Home DIY Smart Do-It-Yourself Home Painting Tips

Smart Do-It-Yourself Home Painting Tips

by Simple Happy Home

Remember, everyone starts as a beginner at painting. Just because you have never painted a house doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give it a try.

The money you save by painting your own house is money you can put into other home improvements. It can also be a fun activity to do with your family!

Choosing your colors

First things first, we need to choose the colors we want to paint the house. There is a really cool tool online that you can use.  You can upload a picture of your room and see how different colors will look. 

Get started and you will soon know what color you want to paint your house and you’ll have a vision of what it is going to look like when you’re finished.

Preparing to paint

Here are some of the basics. Of course the first thing you need to do is wash down the walls of your house. A pressure washer can be rented at almost any rental yard and is the best way to do that. Now go around with a scraper and remove all loose paint and chipped areas.

You don’t have to scrape the entire wall, but any areas where the surface is not flat can cause you problems as you paint your house.

Next, figure out your square footage so you can determine the amount of paint you will need to buy. Buy your paint in the largest possible tins that you will use, rather than smaller ones, as this works out more cost effective.

Gathering your equipment 

Talk to the assistants at your local paint store and tell him or her about your project. They can help you decide on how many brushes and rollers and other items you will need.

You can buy natural or synthetic bristles for oil based paints, but only use synthetic bristles with latex paint. The same rule applies to rollers. Good rollers can run you around $7, but buy high-quality paintbrushes. A good brush for cutting in around edges will run you about $30.

Make sure you purchased some painter’s tape. It’s blue tape that comes in different widths and is easy to remove without messing up your paint job.

Getting started

That brings us to preparation. Tape off all areas you don’t wish to get this color of paint on. If there are large areas to cover, make sure you pick up some rolls of plastic. You can tape the edges of the plastic down over whatever you need to cover.

Don’t paint out of the paint cans. First reason is that leaving the paint can open will dry out the paint and make it difficult to apply. Another reason is that your brush or roller picks up dirt and foreign objects, which will end up in your paint and may even change the color as you go along.

Do all of your cutting or trimming in before you paint the walls. Use a 4” brush and with a smooth stroke guide it around the edges where you taped off.

Make sure you have plenty of paint on your brush. The biggest mistake people make is trying to stretch the paint too far. Keep drips cleaned up as you go with a small rag. Remember you will be rolling up to the edge of your cut, so don’t worry about that, just make sure you cover the edges well.

Start on the edges of your walls and work your way toward the middle. Most people don’t do this and problems can result. If you start a new can of paint in the middle of the wall and there is any difference in the color at all, it will show up there more than it would on the edges. So with each new can of paint you open, start at the edges first.

Dip your roller in water (for Latex) or solvent (for oil-based paint), before you start. Whether you use a pan or a 5-gallon bucket with a screen, make sure you roll it out a little to make sure it isn’t dripping. You don’t need to go all the way from the top to the bottom as you paint. Do what you can reach.

Apply the paint in a Y or an N pattern, then apply paint in columns up and down smoothing out all the edges or ridges as you go. Again don’t try to stretch the paint out, make sure you have enough paint on your roller to give it a good coat. If you are applying more than one coat, make sure the first coat is completely dry before applying a new coat of paint.

Tips for corners

Corners are a difficult part to learn to paint. If you aren’t careful, this is where you will see paint drips later. Get as close to corners as you can, but don’t scrape the roller against the corner. That will cause drips. If you are unsure, have a paintbrush handy to smooth out drips. That is also a good idea overall. Keep a paintbrush ready for taking care of any drips or ridges you leave behind. Doing this as you go is much easier than trying to fix it after it’s dry or partially dry.

Cleaning up

Using tray liners for your paint trays will save you a lot of time at cleanup. Soak your brushes when done for a while and they will also be easier to clean.

For water based paint, soak in water and for oil based paint soak them in solvent.

Ready to paint?

I hope some of these tips have been helpful to you. Have confidence that you can do this job yourself!

You will appreciate and enjoy your freshly-painted home much more knowing that you or you and your family completed the job rather than hiring someone else to do it.

You may also like

Leave a Comment

I accept the Privacy Policy

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.