eBooks
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House Remodeling Secrets - Painting to get your fixer-upper property ready to sell
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A fresh coat of paint
Paint is by far the most cost-effective home improvement you can make.
A fresh coat of paint makes your home look clean and fresh. This sample chapter will help
you:
- Choose the right color of paint
- Choose the right kind of paint
- Determine how much paint you need
- Prepare your walls for painting
- Prepare the rest of the room for painting
- Paint!
At the end of the chapter are the quick tips for using paint to get your fixer-upper ready to sell.
Choose the right color of paint
Color is the least expensive way to add style and personality to your home. Paint colors can
change the whole tone of a room, as Well as affect your mood, attitude, and general outlook.
When you are preparing your home to sell, you want to choose white and neutral paint colors.
These colors make your rooms look bigger, brighter, and crisper.
Another reason for choosing neutral colors is that you want to appeal to the largest number of
buyers and help them visualize themselves in your home. After all, while you may love green
and want it in every room, a potential buyer who hates green may never get past the
color to look at all the wonderful features of your home.
Of course, even white comes in a surprising number of shades and tones: creamy beige, cool
blue, warm pink, light gray. Keep in mind that a bright white makes all other colors look
darker, so choose off-white instead. Also, for a unified and polished look, use the same
shade of white in all your rooms.
Other colors
If you want to move beyond basic white, keep these tips in mind when choosing other colors:
One accent wall painted a different color can enliven a room.
Choose paint colors that enhance your furniture and furnishings. For example, match paint
color to the shade of blue you love in your comforter or area rug.
Choose cool, soft colors such as violet, blue, or green to create a quiet mood and make a
room feel airy and larger.
Choose hard, warm colors such as red, orange, and yellow to convey energy and
cheerfulness and to encourage social interaction. However, keep in mind that some warm
colors, such as bright yellow, can increase anxiety and raise some people’s blood pressure. A
soft yellow is a better choice.
Choose earth-tone colors such as brown, beige, gray, and taupe to create an elegant and
sophisticated look.
Start with the most neutral shade of any color you choose (usually the middle of the color
card). This will be the easiest color to coordinate with your furniture and furnishings.
Choose the right kind of paint
The color of your paint is only one of the choices you need to make. You also
need to choose a type of paint. Do you want flat, semi-gloss or something in between?
It depends on your purpose and the room you are painting.
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Type of finish
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Typical use
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Advantages
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Disadvantages
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Flat or matte
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Most common type of
paint for interior walls
and ceilings
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Camouflages small bumps,
cracks, or other imperfections
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Gets dirty easily and is difficult
to clean; scratches and marks
may need to be covered up with
a bit more paint
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Eggshell
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Interior walls
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Camouflages small bumps,
cracks, or other imperfections,
slight hint of gloss makes this
surface easier to clean than flat
walls
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Satin
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Doors and trims; walls
that receive a lot of
wear, as in a child’s
room
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Endures cleaning and light
scrubbing
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Semi-Gloss
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Doors, trims, and
cabinets; walls of
kitchens and bathrooms
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Stain-resistant, durable and
washable
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Highlights surface
imperfections
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High-gloss
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Cabinets, trim, and
furniture
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The most stain resistant,
durable, and washable
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Magnifies surface
imperfections, can be cold and
uninviting
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Determine how much paint you need
In general, one gallon of paint covers approximately 350-400 square feet. It’s better to choose
a good quality of paint, as it will provide better coverage than a cheap brand of paint.
You can also have your primer tinted to make the top coat of paint cover better.
When you buy your paint, always figure on a little extra in case you spill some.
Also, don’t forget to include doors, closets, and the ceiling in your calculations.
Don’t plan to thin down your paint. You will reduce the hiding and durability of the paint,
which will mean you will probably have to do an extra coat (using more paint than if you had'n’
t diluted).
Prepare your walls for painting
The first step to a good paint job is preparing your walls. Taking the time to clean and prime
your walls will make your paint job look better and last longer. In fact, it may take longer to
prepare your walls than it does to actually paint them. Specific things you need to do include
repairing dents and holes and cleaning and priming the walls.
Repair dents, scrapes, and gouges
To repair dents in your drywall:
1. Pack the dent with joint compound.
2. Use a trowel to smooth the surface.
3. If the damaged area is more than about 1/4 inch deep, the joint compound will shrink
and/or crack as it dries. If this happens, apply a second coat.
