how to paint

 

before you begin

Painting a house or even a single room can be an enormously gratifying experience. Painting is often the most cost-effective way to completely transform your living space. However, to do the job right, it is important to understand everything about the project before you begin. Pay special attention to the links that apply to your project. By following these helpful instructions and using California Paints premium products, you’ll be sure to enjoy a successful paint project that will be beautiful and long lasting.

 

- Selecting the Right Type of Paint
- Color Selection
- Estimating the Paint You Will Need
- selecting painting Tools

 

 

 

surface prep  

It is a great temptation to start painting without spending time to properly prepare the surface, but this can be a big mistake.  Shortcuts on surface preparation can cause even the highest quality paints to fail prematurely.  In fact, experts maintain that inadequate surface preparation is the single greatest cause of paint failures.

Whether you are doing interior or exterior painting, good surface preparation requires that the surface be as clean as possible and in good repair.  Paint performance depends on good paint adhesion, and paint adheres best to surfaces that are clean and sound. Many painting jobs require special surface preparation for certain problems. Refer to California Paints problem solving section for specific solutions to common painting problems.

The Interior and Exterior surface preparation chapters from the California Paints Surface Preparation Manual are available for download. These documents provide detailed surface prep information based on the type of surface (substrate) being painted.

 

- general interior Surface preparation
- general Exterior Surface preparation
- Interior surface prep by substrate

 

 

 

Primers and Sealers

For the best results, it is often necessary to use a primer or sealer before applying your paint.  While these products may not hide like a topcoat of paint, they perform several valuable functions.

First; they help the paint adhere to the surface by making it more uniform and “accepting” for a topcoat.

Second, some primers prevent stains and tannins from bleeding through the paint and ruining the finished paint job.  In this regard, they are particularly helpful on wood that is prone to extractive bleeding, such as cedar, redwood and mahogany.

Third, they help give a more uniform and, hence, more attractive appearance to the paint job.

Similar to primers are “sealers,” which are typically used on new wood or masonry surfaces that have varying degrees of porosity.  Their purpose is to keep the paint from being absorbed unevenly so that the finished job will look smooth and uniform.

 

- When to Use a Primer or Sealer
- Types of Primers and Sealers
- Exterior Primers
- Interior Primers

 

 

finish

Now that you’ve carefully planned your painting project and completed the necessary surface preparation, its time to paint. New paint will add freshness and style to any project. As you begin to paint, remember to pace yourself and enjoy the satisfying do-it-yourself experience!

- Painting Safety

 

 

 

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