Guide
Paint prep, the painters kit
Everything that goes in the bag before the paint does. Tape by surface, cloths by weight, grit by coat.
4 min read · First Ave Supply, 1587 First Avenue
What goes in the bag before the paint does
Prep is most of the job and almost none of the cost. A full one bedroom takes about forty dollars of prep material and it decides whether the finish looks like a painter did it.
| Step | What you need |
|---|---|
| Cover the floor | 9 by 12 canvas for the room, plastic runner for the hall |
| Mask the trim and the ceiling line | Blue tape, or delicate surface tape on fresh paint |
| Mask windows and fixtures | Narrow tape and plastic sheeting |
| Knock down the old finish | Sanding sponge, medium then fine |
| Close the gaps | Painters caulk and a scraper |
| Reach the ceiling | Extension pole |
Which tape
Blue multi surface tape is the everyday answer. It holds for days, it comes off clean, and it works on trim, glass and clean walls.
Delicate surface tape, the purple one, is for fresh paint, wallpaper, and old plaster that is already loose. If the wall was painted in the last month, blue tape will pull it off. Use the delicate one and do not press hard.
Beige masking tape is not painters tape. It is cheaper and it is right for taping plastic to plastic, bundling drop cloths, labeling cans. Leave it on a painted surface in a sunny window for a week and it bakes on.
Width is about what you are protecting. Three quarter inch for window muntins and narrow casing, one and a half inch for baseboard and door casing, two or three inch when you want the tape to be the drop cloth on a countertop or a cabinet run.
Canvas or plastic
Canvas stays where you put it, absorbs drips, and lasts years. It is the one thing on this list worth buying once and keeping. If you paint more than one room a year, buy a canvas nine by twelve.
Plastic drop cloths are for covering furniture, sealing a doorway, and protecting a floor you are about to work over for one day. They are slippery underfoot, so do not put plastic on a floor you are standing on with a ladder. Use canvas down, plastic over.
Grit, in order
Medium sanding sponge to knock down old brush marks, drips and any ridge around a patch. Fine sponge between coats on trim and doors, which is the step people skip and the reason their trim feels gritty. A sponge beats paper on molding because it follows the shape, and it washes out and comes back.
Caulk is prep, not repair
Running a bead of painters caulk where the casing meets the wall is the difference between a job that looks new and a job that looks touched up. Painters caulk is water based, it takes paint in an hour, and it is not the same as the silicone you use in a bathroom, which paint will not stick to. For a painted line, use painters caulk. For a shower, use silicone and do not paint it.
The pole
A forty eight inch wood pole turns a nine inch roller into a ceiling tool and keeps you off the ladder. It also keeps the roller at a consistent angle, which is why pole rolled ceilings have fewer lap marks.
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