Here is a question Cheri asked. “I am painting my bathroom doors and baseboards using ultra white semi gloss latex paint by Valspar. My problem is that it looks streaky even after 3 coats. I am using a good quality brush and I don’t like the texture of the small rollers. What am I doing wrong and should I use a satin finish instead”?

Answer
You may have 2 issues going on. The first is that Valspar is not what it used to be. It used to be great paint back in the day. Not it’s made to meet a price point instead of quality benchmarks. Try a good paint store in your neighborhood. The sheen level is not an issue here.

The second issue is more likely the culprit. That of premature drying. In warm weather paint can dry quickly. If you try to go back into it to smooth it out or blend it in it often sticks and creates an uneven appearance. You can address this a couple ways. And make sure you are overlapping, bringing your brush back into the area you just painted.

The easiest way is to use Flowtrol. It keeps your paint wet longer so it is easier to work with. You may want to consider adding a little extra speed to the Flowtrol. Either just work faster or do what I do. Generally, I use a small roller to do sections of the door and brush it out using long strokes.

More specifically, if you have a 6 panel door, this is a good technique to use. We will be doing a roller-brush, roller-brush technique. The advantage of working this way is that it takes 1/3 the time of brushing alone and keeps the paint in a workable condition, giving you a streak-free finish.

Load up your mini roller with paint. Roll out the raised middle section in a few strokes. The roll paint into the beveled areas around the panel. Take you brush, dip it in paint then brush what you just rolled. Start with the bevels, making sure your brush angle matches the 45 degree angle of the corners. Then stroke out the panel. Wipe of any excess paint that spilled out with a damp rag. Do that for all 6 panels. Once that is dry tackle the rest of the door.

Start at the bottom and work your way up. Roll the bottom, overlapping onto the vertical edges. Make sure you get about 6″ up between the panels as well. Brush the middle section first, bringing it down into the bottom section. Now brush the bottom. Take each side up with the roller and stop just below the middle horizontal section. Brush them out. Take the middle section between the panels past the top of the panels and start the next vertical section above the horizontal, just as did with the bottom. Roll out the horizontal middle section, extending out into the vertical areas on the sides. Stroke out the vertical middle sections, then the horizontal. Use the same technique up to the top. Should take two or three minutes per section once you get good.

Question: I am in the process of painting a rental property..after ripping off the upholstered stairs I have discovered that the steps are painted with a oil based stain. My question is that I was considering painting over them and am wanting to know if I have to stick to another oil based stain or paint or if it possible to switch the paints completely to a latex based paint?  And if it is possible then what do I need to do to prep them either way.  Thanks Tim

Answer: Hi Debbie,
Thanks for your question. I’ll make an assumption first, that by “upholstered” you mean “carpet”. If you have hardwood stairs you probably have hardwood in the most of the rest of the house too. In Colorado, that is considered a premium finish and brings extra value to the house. You may want to check out the rest of the house and think about keeping the hardwood by having it refinished. If not, here is how to paint the stairs.

Products
I would not recommend a latex paint for stairs. It isn’t durable enough. You need something that can take the abuse of being walked on and kicked. I would recommend an oil based solid body deck stain. Even a water based deck stain doesn’t hold up like the oil based. For best results use Sikkens. Second choice is Cabot’s. They do drag a little so thin with Penatrol. It will take several days to dry so make sure you don’t need to go upstairs for a while.

How To
After removing the carpet strips, prep the wood by wiping it down with a TSP substitute. Fill the nail holes with spackling and sand till they are flush with the wood. You may want to scrape off or sand any bumps or fill dents with wood filler and sand those areas flush. Wipe off the dust with a damp rag. Prime with Zinsser’s Cover Stain or Low Odor primer. I would avoid Kilz for this project. Then paint with two coats of an oil based solid body deck stain.

Hope This Helps,

Tim Hoeffel
Better Painting
Colorado Springs, CO

Here is a  question I was asked recently.  “I have oak cabinets to paint. I have read directions on using steel wool and tsp. I am going to paint them cream and then want to apply a glaze or stain? just to define grooves and molding. we saw some cabinets like this. How do I get that look?”

Answer: I’m not sure what you mean when describing the effect you want. I’ve included some general guidelines for working with glaze that I hope will get you started. First a quick comment. I would replace the steel wool with a Scotch/Norton/Other nylon pad. If a piece of steel wool breaks off and becomes embedded in your surface it will rust.

