Painting Tools and Techniques
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Get Started With Painting Tools and Techniques
This is a four piece series on painting tools and techniques. Here in part one I will examine masking and protective gear. Later in article 2 I’ll examine ladders and scaffolding and in article three I’ll talk about brushes and rollers. Finally, in part 4 we’ll look at sprayers, caulk guns, wire brushes, braces and knee pads, and swivel hooks.
The painting industry has made tremendous strides within the last 10 years. Today there's an instrument for almost every situation. Even I'm impressed by the impressive devices coming on the market, for example, dripless caulk guns, which have resolved a messy problem.
Before you get started on your project, take a minute to check on your equipment. You will most probably need to fill up on several items. Make an entire list of the things you need. Look out for tools that save time and labor. The more expensive equipment, such as sprayers and scaffolding, can be rented.
Effective Strategies For Protective Gear
Some people don't think it's necessary to wear safety gear when they're painting. I guess they think it's wimpy. But I've been around enough toxins to comprehend how dangerous they could be. Dust, painting mist, and vapors have an effect on the lungs very quickly, and skin pores are an available target for solvents and dust borne debris. Avoid being foolish... protect yourself.
Respirators Demystified
A particle mask is better than nothing at all, but it generally does not form a good seal and it won't filter out all the dust. If you do use a particle mask, get one with dual rubber bands. A damp handkerchief tied around a person’s face gives better security than particle masks that use light-weight rubber bands.
Double cartridge respirators are the safest solution. They'll give you the protection you will need for many vapors, mist, and dirt. Respirators come in three sizes. Make sure that yours fits. If it doesn't fit well, it won't work well. Checking the fit of a respirator is like screening the seal of any diving face mask. Breathe in then keep your hand over the side valves. The face mask meets your needs if it presses against your 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 impurities; check that you have the right filtration for the work at hand. Make sure to read the instructions, and note that you should change the cartridges if breathing becomes hard or if you start detecting vapors.
Secrets To Protective Clothing
Respirators do a good job of protecting your lungs, but you need to safeguard the remainder of your body as well. Having been qualified in lead abatement, I know that your body can only eliminate an extremely small percentage of lead, even more than a 30 year course of time. Many painters make the error of believing that a little exposure to particles or VOCs won't harm them, but it all adds up over time. I always dress for safety, keeping at least one good Tyvek painting suit on the work site. Tyvek breathes well, weighs little, and provides good protection. The excess layer is a bit warm, but I would rather wear a paint suit than be covered with dirt or overspray (on a hot day be sure to drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration). If you choose not to wear a painting suit, wear clothes that you won't mind turning into something resembling a painting palette.
I more often than not wear leather gloves, even though 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 that 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; and also to handle toxic substances such as paint thinners.
Rounding out my paint anywhere wardrobe are safety eye glasses or goggles to keep chips, dust particles, and spray mist out of my eyes, and, if I'm spraying, a hood. If you spray with out a hood, anticipate to spend lots of time washing paint out of your hair.
Masking Really Works
Usually the area you're painting will have a finished floor or carpet and the proverbial ounce of prevention can save the day. Even if you're only painting one inside home window, masking the floor is a good idea. Having an open can of paint makes me stressed if there isn't any drop cloth on the floor. I've discovered the hard way. Masking becomes even more vital if you're staining, because stain spatters all over. Several simple items can save you a whole lot of touch up, cleaning up, and battling to get paint out of the carpet before your spouse sees it. Before I finally quit and admitted that my strategy wasn't perfectly right and dripless, I spent more time touching up than I should have. Touch up is an undeniable fact of painting life, but nowadays I do much less of it because I take time to mask.
First, you need a drop cloth. Heavy cloth is actually best, but drop cloths need not be expensive, professional painter's cloths. You can sometimes find pretty large drapes at thrift stores, for the price of one thin plastic drop cloth. Search for drapes with vinyl backing, for added waterproofing. I pull out the top stitching for an extra 3 inches of cloth.
