If you’ve never hired interior painting contractors for your Toronto condo, you might think that professional painters simply apply paint to a surface. But, there’s more to it than that – and you can help prep your condo for the job!
What Can I Do to Help Prep My Condo for Painting?
There are some things you can do in advance that will be a huge help to the painters that will save them some time. It will also allow you to start living in your newly painted condo as quickly as possible. Specifically, this involves preparing the room beforehand, so that all the interior painters need to do is just that – paint! Let’s see how you can prepare your condo for painting to save you and the painters some time!
Remove or cover furniture
First, remove as much furniture as possible from the room. This will not only protect the furniture, but will give the painters more freedom to move around, which will make their job much easier. Painting is very physical and precise, so the fewer things there are in the room to have to navigate around, the better, so make the room as empty as possible. However, depending on the size of the furniture or the layout of the room, it might not be possible to remove everything. In this case, move the larger pieces of furniture towards the center of the room, away from the area that is being painted, and cover them with a plastic sheet or drop cloth to protect them.
Remove electrical casings
Now that the furniture has been taken care of, remove the electrical casings, such as outlets or light switch covers, from any surface that is being painted. This will allow the painters to paint right to the edge of the socket as opposed to using painters tape along the casing, which will give a cleaner result. If you are having your ceiling painted, if possible, remove any light fixtures. If the ceilings are too high or you don’t feel comfortable doing this safely, don’t worry, the painting contractors will be happy to do this for you!
Clear the walls as much as possible
This involves removing any art or decorations on the surface that will be painted, such as paintings, mirrors, or light fixtures. Of course it will allow the painters to paint behind these things, but will also protect the features and allow you to store them properly during the painting process. If you are planning on putting the wall features back in the same place after the painting, do not remove whatever is hanging these pieces, like the hooks, nails, or brackets. However, if you will be taking them down permanently, or hanging them in a different spot, remove these in order to make the surface as smooth and empty as possible for the painters to work. If removing these will leave holes in the wall, the painters will patch and smooth them before painting.
Remove or protect soft furnishings
Plush or soft fabrics are great at attracting dust and can be a pain to clean if they get paint on them, so protect them as much as possible. Remove all curtains from the room and roll up and remove any rugs or mats. If there is carpeting or rugs that are too large to remove, thoroughly cover them with drop cloths or plastic sheets to protect them from dripping paint.
Clean the walls
It may seem unnecessary considering you’re about to get a brand new coat of paint, but cleaning your walls before they are painted makes a huge difference. Dust and dirt can build up over time, even if you don’t see it, and this will affect how well the paint adheres to the surface. A rag and some soapy water is all you need! Paint has the best result when it is applied to a clean, dry surface, so clean any surface that is going to be painted and give it time to thoroughly dry before the interior painters arrive.
Now that you know the steps needed to prepare a room for painting, feel free to do any or all of them to save the painters some trouble and save you some time! That said, if you don’t want to lift a finger, have no fear! The professional painting contractors at Encore will prep and paint your condo from start to finish, so all you have to do is enjoy the finished product. You just need to tell us how we can make your painting vision a reality. Each of our projects begin with an evaluation of the space, where you can explain this vision to one of our professionals and ask any questions you have. Having heard your vision and evaluated your condo, we will give you an estimated cost and timeline for the project, so there are never any surprises. From there, if you want to prep the area, great! If not, leave it to Encore. Contact Encore Painting Ltd. today to book your free estimate.