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Painting your interior walls can instantly brighten your surroundings.
Bunnings Maitland complex manager Matt Jones shared his tips for the project, step by step.
There are some tools and materials you will need to start including brushes; cleaning equipment; drop sheets; a ladder; a paint tray; rollers; a sander; flexible filling blade; plaster compound; masking tape; and, sandpaper.
Follow Bunnings’ step-by-step guide below.
Step One: fill cracks in your surface
When preparing a surface to be painted, the first thing you need to do is fill in the cracks and holes.
Apply two coats of compound to the area.
Step Two: sand down the plastered surface
After your plaster has dried, use a sander to lightly sand down the surface until it is smooth.
A 120 grit sandpaper is best.
Step Three: clean your walls
After sanding, there will be some fine dust on the surface.
You need to dust and clean down your walls before you are ready to start painting.
Step Four: tape up hardware and fixtures
Before you start painting, remove all of the furniture from the room.
Tape up any hardware and fixtures in the room such as power points, architraves and the floor.
This will help prevent paint from spilling on them.
Step Five: choose your colour scheme
You could pick a colour for a room based on the dominant colour of the furnishings in a room, such as a rug or painting.
You could also work from light to dark, with the lighter colour on the ceiling, a mid colour on the walls, and the darkest colour on the floors.
Step Six: choose between water or oil based paints
Water-based paints are generally used on ceilings and walls. Oil-based paints, which are more durable, are used for trims, architraves and floors because thee generally get more wear and tear.
Step Seven: choosing the right amount of paint
One Litre of paint will roughly cover about 12 square metres of surface.
If your surface is more porous or textured than normal, you many need up to 20 per cent more paint for a similar coverage.
As a guide, the average bedroom requires a little less than 4 Litres of paint.
Step Eight: work out if you need an undercoat
There are a few instances that you should use a sealer, primer, or an undercoat.
You should consider applying an undercoat if you are working on new walls, have repaired scuffs or marks, or you are going over existing paint that is darker in colour.
Step Nine: when to use brushes and rollers
When you are painting, make sure you use the right tool for the job.
Brushes are used when cutting in around walls and ceilings, as well as on trims, skirting boards, and around window frames. Rollers are a quick and efficient way of filling in large spaces like walls and ceilings.
Looking for tips about more DIY projects?
Visit www.bunnings.com.au for more information.
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