Advice on Paint (NF)

dannyboy · April 7, 2008

We use TSP (tri sodium phosphate) to scrub the walls before painting; it will remove any oil residue like fingerprints and dirt.

You can buy TSP in granular form in most hardware stores; just follow the directions for the proper dilution.

Use a Scotch Brite pad to scrub and it will roughen up the surface at the same time, to allow the primer to adhere better.

Dan

Headhunter · April 7, 2008

Just had our dining room painted last week. Our neighbour is a pro painter by trade and suggested a new line of Ben Moore paints that have just come out. Sorry, don't know the name, but this paint is remarkable in that it will not grow "crumby" with time, regardless of the colour you use. It is also very forgiving for those who's skill level are not up to pro level... speaking of leveling, it is self leveling.

What really convinced us was the colour pallet available... like most manufacturers, they provide a number of colours, but what makes this stuff "unique" is that you can say, pick any three colours the paint is available in, and they will match each other! We tried playing this game at home, each on of us picking a colour, like from a deck of cards and every combination of three that were picked worked together.

It also have a very tough finish when dry... which only takes less than an hour!

HH

Big Cliff · April 7, 2008

Well, I just finished painting our whole house (upstairs), I'll have the basement finished this weekend. First, use a GOOD quality paint We ended up going with colour Your World top of the line paint (it was on special for about 30% off). Good quality paints will cover better (but I still did two coats) and Sue is very pleased (which means I am too). When it comes to trimming, they have masking tape now that you can put on and get a clean release up to 14 days later, it's a little more money but worth every penny. Also, the GOOD quality paints don't spatter like the less expensive ones do, saves a lot of clean up and they are far more durable.

If you are finished painting for a bit but not finished the job yet, store your brushes or rollers in a plastic bag, squeeze out as much air as you can and seal it, I have kept rollers like this for two or three days and they were still good to use. Keeping them in the fridge does seem to be even better (still in the bag).

I'm not much good at trimming but I ended up using one of Sue's small craft brushes for those small touch ups and found that worked really well, also, keep a damp cloth available to wipe up any mistakes right away.

If you have any water stains to hide, pick up a can of BIN paint, CTC has it, just paint over the water stain and let it dry then paint it same as you would the rest of whatever you are doing, the stain will never bleed through.

Just a few of the things I learned the hard way. Wish you were closer and I'd come and help!

Hope it helps and good luck!