4. Once the joint compound is dry, sand the surface very lightly.
Repair holes
The procedure you follow for repairing holes depends on the size of the hole. Pinholes, nail
holes, and other small holes
For small holes, you can use a putty knife or trowel to apply joint compound to the hole. Once
the joint compound dries, sand it smooth.
Larger holes
For larger holes, follow these steps:
1. Cut a piece of pegboard or screen that will fit through the hole but is slightly larger.
This will be the backing for your patch.
2. Tie a thin piece of wire to the center of the pegboard.
3. Smear joint compound on the same side of the pegboard as the wire twist.
4. Slip the pegboard into the wall so the wire and the joint compound face out.
5. Twist the wire around a pencil.
6. Twist the pencil tight, pulling the pegboard tight against the wall. Leave it there until
the joint compound dries. The pegboard will be firmly attached to the wall.
7. Cut the wire.
8. Fill the recess with two or three thin coats of joint compound. Take care to build up
the surface slowly and let each coat dry before applying more joint compound.
9. Lightly sand the surface smooth.
You can also use paper or fiberglass tape to reinforce the hole, or buy a repair kit.
Clean the walls
Now that your walls are smooth, you need to dust and clean them. A clean surface will help
the pain cling better and will keep stains from showing through.
Be sure to especially dust around any patches where you have sanded. For normal cleaning,
use a cloth or sponge dipped in a mild detergent and warm water. If there is a lot of grease
and dirt build-up, you can use a stronger cleanser like TSP.
Also be sure to rinse off the walls to remove any detergent residue, and let the walls dry
before you prime or paint.
Depending on the wall surface and number of repairs, you need to prime the walls. Always
prime all areas of new construction, stains you could not remove when cleaning the walls,
and joint compound in areas you repaired.
If you made a lot of repairs, you might just want to prime the entire wall.
You also need to prime new wallboard or sheetrock with a wallboard-specific primer or a
general purpose, stain-blocking interior primer.
Remember that you can have the primer tinted, which will improve the coverage of your
topcoat.
Prepare the rest of the room for painting
Your final step before you begin painting is to prepare the overall room for painting:
- Remove as much furniture as you can from the room, or at least push it to the center of
the room. Cover furniture with drop cloths.
- Remove switch plates, outlet covers, curtain rods, etc.
- Put down drop cloths to protect the floor
- Use painter’s tape to mask off any surfaces you don’t want to paint Paint!
The preparation is finally done and you are ready to begin painting! Follow these
tips to get the most professional paint job possible:
If you use a brush,
1. Only dip half the length of the bristles into the paint.
2. Tap the brush gently against the side of the can, but do not wipe it across the lip.
3. Hold the brush’s handle near the base, using enough pressure to make bristles flex
slightly toward you as you begin the stroke.
If you use a roller,
1. Roll the roller back and forth slowly in the deep end of the tray until it is covered with
paint.
2. Roll back onto the ridges in the upper portion of the tray, and lightly roll back and forth
to remove any excess paint.
3. As you paint, avoid going too fast and spinning the roller.
4. Roll out the letter M or W, then cross-roll to spread the paint.
5. Finish with light roller strokes, going in one direction at a right angle to the cross roll.
Painting a ceiling
Start in a corner by cutting in a 2" strip of paint where the walls and ceiling meet.
Begin at the narrowest portion of the ceiling and paint as wide a strip as possible.
Painting panel doors
- Use masking tape to remove or cover the hinge, knob, and latch.
- Paint the top panels of the door, starting with the molding edges. Brush across, then up
and down.
- Once all the panels are done, paint the rest of the door, ending with the door edges.
Painting flush doors
Paint flush doors the same way you would a wall:
1. Paint the edges first.
2. Fill in the large area.
3. Complete the job by painting the frame and jamb.
Painting sash windows
1. Raise the inside sash and lower the outside sash.
2. Paint the inside sash, the crossbars, and the frame. Do not paint the top edge of the
inside sash. You need that surface dry so you can move the sash.
3. Raise the outside sash and lower the inside sash.
4. Paint the outside sash crossbars and frame. Do not paint the bottom edge.
5. When the paint is dry, move both sashes down and paint the upper part of the check
rails.
6. When the paint on the check rails is dry, raise both sashes and paint the
lower check rails.
