Preparing to Paint - Colours of Maple. Serving Toronto, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada

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Preparing Paint

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Before you jump into learning how to paint a room, there are some key steps you need to take first. First of all, don't underestimate how much time you'll need for your painting job. Then, before you get your paint ready, you'll definitely need a basic understanding of paint safety.

And stop by your local Colours of Maple store for all of the tools you'll need, whether you're working with previously painted surfaces or unpainted surfaces.

Before you start

When you’re scheduling your do-it-yourself paint project, allow a day or two to prepare the surface, which could include making repairs and washing away dirt and grime. Once the initial preparation work is done, let the surface dry for at least one day.
Before painting, always stir paint thoroughly, mixing upwards to blend the paint. Stir occasionally during use to maintain uniform paint colour and sheen.
And please don't forget about paint safety. Visit our Paint Safety page now for a thorough discussion of this important topic.

Painting tools for your room

Once you've chosen the right paint colours for your room, you’ll also need the following tools to kick off your painting project:

Painter’s tape
Drop cloths
Paint roller
Paint tray
Paint brush
Paint primer

Spackle to cover any holes or cracks in the walls
Sandpaper to smooth additional spackle or roughen glossy surfaces for better paint adherence

Click here for more information about
painting tools.

Removing old paint and preparing the surface for a new coat

If there is a wall in your room that is already covered in paint, your first step is to sand the surface to remove any existing paint. After sanding the surface, use a spot primer before administering the top coat. If the previous paint was glossy, use a latex primer.

Preparing surfaces that have never seen a coat of paint

Even if the surface that needs to be painted has never seen a coat of paint, you’ll still need to prepare the surface to ensure the best interior paint job possible.

	Wood: Your first step should be to thoroughly clean the surface. Before staining, the wood must be clean and dry and should not contain any dirt, mildew, dust, oil, or other contaminants. Weathered wood should be bleached to remove any mildew spores that might affect the quality of your hard work.

	Masonry: You’re best off not painting new masonry, such as stucco, brick, concrete block, and cement, for at least a year, as its alkaline properties don’t bode well for quality paint jobs. After the first year has passed, we recommend a pure acrylic exterior paint.

	Concrete: To ensure that your exterior concrete paint lasts for longer than just a season or two, coat the concrete surface with a 10% muriatic acid solution, and then rinse.


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