By Ellen Russell
Paint is perhaps the most economical way to redecorate a room. It's a fast fix to a less than attractive or outdated décor; but sometimes a painted wall results in streaks, drips, and unsightly lap marks left by paint rollers. How can these be avoided? By taking a few minutes ahead of time to learn about the best techniques for painting walls.1. Proper prep. Before painting a wall with a paint roller, prepare the room. Move and cover furniture and flooring. Apply painter's tape to adjacent walls and trims that won't be painted with the same wall color.
2. Cutting in edges. Cut in the edges and wall corners with a paintbrush. Load the brush adequately, but do not overload it to the point of dripping. Use the same method to cut in walls as you would for painting trim for streak free, drip free painting. Paint a section along the edge of the wall one to two feet long. Skip ahead the same distance, and paint back towards the wet painted area. Continue in this fashion, always painting from a dry area to a wet painted area.
When cutting in the edges of painted walls, apply paint about three or four inches wide. The area should be wide enough to cover the edges of the wall the paint roller won't reach, while keeping the roller far enough away from surrounding walls to prevent the roller from scraping and marking them.
3. Proper roller technique. With the cutting in phase complete, the rest of the wall can be covered with a paint roller. Loading the roller properly will go a long way towards keeping your walls free from streaks, drips, and lap marks. Fill the roller evenly, completely covering the roller surface. Use the ridges at the top of the paint pan to remove excess paint. Be sure the roller is not dripping when it is raised.
Another key to eliminating lap marks when painting is painting in the proper direction. Painting in straight line, up and down, seems natural, but is sure to result in a lap-marked wall. Instead, paint in a zigzag pattern. Cover three to four square feet of wall space at a time. Start at a top section of the wall and push the paint roller away from you. Paint as if you are making a capital M on the wall, then zigzag back over the area the area until it is filled in.
Paint the three or four foot square below the top next until the section of wall is completely painted down to the floor. Move back to the top of the wall next to the first painted section and begin again. Continue in this way, always painting from an unpainted area towards a painted section. After covering about four square areas, roll back over the completed wall section to blend the areas together, then move on to the next wall.
4. Painting trim. For streak-free trim paint, follow the directions above for cutting in walls. Paint in 12 to 18 inch lengths from a dry area ahead back towards a wet painted length.
There are two keys to painting rooms free from dripping, streaking, and paint roller lap marks. The first is to avoid overloading paint brushes and rollers. The second key is to paint in workable sections in a zigzag pattern. Crisscrossing over the paint applied will blend lines together and pick up areas of excess paint. The result will be a smooth, professional looking paint job anyone can be proud of.
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