DIY: How to paint a wall for a professional finish

Monday, 2 April 2012 3:28 PM

There are some excellent tricks to painting inside the home so your walls have a professional finish.

We caught up with B&Q team members Ricky and Sam at the Ideal Home Show who ran us through some tips and tricks to painting a wall.

Step one: Prepare the wall to paint. This is important because if you skip this step there is no chance of having a professional finish. As Ricky says ‘your job is only as good as the one before’. We have a breakdown of how to prepare a wall to paint for you to follow, simply click-through. It covers mending the wall, cleaning it and priming.

Step two: Lay Frog Tape at the edges of the wall where you want the paint to stop. Frog tape is a new product available from B&Q which expands when liquid hits it to ensure no paint leaks beneath it. The tape will not tear like masking tape and will provide a very crisp line when removed at the end of the job.

Step three: Cutting-in is where you paint the edges of the wall around objects such as window frames or air conditioning vents. You need to cut in to ensure the paint does not leak on to the frame or ceiling. That way the rest of the wall can be easily rolled.

Use a triangular brush for cutting in (such as above). Dip it in the paint bucket as you take it out knock it on both sides of the bucket while rotating the brush to ensure paint is evenly dispersed on the brush. Now ensure the point of the triangular brush is facing up and apply an even stroke down the edge of the window. Keep the brush loaded with paint and continue the process until the outline of the window is complete.

If you don’t think you have a steady enough hand for this you can also get a wheeled cutting tool. It has a sponge on one side and wheels which run along the window frame.
Dip into paint ensuring the wheels do not get paint on them. Now run it up the side of the bucket to make sure an even amount of paint is on the surface of the tool. Place the wheels on the side of the window and work from the top down simply wheeling it along as the paint is dispersed. Finally, finish the taped areas with a normal brush and the cutting-in is finished.

Step four: Now it is time to roll the rest of the wall. Basic roller use is low pile for smooth surfaces and high pile for rough but check at the store to match to your wall and the needs of your paint. Ensure the roller is free of dirt, fibers and hair before starting. Now dip in the bucket and role up the side to ensure smooth and equal coverage. Start from the left of the wall to the right and back again. Paint in a W shape to the right and an N shape back the direction you just came. It is important to merge two wet areas over one dry area rather than painting continuously over the one section as this will not create a good finished product.

Step five: Do as many coats as it takes until you are happy with the product by simply repeating the above steps.
Once dry, remove the tape from the edges of the wall and your professional paint job is complete.
If you are still unsure B&Q run workshops to give you a hands-on go at home DIY tasks under the guidance of someone in the know.