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- The key to achieving good quality paintwork
is in the preparation. Filling, sanding, priming etc. In the old
days painters had to rub down between coats with pumice powder
to achieve high gloss finishes. This practice is now obsolete
which is most welcome as this method caused the finger tips to
bleed.
- If painting with emulsion, the surface
preparation may include cleaning down with sugar soap to remove
grease etc.
- If painting new plaster, make sure that it
has properly dried out and then seal with a diluted emulsion (This information was
given by a tradesman painter who advised a 2 part paint to 1
part water dilution for good quality paint). It's
best to use matt finish on new plaster as this will soak into
the substrate better than silk finish paint. A fairly recent
development is the introduction of emulsion especially for new
plaster surfaces. The dilution ratio can vary according to
manufacturer but is generally about 3 parts paint to 1 part
water for the first coat with a following coat of 5 parts paint
to 1 part water. Instructions are usually on the tub.
- As far as other preparation goes, I suppose
common sense should be your guide. Remove as many obstacles as
possible including carpets. Sheet up any objects that cannot be
removed from the work area. You can buy polythene throw away
dust sheets which are fine as long as you don't put them on the
floor. Firstly they don't stand up to much traffic but more
importantly, they are dangerous if becoming wet.
- Keeping windows open will help to remove any
paint smells and will also improve drying time between coats.
- A good tip for holding a tin of paint when up
a ladder is to remove half the paint from the tin and place this
into a temporary container. Place the opened tin into a bucket
containing plasticine into which you can press the tin. This
will stop the tin sliding around and the bucket should provide
enough space to store any brushes. A hook on which to hang the
bucket may also be useful.
- Another good tip for storing half used tins
of paint is to store them upside down (make sure the lid is put
on very securely). This way, if a skin forms, it will be on the
bottom when the tin is re-opened.
- Instead of cleaning out your paint brushes
ready for using the next day (assuming you'll be using the same
paint), just wrap them in cling film and don't let any air in to
dry the paint on the bristles.
- Expensive lambs wool paint rollers produce
the best finish, so consider this in the overall cost of the
project and remember - you get what you pay for.
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