Don’t neglect the exterior
So far, we have been focusing on painting the interior of your home. But a fresh coat of paint
on the exterior makes your home look Well maintained and will definitely improve your curb
appeal. Follow these tips when painting the exterior of your home:
- Prepare your surface by
- Sanding and scraping any old, peeling paint and by cleaning the walls, preferably with a
power spray
- Priming all bare areas
- Covering all surfaces that will not be painted
- Sanding glossy surfaces
- Patching holes and cracks
- Caulking seams and joints
- Choose colors:
- Select a color suggested by your roof and masonry.
- Harmonize interior and exterior color schemes
- Choose colors that coordinate with the homes around you.
- Choose light colors to make your house seem larger, or dark colors to draw attention to
details.
- Emphasize architectural details by outlining them with a contrasting accent color.
- Use darker colors to emphasize shadows and lighter colors to show projections.
- Avoid extreme contrasts. Choose colors that are related.
- Study color samples outside, but not in direct sunlight.
- Photocopy a sketch or photograph of your house. Use watercolors or colored pencils to
try color combinations.
- Before buying large quantities of paint, buy quarts of your selected colors and paint one
area of your house.
Other painting tips
Here are more painting tips to make your paint job go more smoothly and last
longer:
- If you aren’t confident about your own painting skills, hire a professional to do your
painting for you.
- Peel, soak, steam and scrape old wallpaper off before you paint walls. Once the walls
are clean, apply a coat of primer.
If your wallpaper won’t come off and you must paint over it, check for loose areas of paper
and poorly adhering seams. Re-glue any problem areas. Then you are ready to prime and
paint. Choose a flat paint to minimize the appearance of the wallpaper under the paint.
- To ensure color consistency, mix multiple containers of the same color.
- Use lambs-wool rollers for walls and good-quality brushes for trim.
- Use easy-release painter’s tape to mask off trim, windowpanes, crown molding, floors,
and other areas you don’t want to get paint on.
- Use old plastic tablecloths and shower curtains as drop cloths and furniture covers.
- If you use water-based paint, clean your tools with soap and warm water.
- If you use oil-based paint, clean your tools with mineral spirits.
- If you aren’t done painting, wrap your brush or roller and your roller tray in a plastic bag
and put them in the freezer. When you are ready to paint some more, just take your tools
out of the freezer and let them thaw.
- Examine color chips in all lights.
- Buy quarts of paint and paint a section of wall before deciding on a color.
- Buy high-quality paint. With bargain brands, you typically end up applying more coats of
paint.
- Buy good brushes and rollers.
- Use primer in most cases. Have the primer tinted to improve the coverage of the top
coat.
- Apply a second coat of paint for rich, long-lasting color.
- Use a large sheet of poster board to record the colors in each room.
- Fill a small bottle with a sponge tip with paint, making sure to label the bottle with the
paint color and room the paint is used in. You can use this paint for quick touch-ups.
- Store extra paint away from the furnace or other heat sources.
- Keep a notebook listing paint colors used in each room.
Quick fixer-upper tips
Paint is your most cost-effective way to give a room a clean, fresh look.
Choose off-white paint or neutral paint for walls to appeal to the most people.
For the trim, choose semi-gloss or gloss paint in the same color as the walls. The color
difference will be subtle but elegant.
Choose eggshell paint for walls and semi-gloss or gloss for trim.
Clean and prepare your surface for the best-looking, longest-lasting paint
Use lambs-wool rollers to paint the walls, and high-quality brushes to paint the trim.
Fill all dents and holes, even small pinholes.
Paint both the interior and exterior of your home.
You can save a lot of money by doing your own painting. However, if your painting skills aren’
t very good, hire a professional.
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If you have read thus far, it is likely that house remodeling and renovation are
of great interests to you. I will make you a very special offer.
In addition to getting this book
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"Home Remodeling Secrets"
for only $17, I will give you the following 8 book, absolutely free as bonuses.
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Yes, you get all the following 9 books for only $17.
Home Remodeling Secrets
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Real Estate Investment for Beginners
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Selling Your Own Home Made Easy
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Fixer-Upper Fortunes
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Yard Sale Secrets Revealed
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Motivate Your Way to Success
+
5 Steps to Personal Power
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The Power of Laughter
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Stress the Silent Killer
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Brought to you by Jacob Gan, PhD (Michigan)
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