Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners OT: Texturing is done, now onto priming/painting..

Just wanted to let you know that we just completed all the mudding/taping/texturing in our basement, I'm getting excited. Now it is time to move onto priming/painting everything. It will take some time, as we finished about 1500sq ft of our 2100sq ft basement.

I guess I'm looking for some advice from all of you paint guru's....I'm planning on just using the good ole roller method, but am curious if there are any new products/techniques you would recommend to make the job easier or faster. I even thought about renting/buying a power roller or sprayer. I have heard spraying is faster, but very messy.

Thanks guys.

ps: hope to update my website with some new pics asap...

Randy

the only 'techniques' i know, is all the stuff my wife learns on the home improvement shows.. but, most of them use long, time consuming methods. i know dab techniques, drag techniques, sponge techniques, roll techniques, and taping techniques.. but, none of these are quick, or fast.

good luck with it.. and stay away from any beige color.. they look pink in the sunlight!! i always add that .02 cents in!!

bigjohn

Hey Randy,

Random thoughts on interior painting.

I hate it.

I've tried cheap sprayers (Wagner, et. al.) and found them unsatisfactory. Noisy, technique-dependent, and provide poorer results than good, old-fashioned rollers. I like how the roller shoves paint into the surface instead of just laying it on there.

Likewise, any sprayer requires much more meticulous masking procedures than using a brush and roller. I like that part of the job even less.

Are you painting the ceiling a different color? Purists will tell you that you need just a steady hand and good technique to cut-in the edges of the ceiling and the wall where they meet. Apparently, I do not possess the painter purist gene.

One technique that a friend told me (that I have used effectively) is regarding masking tape and bleed-through. This only works on relatively smooth surfaces and only if you buy good tape (3M Blue tape is okay - not the cheap beige kind) and only if you adhere the tape well. When you are taping off an area (say you have painted the ceiling white, and have extended that white a bit onto the wall to ensure you get a good line) and you want to then paint the walls a different color. After you tape the edge of the ceiling and before you paint the new color, you paint the important edge of the tape again WITH THE OLD COLOR (white, in this case). That way, IF you get a little bleed-through under the tape, it is the color that is already on the area that you are trying to retain. Then, you paint your new color, which is much less likely to bleed under the tape.

My favorite technique, however, is to just avoid it until my wife can't stand it any longer so that she does it.

How long does it take everybody else to decide on which color to use? I think last time, we spent three trips standing in the paint aisle getting paint chips followed by considerable consternation at home before picking one of the three finalists out of a hat. The result was great, but man, getting to "which color red" was tough. btw, plan on about 4 coats if you are painting anything red.

Good luck on your project, Randy. I'm happy for you, and eager to see the results.

if i were to have a dedicated ht room i would use a flat paint to keep down the glare when watching a movie,benjamin moore has a washable flat paint,also it hides imperfections,ben moore is my favorite,also sherwin williams is good,and american tradition (lowes brand)has come a long way,-imo-...anyway ,have fun painting,i know i hate it

I let my wife do all the preliminary choosing and when she's got it down to a shortlist of 3-4 colours she asks my opinion. I'm not sure why she bothers. I guess it is more a courtesy or something. I'm not a risk taker in the coloured wall department (i've no eye for such stuff), so invariably I go with the most "safe" colour (subdued or beige). She almost always says "really, that is my least favourite. I think we need something more bold to bring out the.... in the room.". So we always go with her choice and I do most of the painting. It always looks good and we both know it is better she makes the colour decisions.

Tried and true rollers and a good brush for the trim are my instruments of choice. I try to get away with taping as little as possible (takes too long), so where I can I'll use latex and have a rag handy to clean up the odd slip of the brush.

I used some of this stuff when I redid the ceiling in my bedroom a couple years ago. It comes in different texture styles for different applications. It was easy to work with and the results are fantastic.

It was super easy to work with. Application requires only two steps:

1. roll on with a texture roller
2. go back over it with a wide trowel to achieve the desired effect (light pressure = more texture, heavy pressure = less texture)

Hmm. It's available in a "popcorn" finish and you put it on the ceiling in your bedroom. Was there butter or any other deliciously slippery topping etc. to add to the mix?

thanks guys for all of your input, believe me I am very excited about finally being able to start painting, then carpeting, trim, doors, yada yada yada.....

I saw this in the store the other day, Wagner Paintmate Plus Looks like this might be a time saver?

For the HT area, I will be painting the back wall flat black, as well as part of the side walls/ceiling about 5-6 ft out. Not sure what the rest of the rec room colors will be yet. I have a Sanyo Z2 projector, so I want to diminish any scattered light.

Well guys I ended up buying the Wagner Power Pro roller system. You can hook it up to a 5 gallon pail and paint/prime to your hearts content. I has a control to select how much volume the pump sends to the roller or attachments. It is a heck of a lot faster than using a manual roller. Thanks guys for all your help...randy

Hey Randy:
I was looking at that very unit, as it seems like 2/3 of my interiors are all due to be painted shortly!

Any other comments besides it being fast (which was my first concern)? Messy to clean up, unweildy in tight spots, etc?

Hey Mark, once you get the hang of how to adjust the flow rate, it is pretty slick. After a little playing around you find you can hit the button on the handle every once in awhile to keep the proper flow rate. Clean up is pretty easy, basically you pump any remaining paint back into the paint pail, and then go outside and hook up your garden hose to another port to wash out the unit. I then soaked the rest of the components in some warm water and the paint washed/brushed right off. It also comes with 2 adapters/pads to paint around the perimeter of the room and corners to prepare for the rolling steps. Beats the heck out of using a brush and being careful. Now if you have the flow rate to high, you will get a little paint spilling from time to time, nothing a rag can't handle.

