Are you planning to paint the interior of your commercial building?
An interior painting project might seem like a perfect way to spruce up your business. But there are many ways your interior commercial painting project can yield less than impressive results.
Surprisingly, the most common mistakes often have more to do with minor oversights in your preparation. For instance, some commercial painting service providers may overlook priming the walls. They may also rush the second paint coat or not select the right tools for the job.
Keep reading this commercial painting guide to know common interior commercial painting mistakes.
Not Preparing for Paint
Always take your time to remove all leftover paint. Ensure you sand down rough patches on the interior surface you’re painting and fill holes and cracks to create a smooth surface.
Also, prepare the surface with the right primer if the painting style requires it to adhere correctly. Among the many commercial painting mistakes we see is trying to apply paint over an existing paint layer. You end up with an undesirable result due to the missed step.
Note that the base of the interior paint is what will make your paint perform correctly and adhere for long.
If you ignore preparation, you might end up with an interior paint job that doesn’t look its best.
Forgetting Primer
Primer will provide your paint with a sound surface to adhere to and improve the fresh shade’s look. Most people rush into adding a new color before doing another coat by starting with primer.
Primer creates a smooth surface and provides an evenly coated final product. Primer also smoothens the surface by covering flaws, making adding a new paint coat easier.
Adding primer lengthens your paint’s durability and protects the walls. Also, it keeps old stains and dark colors from shining through the new paint coat.
But most high-quality paint companies will offer you paint and primer in one. So you don’t have to add a separate product since it works well with many interior walls.
But if you’re painting a surface like concrete, drywall, or wood, it’s best to use a separate primer before painting the surface.
Skipping the Tape
No matter what kind of interior painting job you’re embarking on, painter’s tape should be your best friend. Ensure you tape the areas you don’t want to paint past.
Such areas include edges of your doorways and edges of trim at baseboards next to the floor. Taping makes nicer edges and keeps you from precision care where the walls connect with other surfaces.
Also, painter’s tape comes in handy when you’re using a paint roller to speed up the process on larger surfaces. The tape will allow you to paint larger areas without paint bleeding into unwanted areas.
You’ll save time, and you’ll also get better results!
Selecting the Wrong Paint
Among the top commercial painting tips is always picking the right paint for the job. The type makes a difference in the painting experience.
Also, the correct paint will be durable and will perform well on your interior walls. Note that exterior and interior paint come in various styles for you to pick according to your needs.
Some paints will be easier for you to clean after marking up or staining. Other paints will show a high sheen or bright color.
The right paint will also impact your application process ease. You’ll experience an easier time with specific paint styles, especially if you don’t have enough painting experience.
Not Purchasing Enough Paint
A common commercial painting mistake is underestimating the amount of paint to buy. Sloppy mistakes or guessing make you miscalculate the amount of paint required to cover the interior surface.
Your paint may run out midway through the project. Also, once you buy your paint in 2 separate batches, you may have mismatched colors.
So always take careful measurements of the interior space you wish to paint. Double-check the calculations with experts at your paint store and ensure you buy some extra paint for touch-ups.
Incorrect Painting Tools
Don’t use the same painting tool to paint all your interior surfaces. You require a roller for larger surfaces but need a small paintbrush to do corners and trim edges.
Commercial painters know that having the right painting tools for the job will make a big difference in the painting process.
So ensure you have a few paintbrush sizes and a roller or two. On top of the right brushes, make sure you have some drop cloths and a quality ladder.
Also, ensure you have a few different paint containers. Painting out of the cans won’t work with rollers and some brushes.
Not Considering the Weather
The type of weather will always influence a paint job outcome. Both interior and exterior paint take longer to dry when it’s raining or might yield an undesired result.
Also, water-based paints are more vulnerable to not drying when there’s high humidity. Avoid painting when it’s so hot since the paint will dry very fast and begin to crack.
So what’s the ideal weather to do an interior paint job? The correct answer is moderate and not too humid.
True, such conditions may be difficult to track down in specific areas. But you can plan for favorable conditions in most cases.
Weather is a vital factor in the success of your paint job, so it’s an important thing to remember.
Painting in Low Light
Imperfect lighting conditions can lead to many problems. You might think you’ve painted a room evenly, then pack your equipment, only to find patches the next morning.
You require full daylight when doing your interior paint job. Enough light will allow you to see the wet and dry paint well.