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 (like the kind used for flooring insulation) to lie on top of the clear plastic. If I'm painting a huge new home and I need to mask the complete floor, the clear plastic/paper masking system is inexpensive and is effective.
A good masking system is critical whether you're brushing, rolling, or spraying the paint. All you require is masking tape, paper for the outside edge of the floor and baseboard, and a thin layer of plastic material for the glass windows and furniture. 3M makes a good masking system which includes special painter's tape and dispensers with pre-taped plastic material. If you've ever spent hours scraping tape adhesive off house windows, you can appreciate superior masking tapes. Commercial masking dispensers can be found at professional painting shops and sometimes at local rental shops. In case a commercial dispenser is difficult 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 windows and smooth areas. Always wait at least four hours time before removing tape to avoid tearing the paint. But don't leave tape on for longer than 24 hours or it will be hard to pull off.
Masking Floors Tricks
In addition to masking off the key areas to be painted, it is also good prevention to mask main traffic areas and wherever you plan to store and mix the paint. Distribute all the necessary drop cloths, then clean the areas you'll be taping with vacuum cleaner, foxtail broom, or clean rag, to ensure a good seal. As you mask, focus on getting a clean edge with the tape, and make sure the tape is securely attached.
Tape and paper dispensers are suitable for masking off the outer edge of a room. 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 number of seams that should be taped. Once the perimeter is set up, I use drop cloths for the rest of the floor. For greater protection, I usually significantly overlap the masked perimeter with the drop cloth. On sides I also double the cloth over to the inside, for extra safety and stability.
Getting a tight seal with a drop cloth is critical when you're spraying an area, but guarding carpet or flooring with a sealed drop cloth is an excellent plan even if you're just brushing or rolling. A drop cloth will move if it is not taped in place, and you'll finish up on your knees cleaning paint off the floor.
Masking Fixtures And Walls
Regardless of how you intend to apply the paint, you will have to mask permanent fixtures such as the ceiling lights, fans, and door knobs. Even though you have excellent hand control, cutting in (edging) the accessories that aren't masked is time consuming, especially for multiple coats of paint. To mask fixtures, 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 seamless border.
The amount of masking that you should do is dependent upon the type of house painting you'll be doing. Really the only time the wall surfaces have to be masked is when you intend to spray the ceiling and you will need to keep the wall surfaces dry, for example, if the ceiling is getting an alternative color or finish. If the trim is clear coated or you want to paint only the walls and ceiling, it's wise to mask all around the trim, especially the windowsills.
Fast And Easy Window Masking
The one time I mask windows is after I plan to spray. Taping glass windows isn't very effective. It takes too long and paint still gets under the tape, and masking tape has a knack for really adhering to glass.
For interior or outdoor windows, I use the same system for masking surfaces. The sole difference is the fact that masking home windows usually is faster than masking complete walls. Masking glass windows and walls is usually done with plastic material, which lets light into the room which is convenient for covering large areas (paper is most beneficial for masking flooring and trim). To measure plastic, I roll it out over the windows, cut as straight of a line as it can be, and tape the perimeter of the window. 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 works well to safeguard windows, floor, and molding from paint spatters. To safeguard home windows, apply masking paper over the top of the window casing. The width of the paper is enough to block almost all of the roller spatter. This same strategy protects the floor and molding. If you are assured about your brushing and rolling abilities try using 1 ½ inch masking tape instead of masking paper.
Correct Masking For Spraying
Spraying demands that anything not being sprayed should be completely masked. Because spraying requires such extensive masking, wait to mask until you're ready to spray. Outside surface spraying might require extensive masking, depending on the variety of colors and whether there are surrounding buildings such as fences and power lines. When masking for spray, remember to be detailed. Overspray is hard to regulate, especially under windy conditions. The more you've prepared for overspray, the better. The time spent masking is much less than the time you would have spent touching up afterward. A tight seal with masking tape is critical because sprayed paint gets all over the place. Overspray is similar to the occasional drip from a brush every so often... one will get from you, no matter how careful you are. Nevertheless, you can reduce overspray by double checking before you spray.
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