Twenty-two top painting blunders

Painting your own house can be a worthwhile project that adds value to your home or a nightmare. Here is a terrific article that points out the 22 most common mistakes people make and how to avoid them. It’s long, but it’s well-linked to make it easy to scan through:

Twenty-two top painting blunders Page 1 of 4.

The Perplexing Problem of Bull-nose Corners – Pt 2: ‘Square’ Corners on Round WAlls

Over the last couple decades bull-nose, or rounded corners have become increasingly popular.  They don’t seem to get broken as often and they soften the transition between areas.  The challenge becomes when you want to change the color on some areas and not others.  How do you create the clean, crisp corner on something without a clean, crisp edge to follow?  The key is using the light to create the ‘line’ you need to follow. For our demonstration we’ll be using FrogTape brand adhesive – it gives a much cleaner edge than traditional blue tape. 

One of the most common mistakes we see – from homeowners and professionals alike – is trying to split the corner in two with the colors.  On square corners this is how you differentiate between the two walls but on bull-nose corners there are actually three parts to the transition – the two walls plus the corner itself – and based on lighting and architecture your mind’s eye will automatically assign the bull-nose to one wall or the other.  Take the above picture, for example: We painted the wall color around the corner to make it part of the wall.  The outcome is a ceiling line that looks square on a rounded corner.  So looking at the photo on the right, you can see the definite ‘line on the left wall.  That’s the wall we’ll use for our transition.  We want our tape edge to follow the natural line that the light is creating on the left wall.  remember, take it slowly and back up from time to time to ensure the line looks straight.  Don’t worry about if the line truly is straight or not – it probably isn’t, as the walls were put up by imperfect humans.  You just want to follow the natural line created by the construction.  It will look straight anyway.

 

Here you can see a close-up of the corner showing how we followed the ‘light line’ down a section of wall and a view from farther away to see the effect from a distance.  Notice how the tape follows the shadow down the wall.  If your line doesn’t look quite right when you back up don’t be afraid to pull up your tape and try again!  At this point we recommend you put a very thin line of caulking down the side of the tape you’ll be painting on.  It helps seal the edge from any bleeding underneath so we have the ‘ruler edge’ when done.  Since this is a demonstration wall we didn’t want to use caulk that might leave a line under our paint.  You should be able to vaguely see the tape line after applying the caulking.

Now it’s time to paint!  If you’ve done your caulking correctly, there is no chance of paint seeping under the tape, so go ahead and roll right over the edge of the tape – just be sure not to roll all the way across to touch the bare wall on the other side.  Allow the paint to dry for an hour or so, pull the tape and – viola !  A clean line between your two colors marking a straight edge on a round wall!

(Please keep in mind that, since these walls were actually going the same color, we were unable to caulk the edge of the tape due to the edge it would leave under the paint.)

Being ‘Joyful’ Versus Being ‘Happy’

“Joy is essential to the spiritual life.  Whatever we may think or say about God, when we are not joyful, our thoughts and words cannot bear fruit.  Jesus reveals to us God’s love so that His joy may become ours and that our joy may become complete.  Joy is the experience of knowing you are unconditionally loved and that nothing – sickness, failure, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death – can ever take that love away.

Joy is not the same as happiness.  We can be unhappy about many things, but joy can still be there because it comes from the knowledge of God’s love for us.  We are inclined to think that when we are sad we cannot be glad, but in the life of a God-centered person, sorrow and joy can exist together … Joy does not simply happen  to us.  We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.  It is a choice based on the knowledge that we belong to God and have found in God our refuge and our safety and that nothing, not even death, can take God away from us.”         – Renewed for Life, A daily Lenten devotional based on the writings of Henri Nouwen, copyright 2011, Creative Communications for the Parish

When I was deciding on a logo for the company I now run, I asked myself, “What message would I give to the world if I could?”  As I looked around, I realized that so many people have lost the joy of life – they were going through the motions without being really connected to the world around them, living in their pain and suffering.  I thought back to when most of my attention was focused on my troubles and my inability to fix them.  I realized the difference in my life came not from my own ability to make my life better, but from my understanding that, even though life has been a struggle, there was a Someone who loved me and didn’t care about how smart I was, how much money I made, or whether I ‘got it together’ or not.  I had chosen to rest in the knowledge that all my troubles were but temporary bumps in the road and that God would stand with me in my hardship and bring me through to the permanence of His peace no matter what, if I would just trust Him.

