session or after you apply primer or after the first coat of paint. Whichever the case, it’s important for you to make sure that you fix flaws as you go. If you’ve ever hired remodeling services to get your house in good shape, you may have noticed that they always end up with perfectly smooth paint on the walls when all is said and done.
The hack that they use to achieve this is sanding off any flaws they come across as they go. If you’re going to be painting on a regular basis or you have a large area to paint, you should therefore think about investing in a sander. It will save you a lot of time and is one of the important steps you should take when looking for the most efficient way to paint a room.
Start With the Ceiling
Now that you’re ready to begin the actual process, you need to know the right way to start so that you achieve the most efficient way to paint a room. Starting with the ceiling is the key to the most efficient way to paint a room. This is because when you paint the ceiling, you’ll end up with tiny droplets of paint on all surfaces of the house. These can be easily covered up by painting over them in turn. The ceiling is the least fun part of your house to paint as well, so it’s generally good to get it over and done with as soon as you can.
To begin, use the technique of cutting in. This involves painting the ceiling’s edge along its perimeter first. To do this safely and efficiently, you should pour the paint you need in a container that you can hold in one hand so that you’ll paint with the other while standing on the ladder. Do this for the entire room’s perimeter and then use a roller to paint the rest of the ceiling, moving from one end to the other. Paint in the same direction, one roller width at a time and overlapping the previous row. If you need to paint a second coat over the first one, do so in the opposite direction that you rolled the paint in for the first coat. You may want to contact residential asbestos disposal services if your ceiling has any asbestos before you begin so that you can ensure you’re safe throughout.
Paint the Trim Next
Next, paint the trim before you paint the walls. This will cover any drips of paint from painting the ceiling, and it will generally make for an easy progression of your painting task. You should then wait for this paint to dry so that you can apply painter’s tape over it before you paint the walls. If your trim’s top is too narrow to effectively tape off, you should start with the walls before painting the trim. Once the walls dry, apply painter’s tape to the walls and then paint the trim. To paint the trim well, don’t be in a hurry, but take your time so that you do a neat job.
Paint the Walls Last
Finally, you’re ready to paint the walls. You could use the same technique for the walls as you did the ceiling. This is to first paint the edges and then paint the rest of the surface. For the best outcome, you should paint one wall completely first. This is because, when you do the entire wall while the paint on the edges is still wet, it’s going to blend a lot better with the rest of the paint. When painting the edges, you should also pour the paint in a container that you can hold in one hand easily. This will give you the best outcome as you can work more efficiently and faster.
When you get to the walls, you should make sure that there are no services that need to be done on the walls that could affect their quality after you’re done. For example, you may want to speak to an electrician if you have a switch or two that you need to be fixed. Electrical contractors can help you get your wiring and other electrical issues in shape fast and safely and this is why you shouldn’t attempt to DIY anything electrical. This goes for any repairs that you may need, whether you’re calling foundation repair contractors or air conditioner contractors. In these instances, make sure that the necessary fixes are made before you paint areas associated with these repairs. This will help you to maintain the integrity of your home’s paint and is thus an important part of the most efficient way to paint a room.
Clean Up
When the painting’s all done, it’s time to clean up before you get your room back in order. Start by peeling off the tape you had applied to the walls and trim, if any, with the help of a flexible putty knife. Clean your brushes and rollers thoroughly and remove all the paint out of them for the best storage. You could store them in a sealable plastic bag or wrap them in firm paper so that the bristles don’t dry and curl up. If you paint with oil-based paint, use paint thinner to clean them. Latex paint is water-based and so you can clean the brushes with warm, soapy water before storage.
Some Tips and Tricks
This outline of the most efficient way to paint a room wouldn’t be complete without some handy tips, and the first one is to make sure that the room you’re painting is well-lit. While natural lighting is best to paint in, you may not be able to paint during the day every time, or even have access to daylight where you’re painting. In this case, it’s a good idea for you to use a bright work light. This will help you avoid missing spots.
You should also mix all the paint you need to use in one big bucket before you begin. This is important when you need to paint a large area the same color because even the same shade, when in different boxes, may have a slight difference. This difference is usually very obvious once the paint has been applied to the walls and this is why you need to even it out before you start.
Finally, you should wash any brand new paint rollers you get before you begin painting. Doing this will help you avoid fuzz and lint that may be on the surface of your roller and that will end up on your walls. The best thing about rewashing the rollers is that you don’t even have to wait for them to dry before you start painting with them. Simply squeeze off excessive water and get to work.
Now that you know the most efficient way to paint a room, you’re ready to wow your friends and family when you tell them that you painted your house, or a certain room, yourself. This is going to be very gratifying if you have a good job to show for it, so use this guide of the most efficient way to paint a room and you’ll have a reason to smile when all is said and done.