There are two ways to work with glaze. Either buy a colored glaze or mix paint with clear glaze. The easiest way is the colored glaze, if you can find one close to the color you want. My paint store, and many others, carry McClosky’s in about a dozen different colors. It’s easy to use but experimenting is recommeded.

You will need the following: several clean rags, a small bucket of water, a small container for the glaze (4″-12″ wide, 1″-2″ deep), latex gloves, drop cloth or equivalent.

Pour a little glaze out in the container. Dab the corner of a clean rag in the glaze and apply it where desired. It dries very slow so you can work it around, add and subtract, until you get the desired effect. You will want a damp rag and dry rag. The damp rag to wipe off excess from where you don’t want it, the dry rag to subtract stain if you get too much on. You can swirl it on or use strait lines, work it in and wipe off the rest on the top. It will have a tendency to collect in the lowest areas like water. That gives a dark line effect.

If the ready made colors are not to your liking, buy a quart of the color you want, a quart of clear glaze in the appropriate sheen, and combine paint to glaze in 1:3, 1:1, 3:1 ratios depending on how dark you want the glaze. The more paint the quicker it dries, too.

Follow this painting principal for striking results.

Most articles either treat people like their stupid and over simplify the process or skip important information because they risk offending their readers, or both. I hope to do neither, but to give you the details you need, mostly based on my observations of what inexperienced people do when they paint. I have only seen this mentioned a few times in consumer oriented painting articles. This is the “golden rule” in painting. When you follow this principal your results will improve dramatically. It ain’t rocket science, but there are some implications you may need to think about.

The principal is this: Keep A Wet Edge

Whatever edge you have needs to stay wet until you have finished that portion of that edge. The point is to prevent “lap marks”, where some of the paint has dried and it has been repainted with a second coat to make sure you get it all. It can happen in three different areas/ways. Let me break this down into an interior painting example we can all understand, painting a wall. A wall has two dimensions. It is tall and wide. It has a top, bottom and two ends. And you need a brush and a roller to paint it. Stupid simple so far.

What is the first step to painting our wall after all the prep work is done? Right. Cutting in the edges. Let’s think about the process for a second before we jump on that. The first thing that happens to paint when it is put on is that it starts to dry. So now it’s a race between you and the paint. And you are racing three edges. The top, bottom and the leading edge from your roller. So the conclusion I see is that in order to keep all three edges wet, it is going to take some hustle.

Do The Hustle To Keep The Edge Wet

In order to keep as much paint wet at one time as possible, the work needs to be staggered into three sections: brush, roller, brush. Mentally divide your wall up into 4′-5′ sections. Cut in either the top or bottom for that length, roll that section of the wall, then cut in the remaining top or bottom. When you are doing this last cut in, extend it to the next section and start the process again until you reach the end of the wall. No stopping, it’s not allowed.

Of course, this is a lot easier with a partner. One can roll, the other cut in. It is tempting for one to get ahead of the other, but you defeat the purpose of this technique if you do. It is close quarters but the results speak for themselves. Assuming you use good brush technique, this will eliminate the “picture frame” effect that is often seen with the first coat of paint.

Cheat A Little Wit Wetting Agents

If that seems like a lot of work, here is a way you can cheat a little. Products like Flowtrol by Flood or Paint Booster by Zinnser/Okon are called “wetting agents”. These products actually keep the paint from drying as fast and make the paint level better. Paint Booster has the added benefits of slowing fading and puts a water resistant barrier on top of the paint when it dries. They don’t make keeping a wet edge obsolete, just easier.

In the same vein, some manufacturers sell a paint ingredient called ethylene glychol. This is what gives the flow and leveling properties to the paint. Like the products mentioned above, it also keeps the paint from drying quickly. It is what the other two products are emulating. You can follow the directions to really extend the dry time or you can experiment with different ratios to get the open time you like. If you are on a really tight budget, you can use water instead on the second coat. A maximum of 25% dilution is recommended. The paint will not cover as well, but it doesn’t leave texture marks behind either.

Keeping a wet edge should be done no matter what you are painting. It always gives you better results. Next time your painter is over, ask him or her what they do to keep a wet edge. You are in good care if you get a response like “I always keep moving”.

To Your Better Painting,

Tim Hoeffel