And as I honestly examined my life, I realized that in those dark times where the world seemed to be against me on all fronts it wasn’t that there was nothing ‘good’ happening.  The difference was  I had chosen to focus not on the way I was blessed, but on all things that caused me pain.  The difference was I wanted to rely solely upon my own ability to create happiness in my life instead of focusing on the joy of being loved in the midst of those hardships.  The difference was God and my ability to ‘let go’ of my pain to focus on all the good things in my life.  I decided I needed to share that message of hope with the world.

So I wondered, “How can I ever say so much in a 5-second sound-byte?’  The answer was quite obvious – go to the source of my joy.  And there, amidst all the stories of failure and redemption, of rebellion and mayhem and defeat, was the overlying theme of looking at and focusing on the perfect love of Jesus Christ and the joy it could bring to the world.  The message that, instead of worrying about our happiness, we needed to focus on the gift of life and all the joy it brought to us, that to find that joy we needed to stay close to the One who provided it for us, and our need to be mindful and thankful for that joy every day – and all in ten words:

“Be joyful always; Pray continuously; Give thanks in all circumstances…”            – I Thessalonians 5:16-18

May YOU find the joy of the knowledge that God loves you, too.

Comprehensive List of Exterior Painting Supplies

With the weather in Denver turning warm, we know a few of you weekend warriors are chomping at the bit to get started on your summer projects.  And for some of you that will include exterior paint.  So for those of you who insist on doing it yourself we’ve put together a comprehensive list of many of the tools and supplies we use on most, if not every, paint job: 

• Paint Brushes
• Paint Brush Comb & Roller Cleaner
• Scraper
• Wire Brush
• Primer
• Safety Goggles
• Dust mask
• Sandpaper
• Exterior Spackling
• Putty Knife
• Rags
• Drop Cloths
• Caulk
• Caulking Gun
• Masking Tape
• Masking Paper
• Paper Masker
• Plastic Masking
• Plastic Masker
• Razor Knife
• Razor Blades
• Paint Remover
• Bucket
• Disposable Coveralls
• Extension Ladder(s)
• Step Ladder
• Paint Hook
• Extension Pole
• Pressure Washer
• Paint Thinner/Solvent
• Paint Sprayer
• Screw Drivers
• Hammer
• 1-gallon Cut Bucket (for hand-work)
• 5-gallon Bucket
• Paint

Of course, every job is different and some may require special tools for special situations – like a saw to cut replacement trim, for example, but this list will suffice for most of the jobs out there.  If you don’t own the proper equipment, many rental stores can help with the big stuff, like pressure washers and power sprayers, and the rest can be purchased at Lowe’s, Home Depot or your neighborhood paint store.

Giving What is Given

Our team from 2009. Kids from all over the U.S. working together to make a better home for the needy of Jamaica.

In solitude we can slowly unmask the illusion of our possessiveness and discover in the center of our own self that we are not what we can conquer, but what is given to us.  In solitude we can listen to the voice of Him who spoke to us before we could speak a word, who healed us before we could make any gesture to help, who set us free long before we could free others, and who loved us long before we could give love to anyone.  It is in the solitude that we discover that being is more important than having, and that we are worth more that the result of our efforts.  In solitude we discover that our life is not a possession to be defended, but a gift to be shared.  It’s there we recognize that the healing words we speak are not just our own, but are given to us; that the love we can express is part of a greater love; and that the new life we bring forth is not a property to cling to, but a gift to be received.

     – Henri Nouwen

On my first mission trip to Jamaica my fanny pack was stolen with my wallet, camera and travellers cheques inside.  I was panic-stricken – for about a minute.  Then I remembered the reason I was in Jamaica – to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the people and to be a facilitator for the kids I had come down to serve with.  It was then I realized how much our possessions control us.  I was worried about a camera I could replace for a little over a hundred dollars, a wallet the contents of which I could restore with minimal effort when I got home, and traveller’s cheques that were replaceable at the nearest bank instead of enjoying the beauty of a place I had never been, the growing relationship with the kids and the people of this beautiful island.  I looked at the values I had learned, that whole concept of, “He who dies with the most stuff wins.”  I found I had been misleading myself.

We spend all our lives trying to acquire ‘stuff.’  We collect stuff, we replace stuff, we hold our stuff in our arms till we can hold no more, then we build buildings to hold our stuff, and we build fences around the buildings to protect our stuff; all the while we become more and more isolated from the things that really matter – the people in our lives and the community we are a part of.   

