For a professional-looking paint job, you must get down to the nitty-gritty of the task. Every step and detail is important to achieve true perfection. Learn all the tricks of the trade and some valuable tips to get your room painted just like the professionals do – neat, clean and flawless. For your convenience, we have brought a step-by-step guide to painting a room professionally.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Painting a Room like a Pro
Many homeowners plan to paint a room on their own to cut down on cost. While it is recommended to take the DIY route, one must follow all the steps that professional painters take for a neat finish. Besides, you don’t want the paint to start peeling off the walls before time and all your hard work goes to waste.
Experts also advise to paint a room during the dry winter season and never to start a paint project during the monsoon season. If in case, it is essential to get the room painted during the humid season, then go for slow-drying paint. A detailed stepwise guide is given below along with professional painting tips and tricks.
- Buy essential tools
- Calculate the budget
- Prep the surface
- Fill any cracks, gaps and holes
- Use a primer
- Go step wise
Let us discuss these steps to paint a room in more detail.
Buy essential tools
While buying good quality paint is important, you can’t deny on the significance of sturdy tools and the right equipment. For a job well done you need to think like a professional painter. Don’t skimp on professional masking tape as it is great at preventing any drips or blurs in painting.
Similarly, invest in professional roller cover and good brushes to ensure better coverage or else you will spend a lot of your time and money on repainting the room. When going to the market to buy a roller, choose the nap of the roller for an ultimate finish. The nap refers to the thickness of the roller.
A short nap is 4-8 mm long and holds less paint, perfect for a fine finish and is mostly recommended for gloss paint on smooth surfaces. There is a thin, very smooth coating. IF the surface is medium it is 8-12 mm long and can hold paint well. It creates a soft look on the walls. But if your walls are heavily damaged with many crevices and gaps, then go for a long 18-25 mm nap that can hold a heavy load of paint. Choose the roller carefully depending on the surface you will paint on.
Calculate the budget
For painting a room professionally you must calculate the budget first. Having an estimate of how much paint you would need will prevent unnecessary trips to the store and also save a lot of your cash. If you don’t know how much paint would be needed for your room, then first measure up the room to calculate the budget. Measure the length of walls. Then multiply this length with the height of the walls to get the square footage of the room. Usually, 350 sq ft is covered from a single paint gallon. Next, divide the area size, as calculated above with 350 to get the number of gallons you might need for your room. This estimate only covers the walls.
For further guidance on the subject, navigate to our detailed blog, where we have shared an easy guide for paint calculation, along with examples.
Prep the surface
First things first: Remover electrical switches and covers. But before that switch off the lights. You don’t want any bad accidents while you are busy painting.
Using a small screwdriver, remove the switch boards and keep the screws and the plates in a separate plastic bag. Keep the plastic bags in a safe place. Using a painter’s masking tape covers the switch openings so that you don’t paint them over accidentally.
It is also important to cover all unpainted areas with plastic sheets, old pieces of cloth or newspapers. You don’t want paint splatter to spoil your room’s flooring. It is also important to cover the edges of door and window trim for a neat finish. Use professional masking tape for the purpose. Once you have carefully covered all possible areas, then you need to prepare the surface before applying a coat of paint on the walls. But if you are short on time and are looking for ways to paint a room fast then skip the taping part. Instead, you can use the cut-in method to apply paint around the edges.
Fill any cracks, gaps and holes
One of the best tips to painting a room professionally is to first cover any gouges and holes in the wall. Next comes the part of cleaning the walls. Patching any scratches on the walls will give a neat and clean look. Use caulk to fill the holes and gaps in the walls.
Take a fine-grit sandpaper to smooth out any uneven surface. This will also scrape out the old paint or any peeling paint from the walls. Now, carefully inspect the walls and see if the surface has smoothed out or not. Any bumpy surface or visible holes and gaps will look bad after the paint.
Prime the surface
The next thing is to prime the surface. Priming helps mask away any tough stains and also gives an added texture which helps the paint to adhere to the surface well. Professionals usually use oil-based primers. If you have a spotless wall and you think you don’t need a primer, then go for a self-priming paint to eliminate the step of priming.
If you are planning to paint a light colour on a dark coloured wall, then use a tinted primer. This will help you see any missed spots in your painting when applying the final coat.
Go step wise
If you are wondering how to paint a room with a roller, then follow these tips. Paint the edges first i.e. the baseboards and door edges. Want to paint a room fast? Just be careful to cut in the paint around the window trim and door trim to avoid slopping paint all over the trim. You should only tape horizontal surfaces where the paint can land and become visible. Don’t waste time in painting vertical surfaces like doors and windows where you can paint the edges by effectively cutting in with paint. Another professional painter’s tip is to dip the roller in the paint box but don’t leave it there or else it will be heavily loaded and create streaks that you won’t like. Dip it till you see the roller completely covered in paint. Then apply the paint from the ceiling all the way down.
There should be no drips and splatters at the end of your paint job. Once the area starts drying up, don’t apply paint over it or else it will have streaks that will spoil the entire look. Go over the entire room, covering each and every square inch of the space. Let it completely dry out before applying a second coat. There you go! You have a newly painted room that you did all by yourself.
We hope this detailed guide on how to paint a room for beginners will help you complete the process with perfection. You might also be interested in other related blogs on the subject:
- How to paint a home’s interior?
- How to choose the right paint finish for different rooms in your house
- DIY guide on how to get rid of paint smell
- Best colour schemes for your bedroom
Stay tuned to the best lifestyle and home decor blog in Pakistan. Don’t forget to write to us at blog@zameen.com and we will surely get back to you. Subscribe to the Zameen Newsletter appearing on the right hand side of the job.
