Professional Tips and TricksIn my 40 years as a house painter and contractor, I've gathered many tips and practices that are now part of my every day routine. Some of these tips simply make my work faster or more efficient. Other tips help produce higher quality results. I'm certain that homeowners painting their own dwellings will benefit from these suggestions. Less-experienced contractors may also find my suggestions helpful, so over the coming days and weeks I hope to provide this information freely via my Twitter feed. Why am I sharing this hard-earned experience? It's my belief that generosity of knowledge and practice brings benefits to the giver and the recipient. I hope you'll call on me the next time you require a professional house painter.
You can access previous tips and keep up-to-date by "following" me on Twitter. Tip: Masking tape tip #3: Do not tear off short, individual pieces of masking tape. Doing so will make the job of removing tape very time consuming. Instead, work with the full roll of tape, drawing about 18 inches off the roll, but leaving the roll attached. With practice you should be able to tape an entire room with only 6 or 8 tears in the tape, and you'll be able to remove the tape quickly and almost all in one piece. You'll know you're a "pro taper" when you can tape an entire bedroom—baseboards, door and window casings—in about 5 minutes, and be able to remove it cleanly in less than 2 minutes. Anecdote: Never "load up" the edge of masking tape with paint. Depending on the type of tape, the viscosity of the paint, and the drying time, the paint might seep under the edge of the tape and leave a nasty edge of paint where you don't want it. Use the minimum paint possible next to your masking tape. Copyright ©2011 by Nathan Harms |
