Find The Right Painting Tools and Techniques

This is a 4 piece series on painting tools and techniques. Here in section one I will examine masking and protective gear. Later in part two I’ll examine ladders and scaffolding and in article three I’ll talk about brushes and rollers. Finally, in the last article we’ll look at sprayers, caulk guns, wire brushes, braces and knee pads, and swivel hooks.

The painting industry has made tremendous strides in the last decade. Today there's a tool for virtually every situation. Even I'm impressed by the innovative devices arriving on the market, for example, dripless caulk guns, that have solved a messy problem.

Before you commence your project, take a minute to check your equipment. You will most probably need to fill up on a few items. Make an entire list of the things you need. Keep an eye out for tools that save time and labor. The more costly equipment, such as sprayers and scaffolding, can be rented.

Effective Strategies For Protective Gear

Some people don't believe it's essential to wear safety gear when they're painting. I guess they think it's wimpy. But I've performed around enough toxins to comprehend how dangerous they can be. Dust, painting mist, and vapors affect the lungs rapidly, and skin pores are an available target for solvents and dust borne particles. Don't be foolish... protect yourself.

Respirators Risk

A particle mask is better than almost nothing, but it doesn't form a tight seal and it will not filter out all the dust. In the event that you do use a particle mask, get one with double elastic bands. A damp handkerchief tied around your face gives better security than particle masks that use lightweight rubber bands.

Double cartridge respirators are the safest solution. They'll give you the protection you'll need for many vapors, mist, and dirt. Respirators come in three sizes. Make sure that yours fits. If it doesn't fit well, it will not work very well. Checking the fit of a respirator is similar to screening the seal of any diving mask. Breathe in then keep your hand over the side valves. The face mask will work if it presses against the face and stays there when you hold your breath. Good respirators cost from $25 on up and usually come with replacement filters. Double cartridge respirators have color coded filters for different pollutants; check that you are using the right filter for the job. Make sure to read the instructions, and remember that you should change the cartridges if breathing becomes hard or if you start detecting vapors.

Protective Clothing You Will Need

Respirators do a good job of protecting your lungs, nevertheless, you need to protect the remainder of your body as well. Having been certified in lead abatement, I know that your body can only just eliminate an extremely small ratio of lead, even over a 30 year period. Many painters make the mistake of thinking that a little contact with dust or VOCs won't harm them, but it all adds up over time. I always dress for protection, keeping at least one good Tyvek painting suit on the job. Tyvek breathes well, weighs little, and provides good protection. The excess layer is a lttle bit warm, but I'd rather wear a paint suit than be covered with dirt or overspray (on a hot day ensure that you drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration). In the event that you choose not to invest in a painting suit, wear clothes that you won't mind turning into something resembling a painting palette.

I almost always wear leather gloves, even when I'm brushing. They keep my hands clean and my grip dry. I carry two pairs of gloves if I'm painting more than one color, to ensure I don't contaminate the colors. Commercial strength rubber gloves are another must. I wear rubber gloves to stain, to wash out brushes, sprayers, and rollers; to open, mix, and strain paints; also to handle toxic substances such as paint thinners.

Rounding out my paint anywhere clothing are safety glasses or goggles to keep chips, dust particles, and spray mist out of my eyes, and, if I'm spraying, a hood. In the event that you spray with out a hood, be prepared to spend plenty of time cleaning paint out of your hair.

Succeed With Masking

Usually the room you're painting will have a finished floor or carpet and the proverbial ounce of prevention can save your day. Even if you are only painting one inside window, masking the floor is a good idea. Having an open can of paint makes me nervous if there isn't any drop cloth on the floor. I've discovered the hard way. Masking becomes even more essential if you are staining, because stain spatters all over the place. A few simple items can help you save a great deal of touching up, cleaning up, and struggling to get paint from the carpet before your spouse sees it. Before I finally gave up and admitted that my approach wasn't perfectly right and dripless, I spent more time touching up than I could have. Touch up is a fact of painting life, but these days I do much less of it because I take time to mask.

First, you need a drop cloth. Heavy fabric is always best, but drop cloths don't have to be expensive, professional painter's cloths. You will often find rather large drapes at thrift stores, for the price of one thin clear plastic drop cloth. Search for drapes with vinyl backing, for added waterproofing. I pull out the top stitching for an additional 3 inches of fabric.

The difficulty with plastic drop cloths is that they weigh next to nothing and billow everywhere. Plastic works best if you can find 3 foot wide paper (such as the kind used for flooring insulation) to lie together with the clear plastic. If I'm painting a large new home and I need to mask the entire floor, the plastic/paper masking system is inexpensive and is effective.

