Did you know that the paint colors in your home can add $6,000 of value? An investigation found that houses with black front doors sold for roughly $6,000 more! Similarly, having two-tone kitchen cabinets added value to homes across the board.
Surprising as it sounds, these stats are nothing new. Interior and exterior painting has always made a difference to home sales. Some experts say that interior paint colors can even increase your home’s value by 25%!
Exterior paint colors affect curb appeal. And a recent paint job assures buyers their new home won’t have any old lead paint. These small factors can make a huge difference, especially as the Nevada market is slowing down.
And while it’s appealing if a home feels lived in, old scuff marks are not the way to do it. Fresh interior paint is necessary to brighten the entire home.
Whether you’re preparing to sell or want to brighten your own home, painting is the best solution. But before painters arrive, there are a few important steps you as the homeowner need to take. Read on for how to prepare your home for painters.
Before you even get in touch with your painters, you need to decide on the extent of the home painting work. The more painting you can get done at once, the better. You’ll be able to get a better value quote for the project as a whole.
So before you reach out, decide if there’s any extra work you want doing while we’re there.
For example, you may just want your kitchen repainted. But it may be worth adding cabinets painting to that project.
Or maybe you want your entryway repainted. Consider adding other rooms to the quote, rather than tackling them a year or two later. You can even add another interior project, like garage floor epoxy.
Once you’re sure how much work you want done, it’s time to prep those areas.
The first step is moving your furniture and other items out of your painters’ way.
Most obviously, this includes furniture that sits against the walls. Move everything from side tables to bookcases away from the walls and into the center of the room. Where possible, buy us more space by removing furniture from the room altogether.
Do the same with your soft furnishings. Remove curtains and rugs from the space so they don’t get damaged by accident.
This further applies to anything on the walls. Remove everything from artwork to photos so we have access to our workspace.
It’s crucial that you do this work yourself. We, the painters, aren’t familiar with your home and where you keep precious or delicate things. If you leave this work to us, it’s possible things could get damaged.
Moving Electronics and Appliances
In this area, electronics may be more difficult.
For example, it may not be possible to remove an appliance from the kitchen. In that case, make the painters aware of anything that is still plugged in. If they are able to pull it back to paint behind, they’ll know to be aware of the wiring.
Similarly, if you have any cords running across the room that you cannot remove, let us know. Then we know to be careful of it while we’re working.
Clearing Out Cupboards and Cabinets
It may sound obvious, but many clients forget to clear out closed spaces they’d like painted. If you would like a storage cupboard in your bedroom painted, make sure it’s empty. Likewise, if you want kitchen cabinets painting, empty and clean them out beforehand.
Dust and marks on the walls become more obvious under fresh paint. And that paint will lock those marks in forever. Make sure this doesn’t happen by cleaning the whole room before we arrive.
Start by cleaning the entire room as usual, perhaps by dusting, vacuuming, or mopping. Then clean the walls themselves to remove marks and dust. Cleaning in this order stops dust from elsewhere in the room landing on the walls after you’ve cleaned them.
How Do I Clean My Walls Before Painting?
This depends on your walls, but generally a light dusting is enough to remove cobwebs and the like. To be even more thorough, wipe them down with a damp cloth.
If you do so, try and make sure it’s at least a day before work begins. That ensures the walls have completely dried, ready for painting.
The final step is to get out of the way! Painting causes dust and fumes that aren’t always pleasant. And the fewer people in the house, the easier our job becomes.
Of course, if we’re just painting one room, you don’t need to move out for the project. But depending on its size and timeframe, take reasonable steps to make sure we have the space we need.
Just like the interior, exterior prep is all about making the painters’ work as easy as possible. Take these steps so we can carry out our exterior painting work efficiently.
Just like an interior paint job, we need space around the walls.
Before we arrive, clear furniture or other decoration out of the way. Access should be as easy as possible. In other words, not having to navigate outdoor dining sets while we work!
In this vein, consider whether any greenery needs cutting back ahead of our visit. If foliage is growing very close to the wall, it may not be possible for us to paint behind it. At your discretion, cut back any plants that could get in the way of painting work.
Exterior walls are even more prone to being dirty than interior ones. Take the time to wash your walls down as much as possible before the work begins.
We know this type of cleaning can be more challenging than a quick interior dusting. Depending on the tools and budget you have available, you could hose down the exterior ahead of time. Or hire a professional cleaning service to tackle this task thoroughly.
What if you come across loose patches of paint? This is very common, especially on older paintwork. Should you peel the old paint off?
Ideally, yes! Any work like this that you can tackle yourself saves us time and gets you a better quote.
Window frames painted in an accent color can make any home stand out. Modern finishes often favor contrast, such as a bright white frame on a dark blue house. Are you planning to retouch or update your window frames at the same time as your exterior walls?
Then keep them closed! Simple as it sounds, without you closing your windows, we won’t be able to paint them properly. Otherwise, we risk paint dripping on your interior floors.
One last tip is to leave the outside spigot turned on. We don’t mean you should leave the water running. Rather, make sure the spigot is connected and usable for the duration of the project.
Access to water is a huge time-saver during an exterior paint job. And it ensures we don’t have to come in the house for water access, making minimal impact on your day-to-day life.
Obviously, after taking all these steps, your house is not yet ready for painting. You need dust covers to protect your furnishings and flooring. And you need painter’s tape to protect outlets, window frames, and skirtings.
The question is whose responsibility that is.
Generally speaking, painters will provide these materials and do this protective work as part of their setup. But it’s always worth checking when you’re hiring painters. Then you can make sure your house is ready for us.
Whether you’re brightening up your bathroom or your whole house, you need painters you can trust.
At JCN Painting and Drywall, we have completed the best interior and exterior painting in Nevada for years. We know Border Town like the back of our hand. We know how to find the best deals on paint and which ones work best for the climate and the market.
Get in touch with us today to tell us about your upcoming project. We’ll make sure you get the best quote so you can enjoy your refreshed home as soon as possible!