Also, ceiling lights or lamps cast shadows that may appear like spots that require repainting. Ensure you’re painting in full daylight to avoid any confusion.
Are you forced to paint in low light? Then, contact commercial painting services like https://cgcommercialpainting.com/. Professionals have industrial lamps to illuminate the interior surfaces.
The paint will be even, which means it’ll have a much better finish.
Spray Painting Without Enough Preparation
Spray painting differs from roller and typical brush painting; thus, it is best to hire commercial spray painters in the UK to complete the job. The forceful pressure from the sprayer and compressor will push paint in the direction you aim and into the atmosphere.
Paint particles in the atmosphere may cause problems that you might not see until later. Including your face, cover everything in the room when spray painting, unless you need a fine layer over the whole room.
Also, keep the room ventilated, but remember that any strong breeze will blow the paint. Keep pets and kids away from your house until the paint and fumes vanish from the air.
Over-Painting
We can divide overpainting into two ways. One way will involve overloading your brush with paint when you dip it too quickly into the can.
Only dip the paintbrush a third of the way into the can. Overloading the brush causes streaking, dripping, and paint wastage.
You might over-paint the second way by applying too much paint on one surface area. Once you add extra brush layers, you’ll have uneven streaks and wall surfaces that aren’t level.
Ensure you apply a coating, then even it out with one or two brush strokes.
Incorrect Estimation of the Time Required for the Job
Not estimating the required time to complete a paint job is easy. At first, you may feel ambitious to start your project.
But the truth is, it usually takes longer than you expect, especially if you want a neat job. Remember to incorporate prep work, multiple coats, and the clean-up time in your time estimate.
Unintentionally Making a Mess
After preparing the surface, there are still some other areas to consider. Most people only consider the area they want to paint and end up with a big mess.
Make sure you clear out the entire room and protect the whole work zone. Use a drop cloth to cover the floor, ceiling fans, countertops, and light fixtures.
There’s always a risk of paint spills or messes when you don’t cover the area well.
Also, it’s easier to use a drop cloth to cover surfaces than to clean the paint splatters from your carpet.
Not Testing Paint Colors First
Among the many interior commercial painting mistakes we see is not testing paint colors first. You might see a paint swatch in your local hardware store and think, “This looks perfect for my room!”
You buy within minutes, and once you get home and begin painting, you realize it was a mistake. The color doesn’t resemble the one on the paint swatch at the store.
And no! The store didn’t intend to sell you the incorrect paint color. Paint colors look different, depending on the room.
The room lighting will determine how the color appears. Always make sure you take home the paint swatches to view them under the normal lighting at your home.
If possible, ask for paint samples to try out on your interior walls before selecting your paint color.
Painting Large Spaces First and Edges Last
Finishing up with the tedious part first helps ensure the job is perfect. A common interior commercial painting mistake is rolling too much where you end up with marks on your ceiling.
Fixing the mistake will be costly since you have to paint your whole ceiling. Ensure you paint the edges first to avoid the mistake of rolling over paint.
After doing the edges, roll a horizontal line near the top of the ceiling to act as a buffer room. Once you’re ready to paint the larger part, start from the top as you work your way down to catch the paint running down.
Not Keeping Some Touch-up Paint
After painting your interior walls, make sure you store some touch-up paint in a jar. There’s no guarantee that your walls will stay without a chip in their paint.
Buy enough paint from the paint store or hardware to have some leftover for touch-ups. Buying enough paint ensures you won’t worry about perfect color matching.
Store the right paint well to ensure you won’t end up with patches of varying shades. When the time comes for a touch-up, you only have to shake the paint and dab it on a paintbrush.
Missing Uneven Lines and Surface Spots
You might miss a spot or not apply enough paint when doing your interior paint job. You’ll end up causing a heavy shadow to cast on the paint job.
Making such a mistake is easy if you trim the surface. Once you identify a gap, wait for the entire surface to dry up before returning to retouch.
Once the areas are dry, try and blend the corners and edges with a fresh coat of paint. Use painter’s tape to make sure you don’t disrupt the previous paint.
After you’re through the retouch, gently take off the tape and use something sharp to score the tape’s edges when peeling it back.
Avoid the Above Interior Commercial Painting Mistakes
Now that you know the different interior commercial painting mistakes, you can easily avoid them. When you take the time to prepare and get the right tools to paint, you’ll have an awesome painting experience.
If the job seems doubtful, you can always hire a commercial painting service.
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