Painting The House: The Most Common Mistakes To Avoid
As time goes by, there comes a time when the walls beg for a refresh. To paint your house it is first of all important to know how to do it, especially if you decide to do it yourself and want to save some money.
There are several techniques to get a good result. It is necessary to take into account some steps to carry out this activity, as well as some precautions to be performed before and after painting.
Home painting can be a fun and even relaxing activity. We can practice it as an escapist activity or as an opportunity to do something with the family, because both children and adults can lend a hand.
If we don’t know how to do it or we don’t take certain indications into account, it can even turn into a nightmare; there is nothing worse than starting a business and finding yourself with a bad result.
We want to help you not to give up on your projects, and for this reason we give you a series of tips to obtain an excellent result.
Mistakes to avoid when painting your house
Here are the most common mistakes that are made when deciding to paint the house:
Do not prepare a list of materials needed
Throwing into the painting of the walls without any planning can be a big mistake, especially when in the middle of the activity you realize that you are missing important material.
Here is a list of what you need in most cases:
- Paint: calculate the square meters of the environment and ask your trusted paint shop for advice to find out the appropriate quantity and type.
- Paint rollers.
- Telescopic handle.
- A sturdy ladder or stool to help you get anywhere.
- Painter’s tape or body shop tape.
- A large bucket or container.
- A specific brush for corners.
- Floor and door protection (not newspaper)
- Old clothes, you don’t care if they get stained.
Save
When faced with an offer or a paint that is too cheap, you risk buying poor quality materials.
Research and purchase the best paints for excellent results. Using substandard products could be counterproductive.
If you want to save on the amount of paint, you can opt for cheaper alternatives such as painting only some walls and using adhesive wallpaper for the others.
Use cellophane or newspaper on the floor
To protect the floor when painting, we advise against using cellophane and newspaper.
The fact is that they tend to move very easily when passing, leaving uncovered areas that could get stained, as well as the risk of spreading paint around by walking on them.
To protect the surfaces, the ideal is to cover the floor with blankets, old rags or sheets and secure them well in the corners.
Protect the furniture
Maybe you just want to paint a simple wall and it doesn’t occur to you to cover the nearest piece of furniture. However, it is essential to protect the furniture from possible stains by using plastic sheets. Don’t skimp on these details.
Likewise, also protect doors and windows. Ultimately, protect any surfaces and objects that could get stained. Remember that you are not a professional.
Choose only the colors we like
Maybe your favorite color is red or fuchsia, however they may not be the best colors to paint your bedroom or dining room.
The ideal is to do a color test and find the tone that best suits your decor.
The best thing is to get some samples and do some tests to avoid mistakes. There is no problem with making mistakes or changing your mind, we just have to be sure of the final choice.
Choose white as the only option
There are people who do not like to take risks and who directly choose to paint the whole house white.
Not being a professional can also be a great choice, since white paint doesn’t require much finishing.
White certainly makes rooms brighter, but it can also turn out to be a bit boring and unoriginal choice.
Try to choose an ocher color, a light yellow or another tone that adds a more personal touch to the environment.
To think that the defects of the wall will fix themselves
Perhaps we think that with a coat of paint, damp spots or cracks on the walls magically disappear.
Unfortunately, however, it does not work exactly like that; first we must always treat the wall and once ready, paint it.
Even if it seems to us an expensive process or it is difficult for us, it is always advisable to give a first coat with the undercoat.
Start painting from the middle
If it’s your first time, don’t make the mistake of starting painting from the middle of the wall. The paint always drips, so the ideal is to start from the top corner and stop at the plinth.
Once dry, we can continue to paint with movements from top to bottom.
Don’t respect the times
It’s not the same as painting a white wall with one color and turning a colored wall into a white or neutral colored wall.
The ideal is to respect the drying times and not to be in a hurry, because if we don’t wait long enough or we don’t have patience we can end up with a bad final result.
It is better not to rush and do a good job. The same happens with duct tape: it is usually removed as soon as it’s finished, causing the paint to blow out and causing blemishes.
For this reason, the ideal is to remove it 24 hours later and with a parallel movement.
Paint the ceiling white
It is wrong to believe that the ceiling must necessarily be painted white.
It can certainly help to make the room more spacious, but you can also choose another tone that matches that of the walls, in order to give it a more original touch.
Paint each room with a different color
Chances are that if you ask your kids to pick a color they will tell you: blue, green, purple or pink.
However, it is one thing to stimulate their imagination and quite another to paint the whole house in different colors.
Let’s say the children’s rooms are the only exception. For the rest, it would be better for the rooms to maintain a certain harmony, in order to give the house a welcoming and tidy atmosphere.
These are some of the mistakes that are commonly made when painting the house.
From now on we are sure that you will pay more attention to details, times and above all to materials: a quality paint will ensure 80% of the success of the work.
Do not hesitate to share these tips with your friends, so that they too do not make mistakes.
