A pace - by - tone guide on painting trim like a professional .
Wall trimming adds architectural character to a dwelling and can bepainted a contrast colorto take hold of attention or a neutral shade for quiet involvement . However , the trimness must be properly prepare before being painted .
This unremarkably means setting nailheads below the surface of the woodwind instrument , filling and sanding holes , cleaning , and animate or replacing damage wood . It can also call for the removal of honest-to-god paint or varnish to offer a fresh surface for the finishing . It ’s best to have all the homework work completed on both the trimming and the rampart before finishing either surface .
Credit: John Gruen
We ’ll take the air you through the process of painting trim , includingpainting or staining baseboards , doorway trim , crownwork molding , and more , for a room makeover with a professional stopping point .
Be certain to wear protective glasses when stripping , and a dust mask when sand . Chemical strippers can contain toxic smoke , so ventilate the way adequately before implement the stripping solution . arctic baseball mitt are also a must to keep the chemical substance from burning your bridge player .
What You’ll Need
Equipment / Tools
Materials
Instructions
How to Paint Trim
Learn how to paint skirting board , jacket molding , window trim , and more with our stair - by - gradation instructions .
Test for Lead
Lead is a hazardous material used as an constituent in paint before the late 1970s . In 1978 , legislating blackball its use , but your house could still hold back lead blusher . There are prescribe precautionary steps you should use in the remotion of lead blusher , and in some cases , you ’ll need to call a professional to stabilize or remove these materials .
The unspoilt agency to slake lead - paint hazards in your house include :
Install Trim (Optional) and Prep Area
Unlike other paint project , you ’ll want toinstall the trim before you paint it . Safely secure it to the wall with your desire technique . This stone’s throw is only for novel trimming ; skip if you ’re painting a room ’s be trimming .
Remove furniture from the work area . Lay down a drib textile that sits right up against the bulwark of the arena you ’ll be painting . This significant step will keep open your story from scathe if any blusher drip off the trimming . block out off the trim with mountain lion ’s magnetic tape .
Clean Surface
wash away the aerofoil of the trim with a TSP solution , replacing the answer and the rinsing water system on a regular basis as they become mirky . Once all cut is clean , wash thoroughly with a moist cloth and let the clipping ironical .
Sand Trim
Even the undecomposed new paints or exculpated finishes will not stick well to comment paints or stains . Prior to painting , scuff - sand all glossy surface with 120 - grit sandpaper . For flat open , a medal sander orrandom orbital sanderis a great meter - rescuer when sanding . You want to sand with the grain , transfer the sandpaper sheet often as it wears down .
Contoured open are difficult to sand with rectangular sanding block because they can wring the Natalie Wood . Useflexible or manual sand blocksor sanding sponges to smooth these arc surfaces . If passementerie was already regale with paint , guts until the aerofoil is no longer shiny .
After scuff sanding , the surface will contain microscopical dust particles forget in the groove by the emery paper . deplume these molecule off the surface with a soft textile or quick study deaden in water .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Fill Nail Holes
If involve , utilize a nail set to press nailheads below the Earth’s surface of the woods . identify the point of the nail set in the time out of the nail head and exploit sharply with a hammering . employ a putty knife to somewhat overfill nail holes , dents , and other discredited areas with national wood filler or spackling compound . If you ’ll be paint cut with a clear last , purchase different colors of putty and use the one that most closely matches the finished pure tone of the wood .
If needed , fill any gaps or crack cocaine with caulk , and let dry .
Prime and Paint
Once you ’ve dispatch all your homework workplace , it ’s time to paint trim . Start bypriming trim , clear sure to undercoat any smear and point you ’ve fill . permit juiceless for 24 hours . If any spots still show through , apply a 2nd coat of fuzee and have dry .
Working in sections , paint trim with an angled brush using unretentive brushstrokes . Repeat until the area is complete , then intermix the strokes with one long brushstroke that goes the duration of the trimness . Repeat this process , working in sections until the total room is ended . dispatch panther taping . Let ironic completely before you move furniture back into the room .
Should I Paint My Walls or Trim First?
If you are an inexpert painter , paint the trim first with a paintbrush , then the walls . This strategy will make it easier to sandpaper , prepare , and paint all the details , edges , and planes of the trimwork .
After all the coats of paint on the trimwork are thoroughly dry , mask off the trimwork with painters tape and paint the wall with a rolling wave . Because you have masked the clipping , any splatter from the wall should shoot down on the catamount tape , which will be removed subsequently . Most professional painter would paint the rampart first , then skillfully do the trimness .
How to Paint Trims if I Have Carpet?
If you ’ll be work in a carpet area , the process of painting trim or skirting board will be basically the same , though the most important step would be to protect your carpets as much as possible . First off , get across it with plastic weather sheet or old blankets , and make certain to tug it right below the skirting board using a putty tongue or thin spatula . Then , apply puma ’s tape as teach above . That way , you ’re pass away to get a swell , airless - to - the - Earth’s surface blusher job , without mess up the carpeting . If you do go on to stain it , acting quickly is the key here — stimulate the paint out of carpetswould be well-fixed if you make clean up fast and do n’t let it set up it .
Pick the Right Trim Paint Finish
choose the right rouge terminate for your trimming is just as significant as properly preparing the wood trim control surface . Satin or semi - gloss is the received paint polish off for trim due to its enduringness . Satin key will display a light luster with a soft grain . Satin is also more durable than plane paints and can be used for trim that wo n’t get much abuse , particularly when you want to ready the trim apart from a flat - paint wall .
door , window , and molding typically take a higher sheen than walls because they get more physical contact and need a tougher airfoil . In add-on , a glossy airfoil accentuates the woodworking and makes it stand out from the wall . That contrast between passementerie and walls tot up interest group to your pattern outline . Choose trim paint that ’s at least one step calendered than the wall .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Credit: Michael Partenio
