Painting (Walls, Not Pictures)

[ArcticChicken]

Or do what my apartment complex does and paint right over them! Cobwebs on the heater? Paint over those too!!

My aunt co-owns a couple of apartment buildings, and I, along with my aunt and her son, are mostly responsible for flipping them when someone moves out. I think at this point there are no tenants left from before they bought the building, and we're still finding bizarre and lazy shit the previous owner did.

[42_42_42]

I'd wash the walls (just warm water and a rag or sponge for any room except the kitchen, you'll need something to break up the grease as PP) first. You'll be amazed at how much dust there is on the wall and paint won't adhere as well to dusty walls.

Most indoor paints these days are acrylic, meaning they are water-based and everything can be washed up with just water or just dishsoap and water. You only need turpentine for oil-based paints.

Another benefit to using acrylic paints is they have less fumes than do the oil-based paints.

Wear a cheap disposable shower cap when painting the ceiling so you don't get paint in your hair.

You'll probably need a step-ladder of some kind, even if you only have 8ft ceilings.

Make sure you get a paint can key, usually they hand those out for free. If you don't get one, a flat-head screwdriver will open the cans as well.

If you happen to get paint on a windowpane, you can scrape it off once it has dried using a metal putty knife.

Don't paint the windows shut!

Get semi-gloss paint for the trimwork, it's easier to clean and the trimwork tends to get dirty/marked up faster than do the walls. I also prefer semi-gloss for bathroom and kitchen walls (or paint specially formulated for use in bathrooms and kitchens--it has mold-inhibiting ingredients).

[42_42_42]

(if you have popcorn ceilings, you're screwed)

Which is why, if you have popcorn ceilings, you have to scrape/sand that shit off. If you steam it first, it comes off pretty easily.

[BookstoreEscapee]

Which is why, if you have popcorn ceilings, you have to scrape/sand that shit off. If you steam it first, it comes off pretty easily.

My brother has popcorn ceiling in his living room. It has glitter in it. And little gold stars. Yeah.

The only reason he hasn't taken it down is because he doesn't want to deal with the mess (and it's an old house so who knows what kind of paint is in there).

[AnaKhouri]

Thanks everyone! Your tips definitely helped (I would have totally been like, "Painting around light switch covers is hard durrrrrrr.").

Khan's room is now longer teal but Perfectly Blue, and our bedroom is no longer peach but Timid Absinthe (I am so not kidding- it's a Valspar color).

There wasn't too much complication but we had to sand a couple spots because for some reason the previous owners felt the need to hang their pictures with huge-ass screws instead of nails like normal people.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Which is why, if you have popcorn ceilings, you have to scrape/sand that shit off. If you steam it first, it comes off pretty easily.

I just took some of that awful shit off. It is horrible and messy, but not difficult to remove.

Just spray it with a little water and it will pretty much flake right off. If you help it along by scraping it, be aware that wet drywall (which is what will be underneath) is fragile and easily nicked or cut. Also be aware that repairing a drywall ceiling is a major pita. So be kind to your drywall and don't damage it or you will end up making more work for yourself.