Paint Tips

Choose Fabrics First

When choosing colors you need to have an inspiration, a starting point to select the color. A fabric from a drapery or accent pillow or bedding. We can make any color you want, but if you choose a color and then go looking for fabric you have just narrowed your selection of textiles. Even if you want to go neutral, we need to know what "undertone" you want. When decorating a room, painting the walls is the first thing you do, but the paint color is the last thing you choose.
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Paint Rolling

When painting a wall you want to roll the wall from top to bottom and back up like the diagram shows, not short strokes which could leave roller marks. Don’t press down on the roller to hard because that could leave ridges along the edge of the roller cover. Invest in a good frame and extension pole. When rolling the wall keep adequate paint on the cover, don’t roll it too thin. Please don’t do the “W”, is could leave roller marks if not properly back rolled.
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Painting in the Cold

We get this question every fall, “How cold can it be to paint?”. You don’t want to paint below 40 degrees. Now that is surface temperature not air temperature. The substrate your painting needs to be at least 40 degrees. So if it’s 40 in the morning you might want to wait a couple of hours for the siding or deck to warm up. Stop painting mid afternoon to allow the paint to dry before it goes below 40 degrees that evening. If it’s too cold the paint can not properly “cure” which will affect the adhesion and dry time. If there is any rain or dew from the next morning is could possibly spot the finish.
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Ceiling Color

Don’t forget the 5th wall, your ceiling. Some people want to have a little color on their ceiling and some want the traditional “ceiling white”. When thinking about a ceiling color there are options. You can use your trim color which will soften the ceiling or you can go a lighter shade of your walls. Now remember if your walls are red, a lighter version is pink, so that might not be the answer. If your walls are neutral like Revere Pewter, you might want to go 1/4 strength on the ceiling. If you go full strength it will appear darker because of the angle of the ceiling compared to the walls. 1/2 strength will generally look like the color of the walls, 1/4 strength will look slightly lighter than the walls. If at all possible look at the color strip and maybe a couple of shades light than the wall color will work.
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How Much Paint Do You Need?

When figuring the amount of paint you will need to paint a room I can give you a general guild line. Measure the perimeter of the room and multiply by the height of the walls.
Example; if your room is 15′ x 17′ with 8′ ceilings you would add, 15′ +15′ +17′ +17′ X 8′ = 512 square feet. A gallon covers 400 square feet for one coat. A quart cover 100 square feet per coat. Your second coat you don’t need as much paint so in this case I would sell you 2 gallon for 2 coats. Now if you have a wall of windows or bookcases then we would deduct the square footage of those spaces.

Bathrooms and Kitchens are a little more difficult because of the cabinets and tile. Measure the wall areas that are to be painted, figure the square footage of each area and then add them together to get your total square footage.
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Lighting

Lighting, the evil word when it comes to choosing a paint color. As you can see from the three pictures lighting plays a roll in how color will look. Here is the same color, in the same place, through out the day. You might think a color it beautiful at a friends house but it might not work at your house due to the lighting. We have large sheets of the Benjamin Moore colors that you can check out or you can purchase a pint and test the color. I would recommend buying a Mighty Board ( we have here in the store) paint the board and move it around the room. Look at the color day and night. I would much rather you purchase a pint and test it at home and in your lighting than make a hasty decision on a color in the store. We are always here to help you with color.
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Painting a Paneled Door

Painting a paneled door takes patience. Follow the direction from the diagram by painting the panels first then the middle mullion, the cross rails and top and bottom rails then the hinge and lock stiles. Make sure you check the corners of the panels for any puddling of paint. Don’t try to paint with a loaded brush, gravity will take over and you will have paint runs.
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Which Sheen Should You Use?

Let’s talk about sheen’s and what we typically used for different surfaces.

