Painting Pole March 25, 2007
Posted by admin in : Painting Tips, Painting Tools , 1 comment so far
One of the tools I consider essential for a good paint job is the painting pole. For some reasons, many opt not to use it and choose to use a ladder instead.
Well technically you can, but it requires you to climb up and down the ladder umpteen times just to get one wall painted. A painting pole saves you lots of energy and time. What types of poles are available? In the local (Singapore) market, there are basically 2 main types of poles available. The cheaper wooden ’stick’ and the more professional aluminium extension pole. The wooden ones are generally available in 3 different lengths - 5-feet, 6-feet and 8-feet. The aluminium ones also come in various lengths. The most common are - 1m extended to 2m and 2m extended to 4m. These are telescopic type (works like a telescope) and the extended portion can be locked at any lengths ie. you can effectively adjust the pole to any length between 1m - 2m for the shorter one or between 2m to 4m for the longer one. Prices? The wooden sticks are inexpensive. Refer to the price reference page for the latest prices for both the wooden stick and the aluminium telescopic poles.
Which should I use? In most cases, a 6-ft wooden stick would do if you are going for the cheaper disposable option. This is the most popular not only because it is suitable for most ceilings, but also for the very practical reason that it can fit into most cars. If you drive a Mini Cooper or a VW Beetle, this will not do. You may just have to go for the 1m telescopic pole. The 6-footer is good for ceilings up to 10 feet high. The 8-footer is for ceilings up to 12 feet high. Any higher you would need the longer 2m-extend-to-4m telescopic pole. Having said that, I particularly like to use the aluminium telescopic pole and I go for the 1m unextended, 2m fully extended type. If you work in small rooms like our HDB rooms and most rooms in private condominiums, a full length 6ft wooden stick may be fine for the ceiling, but manoeuvring around in a small space is not easy. If you have 2 persons working together, you tend to get into each other’s way. With the telescopic type, I can extend and retract the pole ‘on the go’. Whenever I find myself
working in a tight spot, I would shorten the pole to allow better manoeuvrability. To paint higher up the walls, I extend the pole longer and shorten it to paint the lower portions. Love it! Most rollers have handles that fit into these extension poles. Try it out at the paint shop before purchasing. If it is loose, you may need to stuff a bit of paper to fit it snugly. You want it tight but not permanent. There is usually a hole on the roller handle for hammering a nail in. Do not nail it in as you would want to still be able to remove the attachment and use it for lower areas and also for cleaning. I will discuss the method to fix a brush onto a wooden pole in next week’s post. If you have that requirement, watch out for that post, or come back to this post again next week for the link.
Method of Applying Paint 1- by brush March 22, 2007
Posted by admin in : Painting Tips, Painting Tools , 2commentsThe correct application of paint is important so that the paint will last its intended period. This is sometimes overlooked with emphasis more on the
paint than on how to get the paint applied. I give you an example. Just this morning I saw some workers painting the road dividers. You know, the green coloured ones separating a two-way road, the ones that you’ll often see jaywalkers climbing over to avoid using the overhead bridge. These workers did not use brushes or rollers ! Amazing. Their only painting equipment was a piece of cloth. They soaked it with paint, and rubbed the paint onto the divider. It was an undercoat they were putting on, but my bet is that they’ll use the same ‘professional’ method to paint the topcoat. The resulting surface was uneven and had streaks that were not painted. The desired film thickness was definitely not achieved. 20-30 microns, max. The coating will not last its intended length of time. But then, who am I to say. They did it real fast and it was probably how they wanted it - fast. Painting works should never be rushed, especially for our own homes. Doing it properly will delay repairing and recoating works significantly. There are generally 3 methods of application : by brush, by roller and by spraying. We’ll do these in 3 separate posts. Application by Brush 
This is the most widely used method of applying paint. It is cheap, relatively clean and has minimal wastage. Brushes can reach small, restricted areas or in areas with poor ventilation. They are also easily available. You can buy brushes in most stores, and in various sizes as well. The drawbacks are that it is slow and can be quite exhausting. Fast-drying paint may also not be satisfactorily applied by brush. And I hate the brush marks they sometimes leave behind, which requires additional work of having a foam roller run over it. It is important to choose the correct type of brush. It must be capable of
holding sufficient paint to cover a reasonable area and must also be able to transfer this paint to the substrate to give an even finish without showing too much brush marks. Good paint brushes are not only expensive, they are actually quite hard to find, especially here in Singapore. Many paint stockists choose not to carry these as demand is low. A piece of tip - a good paint brush is a used paint brush. Too bad we usually throw away the brushes after use. We find washing them quite a hassle. However, a used brush, provided it has been cleaned properly, carries paint better. Loose bristles would also have all dropped off. Try it. You may never throw away your brushes again. (But you have to ‘not’ throw away your paint brush first to try it 
) A good technique is to dip the paint brush only 1/3 the length of the bristle into the paint. By not dipping fully, you avoid overloading the brush with paint, and overloading leads to extensive dripping. Do not run the brush against the side of the lid to remove excessive paint. This removes more paint than necessary. Subsequent brushing will be ineffective. If required, just drain off small amount of paint by touching the brush against the side of the can. The first contact onto the wall usually results in a area where the paint is a bit heavy. That’s fine. Apply the paint in 1 - 2 strokes. Then, preferably with horizontal strokes, distribute the paint evenly. Finally, when the paint has been distributed evenly, smooth out the paint in light long strokes, lifting the brush off lightly at the ends. These final smoothing out process will remove brush marks. Lets talk about the next popular method of application, by roller, in the next post.
Painting Tip - Prepare a Painting Tools Checklist March 19, 2007
Posted by admin in : Painting Tips, Painting Tools , add a commentYou’ve painted the ceilings. You’ve painted the walls. The new place looks beautiful. You are trying to finish up the door so that you can rush home to
watch the final episode of Prison Break (of course with the power of hindsight, the lousy ending is really not worth rushing back for). You begin on the door, but in the rush, you spilled some paint on the new floor. OK where’s the turpentine???
Oops! Now you remember what you have been trying to recall whole day!
I get customers come in with body all coloured, asking for cleaning solvents…and gloves! Others forget wooden sticks to paint their ceilings with. Once in a while you get one who forgets even the brushes and rollers. Below is a checklist of items required in a standard paint job. I will compile a pdf file in future for easy downloading. In the further future, I may even compile a excel file with all the prices inserted and updated. With this, you can work out a fairly accurate estimate of the cost of the project. But that’s in the near future. Meanwhile, please make do with a simple checklist: 1. Paint (I feel like an idiot putting this in, but better me than you..being the idiot, that is ) 2. Brushes and rollers 3. Paint trays and plastic cups 4. Paint stirrer - often overlooked…and chopsticks make poor stirrers 5. Sandpapers 6. Plastic drop cloth 7. Masking tapes 8. Cleaning rags 9. Paint thinners - for oil-based paints 10. Extension poles or wooden sticks (sticks come in 5ft, 6ft or 8ft) 11. Wall putty 12. Scraper for putty and for removing peeled paint 13. Paint gloves 14. Ladder The above are items for normal paint jobs. More specialized jobs such as epoxy painting or floor sanding will include other items such as face mask and goggles. These projects deserve separate posts. I will elaborate further for most of the tools - the correct equipment, the correct specifications, brands available in the market and the price range - in future posts. Meanwhile, if you are unsure, send me a question through the comment box below. I will reply either directly to you, or I will include in my post for the benefit of others. Till the next tip….