I imagine myself with my arms wrapped around everything I own – so much I can barely hold it all as my arms wrap around this ponderous pile of stuff.  As I stand there with my arms wrapped tightly in this way, I ponder, “Is it any wonder that I cannot reach out to grasp the grace of God that is raining down on me every day?”  It is then I realize I must put down those things to which I hold so tightly; I must open my arms to receive the gifts He has for me.  For it only through letting go that I can truly receive.

The Realities of Painting Yourself – Part 1: The “All Summer Project”

Does your home’s exterior need a paint job this year? Is it getting those funny-looking ‘shadows’ on the siding? Is the trim starting to flake? Are you thinking of painting it yourself?

Consider this: On average, to properly prepare you home for paint (i.e.: pressure wash; sand and scrape; prime bare spots; fill all the holes and cracks; caulk or re-caulk all the seams and joints)

This trim is suffering form extreme deferred maintanance and will need to be replaced.

will take a crew of two or three professional painters two to four days, depending on the size and condition, using the proper equipment and techniques. Then it’ll take one or two days to mask off the windows and doors, cover the deck and/or porch and fence and paint the body (siding) of the house using a professional airless sprayer. Finally, there’s the trim – that usually takes another day or two to hand-paint with a brush and usually takes two coats to insure even coverage. In all, a small house will take a professional crew four days minimum to paint and a larger home or one in need of more prep work can take as long as seven or eight working days.

After replacing all the wood, caulking it in and masking all the windows we prime all the trim on the house.

Obviously, just about anyone can do all this stuff effectively, but not doing it on a regular basis means you are probably less proficient, which means it’ll probably take you longer; let’s look at the very minimum you’ll be spending working on your paint job: In man-hours, you are looking at 96 hours for a small home and up to 192 for a larger house or one that needs more than minimal preparation. To do the same quality of work by yourself (even if you already own the equipment) working eight hours a day for two days every weekend will take you at least SIX WEEKS – longer if there’s a lot of prep or you own a big house.

Then there is the unseen expense of equipment: As professional painters, we carry ladders, scrapers, maskers, sanders and many other tools most homeowners don’t have laying around the house.

Caulked, primed and painted. What a difference!

When you do the job yourself you will either have to buy, rent, or borrow the equipment you don’t have or use a sub-standard method to acheive the same result – and that’s just for the prep! Next you’ll either have to rent an airless sprayer and purchase the materials to mask off your windows, doors, fence, deck and anything else you don’t want painted, or relegate yourself to hand-painting your entire house with a brush and roller, which will signifcantly increase the completion time. Finally there are the brushes and rollers you’ll need no matter how you paint the body. As professionals, we buy high-quality brushes and rollers not only because they last longer, but because they actually reduce application time on the job. As homowners, most people cannot justify the expense of high-quality painting supplies and instead opt for less expensive, lower-quality brushes and rollers, which will significantly increase time again and lower the quality of the finished product.

A beautiful backyard just waiting for the fun of summer!

So the question is: Do you really feel like spending your entire summer (and possibly hundreds of dollars on equipment you won’t be using again for years) painting your house, or would you rather pay the professionals to do it right and get to the enjoyment of your newly-refurbished back yard without all that heartache?

The Perplexing Problem of Bull-nose Corners – Part 1: Smooth Trim Lines

Do you or someone you know have rounded corners in their home?  Have you ever noticed that some of the corners on the basedboards look ’rounder’ than others?  Or have you wanted to paint, but didn’t know how to make a clean line bend around a round corner?  Let the HappyPainters show you how you too can have perfectly round corners:

First, if you plan to paint the trim and the walls, we suggest you paint the trim first.  That way you can create the ‘ruller’ edge using the tape as your line.  If you are not painting the baseboards clean them well so your tape will stick better and allow less ‘leaking’ of paint underneath the tape.  We’ll be using pictures of baseboards we had just painted and let dry overnight.  Since the paint is fresh, we chose not to use white masking tape, which can pull up the fresh trim paint when removed.  Our tape-of-choice over new paint is Frog Tape – we find it leaves a better edge than traditional blue tape.

Once you’ve prepared the baseboards, run long pieces of tape down each wall leaving an inch or two overhang off the corner.  You’ll want to make sure to get the tape into the corner on the baseboard without allowing the tape edge to creep up the wall.  These lines will give us the smooth transition from straight to curved.  From now on we’ll be focusing on the little white triangle created by this intersection.