Not sure if I'll work again tonight as I can't lift my arms from yesterday's paint workout

The ease of cleanup assumes you're using latex and not oil-based paints.

Does anyone use oil-based paints anymore?

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Does anyone use oil-based paints anymore?

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They're still used for trim and doors in the US, I'm told. It's really hard to find oil/alkyd paint here now, even in exterior paint. Latex formulations have gotten good enough the extra cleanup isn't worth it. I guess bubbling is better than chalking?

Bren R.

Texture makes it pretty difficult to use a tape line for color separation. The tape just can’t stick to the flat area between the little bumps and you will get bleed through no matter what you do. For these situations, I just plan to use a wall paper boarder or trim. But if your careful, and paint the area with several light coats, bleed through is minimized. Let one coat set up to the point that it’s a little tacky, then apply the next, and so on. Heavy coats will most definitely bleed through.

I’ve tried just about every new gizmo that comes out including the Wagner feed rollers, but end up going back to my good ol’ rollers and pan. I just use a good roller with 3/8” nap for walls. The E-Z rollers are what I look for.

The blue tape is more expensive, but really is the way to go. It peals off much easier and will not leave a glue residue behind. Just make sure you peel the tape off while the paint is still wet. This will keep the paint from flaking at the joint line.

I don’t use oil base for anything with the exception of Cedar and some of my hard wood furniture projects where I need a resilient glossy finish. Water based products are difficult to apply because they set up too quickly and leave little air bubbles. Cedar just needs oil based stain because cedar leaches oil that will have a tendency to interact negatively with water based products. When painting interior sheet rock walls, I use a latex enamel. I tend to use semi gloss over flat because flat collects dust and is difficult to clean.

Just a quick update...well I'm done primeing all the walls and ceiling, the Wagner Power roller did a good job, especially saving me time. Now I get to start all over with paint. This will be more interesting, since my back theatre wall will be black, the side walls/ceilling will be a darker blue color, and the rest of the basement, probably will be an off white or something. Then I can move onto carpet, doors, trim, etc...I just can't wait to get this theatre done and show pictures.

Randy
Did you do the mudding and taping yourself?
I hate that job. I'll paint all day long, but keep me away from the wallboard crap.
And, for futute ref. that Wagner giant syringe roller thing does a pretty good job. I have one, and for small rooms and ceilings and the like it is terrific. Lots of small parts and gaskets to clean, but it works quite well.
Never tried one of the power ones though.
Good Luck!

Thanks Seabear,

We have pretty large house, the basement alone is 2100 Sq Ft, of that we finished about 1500 or so. We have 9' ceilings and I hung all the drywall on the ceilings/walls and also did the electrical and pre wired all my speakers and other AV cables. I debated on the mudding/texture work, but after talking to a few people, decided to hire it done. What a smart decision that was, those guys were in and out in about 5 days and under 25 hrs of work, they did an awesome job. I will complete all the priming probably tonight and then move onto the painting. The power roller works pretty well, once you get the flow rate adjusted right. Beats the heck out of bending over every few minutes and getting paint from a tray.

I plan to update my pictures on the website asap. I'll be getting DSL high speed internet soon and ditching dial up, if you call 24000 bps connection dial up

Yeah, I've been wondering when you were going to post more pictures....

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I'll be getting DSL high speed internet soon and ditching dial up, if you call 24000 bps connection dial up

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wow, i don't feel so bad about my 56K modem now.

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if you call 24000 bps connection dial up

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Isn't the telegraph faster than that?

hell, mail is faster than that!

You guys are just 2 funny. When we lived in town I had a Cable modem, now that was fast. I used to love Kazaa and Napster, back when everything was free Well long story short, we got sick of living in town, so we bought 2.5 acres and built a new house about 3 yrs ago. We are only a few miles outside of town, but can't get Cable or DSL right now.

Fast forward to now, I called Qwest DSL and explained how many people out in our development and near developments want highspeed, basically about 20 homes right now. I have been working with a manager in the DSL area and they are going to place a "remote station" and change some cabling to give us DSL by the end of May.

ps Nick: I know I know I need to get the website updated with new pics of the construction, just been darn busy...

Aw hell. At the baud rates you're suffering through, we forgive you for lack of updates.

Just an update, have all of the priming done, and have started on the actual painting. For the theater area I am painting the back wall behind the screen, Dutch Boy "Leather Jacket Black" it was the blackest black I could find. The side walls and ceiling will be a darker blue color. The rest of the basement will have white ceilings, and not sure on the walls yet, probably a light tan or something.

I just installed some http://www.CableOrganizer.com raceways along the ceiling from my AV rack over to the ceiling mounted projector location. These are very low profile, and have adhesive backing, and are paintable. I will be able to run my component/DVI or HDMI cables this way. Also, since they have a plastic hinged bottom, I can always access the cables, or upgrade as technology changes.

Hope to get some pictures soon, so NickBuol will stop bugging me

Yeah, come on with those photos.

Your telling me, I wish I could just snap my fingers and have it all done. I guess since I am doing pretty much everything myself I have an excuse.

On my way home to start painting again.

Any input out there on roller methods, for some reason I like to leave uneven patterns, streaks, or whatever you want to call them....I think what happens is I get some overlap onto an area I completed minutes before, once that dries you can tell where the overlaps are. I've tried the rolling in a N or M pattern, but still have issues.....

Use a good roller. EZ rollers are my fav. Several light coats (4-6), applied once the first coat is tacky, but not wet to the touch. No particular pattern at all.