6 things to do before you paint

1. What to buy

You’re more likely to save money with a top-of-the-line paint.

• Cheap paint usually requires two coats to cover what’s on the wall, thereby doubling your cost.

• Low-quality latex paint also gets chalky as it ages and needs to be repainted sooner.

2.Get the right paint finish

Paint comes in glossy, semigloss, eggshell, satin, and flat finishes.

• Use glossy or semigloss on woodwork. In areas likely to get dirty, use semigloss or eggshell on walls.

• The glossier the paint, the more durable and easier it will be to clean. Flat, on the other hand, hides wall defects and touched-up areas better.

3. Match, don’t mix

Simplify your life. Use the same colour paint on trim and walls even if they’re not the same sheen.

• You’ll have to do far less masking, and touch-up is simpler since paint splashed from the walls onto the trim (or vice versa) is virtually invisible.

4. Pick the right applicators

Select a short-nap roller for smooth walls and a longer nap for stucco, concrete, and textured surfaces.

• Make sure the roller has slightly bevelled ends that won’t drag paint onto adjoining surfaces.

• Choose a nylon-wool blend roller for alkyd (oil) paint, but get an all-nylon roller for latex. Similarly, choose a natural bristle brush for alkyd and synthetic bristles for latex.

• Look sideways at a brush. A good brush comes to a dull point; a cheap one is cut square.

• Look at the bristle ends. Split ends help spread paint for a smoother finish.

5. Computer-matching your paint colour

If you want to repaint a room the same colour it already is, you’ll have to colour match.

• Slice through the paint on the wall with a sharp utility knife in an out-of-the-way area and lift off a good-sized chip.

• Take the chip to a paint store that has computerized paint-matching equipment, which will generate a recipe the store can use to match the colour.

• Computerized colour-matching is usually free and it may save you from having to repaint the entire room for a few years.

6. Prepping the wall before painting

• Put on rubber gloves and wash the walls with trisodium phosphate (TSP) or TSP substitute. This strong, non-sudsing cleanser, available at paint retailers, dulls the finish so that paint will adhere better.

• Rinse with a sponge and water until the water runs clear. Let the wall dry.

• Wash off any mildew with a 50/50 mixture of water and bleach, and rinse well.

• Repair holes and cracks in the wallboard or the plaster. Scrape off loose paint and blend in areas with chipped-off paint by sanding the edges of the surrounding paint or by skim-coating the area with spackling.

• Fill dings and dents in woodwork with wood putty and smaller nail holes with glazing compound; then sand. Finally, lightly sand the surface.

• Apply masking tape over mouldings and trim where they meet the wall; the newer blue tapes are easier to use than traditional masking tape. Protect the floor with a drop cloth.

• To keep stains from bleeding through the new paint, seal them with stain sealer, available at paint stores and home centres. Oil-based and shellac-based sealers block stains better than latex ones.

• Then coat the entire wall with latex primer, which is easier to clean up but just as durable as oil-based primer.

Here you are finally ready to paint your walls like a pro!