Flat: Is normally used for ceilings. Flat is the most forgiving when it comes to imperfections in your drywall or plaster. If you want to use flat on your walls remember it is not washable.
Matte: Matte has very little sheen which gives you the best in hiding most imperfections with washability.
Eggshell: This finish is probably our most popular finish for walls. Eggshell gives you a great washable and durable finish with a slight sheen.
Satin: Satin can be used on walls or trim. It is shinny but not as shinny as semi-gloss. Some people will use this in the kitchen and bathroom. As for using satin on the trim, it gives you a softer look than semi-gloss closer to a furniture finish.
Semi-Gloss; Semi-Gloss has more sheen that satin. We recommend this or satin for woodwork and doors. The same can be said for kitchen cabinets and bath vanities.
High Gloss: When people use high gloss they sometimes expect that lacquer finish, almost a mirror finish. That’s difficult to achieve when using a brush, the best way to get that look is to have it sprayed. It’s very shinny and shows all imperfections.
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Decks

Four steps to the best finish:
1) Preparation, The right preparation is the key to successful, long-lasting results. Use these prep products to properly prepare your surface:

#315 Remove, Used to remove old oil-based or water-based stain.
#316 Restore, Removes dead fibers and moderate to severe mold and mildew.
#317 Brighten, Brightens and neutralizes wood to accept Arborcoat stains.
#318 Multi Purpose Cleaner, Removes mold, mildew and mill glaze.
2) Select Color & Opacity, Choose from a variety of opacities from natural to solid color in an array of colors. Arborcoat comes in Translucent, Semi-Translucent, Semi-Solid and Solid.

3) Application, Apply an even, uniform coat to a dry surface. Maintain a wet edge during application. Stains 2 or 3 boards at a time, the length of the boards to eliminate lap marks. If at all possible try not to apply in direct sun light.

4) Maintenance, Keep stained areas free of leaves and debris. Periodically wash with #318 Multi Purpose Cleaner to remove dirt and other surface contamination.
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Cabinets

Cabinets and furniture are a hot topic right now in the paint world. People are tired of their oak cabinets and are wanting a fresh look, what better way to achieve this than painting. Here are a few tips along with type of products to use.
Prep: Wash the cabinets and all pieces thoroughly so they are free of dirt, dust, grease, oil, soap, wax and mildew. We recommend using TSP or Dirtex as an all purpose cleaner along with a lint free rag. Use a scouring pad for tough-to-clean areas. It’s critical to clean before sanding, as sanding dirty surfaces can drive built-up grime deeper into the wood and jeopardize adhesion of your primer and top coats. Sand all surfaces thoroughly with 100 to 150 grit sandpaper. Finally and most importantly, vacuum the cabinets and wipe with mineral spirits to remove all dust.
Prime: If your cabinets are previously painted with a standard oil or latex paint, priming is not necessary. But if they are a factory finish of paint or stain we recommend priming with a product called , Stix. Prepare the cabinets as listed above then prime.
Finish: We have a product called Advance that works great on cabinets. Advance is a Waterborne-Alkyd, which means it acts like an oil with the durability and leveling but has the traits of a latex with soap and water clean up. It comes in a Satin, Semi-Gloss or High Gloss finish. It can be sprayed or brushed. The brush needs to be a high quality nylon/polyester brush. A natural-bristle brush will absorb water and hinder even coverage. Lightly sand between coats and allow adequate dry time.
Give the final coat several days to cure before assembling the cabinets and returning to service.
This is a time consuming project but a most rewarding project. You will be very proud of yourself for a job well done.
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Roller Covers

People stand at the roller covers and look very confused because they come in different naps and qualities. So I’ll explain the differences in roller naps.
The 3/16″ covers are used for clear finishes, they don’t hold a lot of product so they put on a thin layer. Multiple coats will probably have to be applied to achieve a durable finish. You can also use this nap to roll doors, while we recommend using a brush to paint a door, you can use this method as long as you back brush the door so you don’t leave roller marks or an orange peel affect.
The 3/8″ is typically used for walls and flat ceilings in any sheen.
The 1/2″ can be used on walls, but be careful you don’t load the cover with too much paint or it will slide and not roll. This size works great for textured ceilings, a little thicker nap so you can apply on rough surfaces.
The 3/4″ nap should be used on interior brick. Allows the paint to reach the mortar. If your brick reveal is not that deep you can use the 1/2″ nap.
The 1 1/4″ is used for exterior brick or heavy texture stucco.
The quality of the cover is very important. You need a high-density polyester or microfiber cover. An expensive cover can shed, leaving fibers on the walls and they can become matted down making it hard to roll and leaving roller marks.
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