Next, take a 2-iinch piece of tape to etablish your paint line at the apex of the corner.  Try to stay as symetrical as possible to the tape along the walls.  This corner piece should butt up against the wall just like the long two pieces did.  At this point you should have a design resembling three edges on an octagon.  If done properly, all you should see are two very small corners of white showing in the middle of your corner.  At this point many people (including a lot professionals) stop and go straight to paint.  Doing so, however, means those two little corners of white will be painted wall color and will show on the finished product.

Now for the coup-de-tat:  Take two more small slips of tape (an inch or two) and place over the small triangles that are still visible on each side of the curve taking care to bisect the angle of the other pieces of tape.  When you’re done, you should be left with a round corner with what looks like a curved tape line even though closer examination will show multi-angled lines.  The angles are too small for the naked eye to see from any distance over about three feet.  As an example, these pictures were taken from less than two feet away.

 At this point you may be chomping at the bit to get into paint, but hold for a moment, dear reader.  With all those layers of tape it is essential to take a moment to insure there are no air pockets or un-stuck edges to allow paint to leak under all your hard work.  To make sure you get a nice clean edge, press (not rub) hard on every tape joint to make sure everything is well-stuck-together then grab you paint and have some fun!

 After you finish painting, don’t leave the tape on too long – the tender fresh paint may peel off the wall with the tape; thus messing up all your hard work.  We recommend removing the tape as soon as you can do so without getting paint on your hands from the excess on the tape.

The Importance of Being Sealed

If you have been following our posts for any time, you may have noticed us hammering away on the importance of properly sealing your home – both inside and out.  The reason for caulking the outside of your home is a little easier to see – if you have ‘holes’ in your exterior coating water can get inside.  

Imagine a piece of paper.  If you were to put a piece of tape on the paper and file it inside your drawer, when you go to pull the paper out you would expect the tape to still be stuck, right?  Now imagine the same paper and tape, but instead of filing the paper you leave it on your desk and water gets spilled on it.  Would you still expect the tape to stay stuck?  Most of the time, even if the tape itself doesn’t get wet, but the water spreads up the paper (called wicking) underneath the tape, the tape will fall off the paper.  The glue on the tape just isn’t strong enough to adhere to the paper when it’s wet.

Now imagine the surface of your exterior is that piece of paper.  The paint is designed to adhere the surface and repel the water from the underlying surface.  If the integrity of the paint is compromised (read, “has holes in it.”) water can get inside and wick into the surface under the paint, known as sub-straight.  If the substraight gets wet enough the paint will no longer be able to stick to it - just like the tape on wet paper.  Then the un-stuck paint will become a little pocket that allows more water to be stored under the paint, thus allowing it to wick along the surface of the substraight, allowing more paint to come loose.  The problem will continue until the loose paint is scraped off and the area is repainted.

Since paint isn’t designed to flex much, the normal process of expansion and contraction will cause it to crack.  Caulking, on the other hand is an elastomeric substance designed specifically to accommodate the flexion your house goes through on a daily basis.  Unfortunately, just like your underwear, the elastic properties of caulking wears out and will eventually crack out.  Since we don’t want water to get in, it makes sense to re-caulk.  Some painters will tell you that since the old caulking isn’t cracked there’s no reason to re-caulk most of your house when you repaint. This will save you immediate money, but let’s look at the logical argument to that perspective – if your house was painted 10 years ago, all the caulkng is 2 years old.  The areas that have the most flex will usually crack the soonest, but ALL the caulk is the same age – it’s all losing its elasticity.

We want to insure your new paint job gives you the maximum life it can, so we don’t want to take a chance on that old caulking will crack and ruin the paint on top before its time.  So to make sure you get the most for your money we caulk every seem, every joint, every hole, every crack, every  nail head, whether it was caulked before or not, whether it’s cracked or not.  We realize this attention to detail may cost us future business, since we won’t be out to re-paint your home as soon, but we are banking that you’ll be so pleased with how your paint job lasts that you’ll tell all your friends and we can do the same great work for them instead of charging you to re-do the job that wasn’t done right last time.

How many people does it take to make a pencil?

Read, I, Pencil | Library of Economics and Liberty.

Congressional Reform Act of 2011 (Proposed!) |

Congressional Reform Act of 2011 (Proposed!) |.