An excellent masking system is crucial whether you're brushing, rolling, or spraying the paint. All you need is masking tape, newspaper for the outside edge of the floor and baseboard, and a thin layer of plastic material for the windows and furniture. 3M makes a good masking system which includes special painter's tape and dispensers with pre-taped clear plastic. If you've ever before spent hours scraping tape adhesive off windows, you can appreciate advanced masking tapes. Commercial masking dispensers can be found at professional painting outlets and sometimes at rental shops. If a commercial dispenser is hard to find, simply buy a roll of heavy paper and use your wrist to hold the masking tape roll.

Some tapes need more stickiness for fixing plastic to rougher textures like walls. Other tapes need to come off without leaving adhesive on home windows and smooth surfaces. Always wait at least four hours time before removing tape to avoid tearing the paint. But don't leave tape on for longer than a day or it'll be hard to pull off.

Problems With Masking Floors

In addition to masking off the primary areas to be painted, it is also good prevention to mask main traffic areas and wherever you intend to store and mix the paint. Distribute all the required drop cloths, then clean the areas you'll be taping with a vacuum, foxtail broom, or clean rag, to ensure a good seal. When you mask, focus on obtaining a clean edge with the tape, and make sure the tape is securely attached.

Tape and paper dispensers are well suited for masking off the outer edge of an area. They ensure a clean edge along the floor and minimize clean-up. I take advantage of shorter strips of masking (1 ft. to 2 ft.) for corners and closets. On long, straight runs I favor going corner to corner with one long piece of tape, which reduces the amount of seams that will have to be taped. After the perimeter is in place, I take advantage of drop cloths for the rest of the floor. For increased protection, I usually substantially overlap the masked perimeter with the drop cloth. On edges I also double the cloth over to the inside, for extra safety and stability.

Obtaining a tight seal with a drop cloth is crucial if you are spraying a room, but safeguarding carpet or flooring with a sealed drop cloth is a good plan even if you're just brushing or rolling. A drop cloth will move if it is not taped where it lies, and you'll end up on your knees cleaning paint off the floor.

About Masking Walls And Fixtures

No matter how you plan to use the paint, you'll need to mask permanent fixtures including the ceiling lights, fans, and door knobs. Even if you have excellent hand control, cutting in (edging) the fixtures that are not masked is frustrating, especially for multiple coats of paint. To mask accessories, pull off enough paper and tape to wrap the fixture, being careful to keep the tape just on the base of the fixture (newspaper also makes a good masking material for fittings). If possible, release the fixture covers and wall mounts to paint under them; this ensures a smooth border.

The amount of masking that you should do is dependent upon the type of house painting you will be doing. The only time the surfaces have to be masked is when you intend to spray the ceiling and you will need to keep the walls dry, for instance, if the ceiling is getting another color or finish. If the trim is clear coated or you would like to paint only the wall space and ceiling, it's wise to mask all over the trim, especially the windowsills.

Professional Window Masking

The sole time I mask windows is once I plan to spray. Taping windows isn't quite effective. It takes too much time and paint still gets under the tape, and masking tape has a knack for really sticking to glass.

For interior or exterior windows, I take advantage of the same system for masking walls. Really the only difference is the fact masking glass windows usually is faster than masking complete wall surfaces. Masking house windows and wall space is usually done with plastic, which allows light in to the room and it is helpful for covering large areas (paper is best for masking flooring surfaces and trim). To measure plastic, I roll it out along the windows, cut as straight of a line as is possible, and tape the perimeter of the windowpane. Then it's just a matter of sticking the plastic material onto the exposed tape, working from the top down and being careful to keep it straight and level.

Masking paper also is effective to protect windows, floor, and molding from paint spatters. To protect home windows, apply masking paper over the top of the window’s casing. The width of the paper will do to block most of the roller spatter. This same technique protects the floor and molding. If you are confident about your brushing and rolling abilities try using 1 ½ inch masking tape rather than masking paper.

How To Mask For Spraying

Spraying needs that anything not being sprayed should be completely masked. Because spraying requires such comprehensive masking, wait to mask until you're ready to spray. Outside surface spraying may need extensive masking, with respect to the variety of colors and whether there are surrounding buildings such as fences and electric power lines. When masking for spray, be sure you be extensive. Overspray is hard to control, especially under windy conditions. The greater you've prepared for overspray, the better. The time spent masking is a lot less than the time you'll have spent touching up afterward. A tight seal with masking tape is crucial because sprayed paint gets just about everywhere. Overspray is similar to the occasional drip from a brush every so often... one is certain to get away from you, no matter how careful you are. Nevertheless, you can reduce overspray by double checking before you spray.

Sound Quality Painting

824 90th Dr SE suite B

Lake Stevens WA 98258

(425) 512-7400

Sound Quality Painting

Local Painters

Google Map