How To Paint Repair Drywall Trim Bathroom

Painting trim is among the most mutual painting tasks that homeowners undertake, right along with walls and cabinets.

Painting your trim tin can completely change the wait and feel of a room, it can brighten the space or brand it more than elegant.

I've painted a lot of trim over my xv-yr painting career. I've brushed out trim in homes, I've sprayed trim and I've painted the trim in endless new structure homes. I take a lot of communication that will not only brand your trim look astonishing when completed, but will speed up your painting process and give you a finished product that volition last for decades.

How To Pigment Trim

There are a few dissimilar means to pigment trim. Yous can brush it after installation, yous tin spray it later installation or your tin can pre-finish the trim before installation (which I only recommend in very few certain circumstances).

Brushing Vs Spraying Trim

In theory, spraying your trim is e'er going to exit you with a meliorate finish. It volition exist smoother and leave a fantastic looking terminate. In new structure, I ever spray the trim, no questions asked.

In the reality of an existing home, spraying your trim volition crusade you a ton of actress piece of work while delivering results that while improve than brushing, are not significant plenty to justify the extra work for 95% of the people out there, the possibility of overspray getting on areas you don't want information technology or the extra odor that volition exist in your home.

As well, let'south be honest, nobody is going to get downwards on their easily and knees and wait and so shut at your baseboard that they volition be able to tell that it has brush strokes in it. And even if yous can come across them in the trim around your doors and windows, personally, I like the await of brush strokes, it adds graphic symbol.

Even in my own home, I chose to castor all of our trim when I painted it. It looks great and I am completely happy with it. To me, the deviation betwixt spraying and brushing was non worth the extra work.

Because of all this, I am not going to be going into detail on spraying in this article. Though nearly of the info is interchangeable for spraying and brushing, I'll just be dropping a few random spraying tips hither and there.

Painting Your Trim Alphabetize

Paints and Tools I Recommend
Time Needed To Paint Your Trim
Painting Trim Or Walls First
Step 1: Prepping The Room
Pace 2: Cleaning The Trim
Step three: Filling Blast Holes
Step iv: Sanding The Trim
Step 5: Priming The Trim
Stride half-dozen: Caulking The Gaps
Step seven: Painting The Trim's First Acme Coat
Step 8: Painting The Final Coat
Step 9: Cleanup

Painting trim requires just a few basic tools and materials.

Painter's Tape – For taping off floors and windows.
5-in-1 Painter's Tool – Perfect for pressing tape, cutting tape, filling holes and other random tasks.
Drop Cloths
2.5″ Paint Castor – Desire to learn everything there is most paint brushes? Check out my posts All About Paint Brushes and How To Clean Your Paintbrush.
Medium, Fine, and Extra Fine Grit Sanding Sponges – Each for unlike stages of the trim painting process.
Store-Vac
Caulk and Caulk Gun – For caulking gaps and cracks.
Spackling Paste – For filling blast holes in your trim.

Time Needed To Pigment Your Trim

Painting trim can actually be quite a time-consuming project, especially if you are doing window and door trim. Floor trim (baseboards) tends to exist significantly faster than window and door trim due to the fact the window casing and door casing involve many surfaces, lots of caulking and more smash holes to make full.

A typical fifteen×15 bedroom with 1 main door trim, closet door trim, base trim and two sets of window trim should take roughly 1 hr to prep, 1 hour to prime number and 2-four hours to tiptop coat.

A typical fifteen×xv bedroom should then take yous anywhere betwixt 4-6 hours. One time y'all are experienced, 2-3 bedrooms worth of trim can easily exist painted in a day.

Curious how long it takes to paint a room? Check out my article on How Long It Takes To Paint A Room.

Estimating the Time For Your Entire Trim Painting Project

To approximate your unabridged trim painting projection, I typically program on 1.5 hours per gear up of window trim, though unlike size windows and different casings require more or less time with some of the more complicated larger windows requiring 2+ hours.

For door casing and trim, assuming you are painting both sides, I recommend budgeting ane.5 hours per door trim set up.

Finally, for base trim, I recommend budgeting 1 hour per 25 anxiety of trim.

Painting Trim or Walls Kickoff

This is a question I often get from friends, family, and visitors: "Should I pigment the walls before I paint the trim?".

The answer is to e'er paint the trim get-go.

By painting the trim first, you are saving extra prep time later on and creating a surface that will exist easier to tape a perfectly straight line on afterward.

The reason for this is that if you paint the walls last, then when you are painting the trim yous can caulk the trim to the walls (which vastly improves the look) and let the trim pigment to flow from the trim, over the caulk, and onto the wall.

Finally, trim paint (enamel) dries extra hard and this makes information technology and so you tin tape off your trim and get a nice clean record line when painting your walls after.

If you paint your walls commencement, taping the walls to pigment the trim is extremely difficult and the pigment is commonly not nigh as difficult drying as trim paint, and so the pigment tin can easily pull off when you lot pull the tape. Also, pulling the record tin lift non only the paint only likewise the top layer of paper from your drywall and that is a disaster!

Step 1: Prepping The Room

The first thing you demand to do with any pigment job is to starting time with proper prep piece of work.

To prep a room for trim painting I start past first clearing out the room and prepping off the floors.

If Yous Have Carpeting Floors

If y'all have carpeted floors, beginning by taking a roll of tape and ripping 1′ – 3′ strips of tape off the roll and tucking the inside border under the trim but over the carpet. This is hard to practice without ripping a ane-3′ slice of record off the roll.

Past tucking the tape under the trim but over the carpet, you lot are making sure there is a clean separation between the trim and rug that you lot can pigment upwards to.

After you've done this around the entire room, add a second row of 1.5″ tape effectually the room. After this 2d row of tape, it volition be much easier to pull a drop textile upwardly to the tape where you are working.

Read more on how to paint baseboards with carpet.

If You Have Solid Floors (woods, linoleum, tile)

For solid floors, accept your whorl of painters record and run a strip right where the floor meets the trim. Have your time as a perfect line here saves a lot of cleanup time later.

After the beginning strip is laid downward, I again like to run a 2d strip around the room to give me more working space adjacent to the trim (2-three″).

Once I accept taped off the floor, I volition run a roll of 36″ rosin paper around the room instead of dragging around a drop cloth. This acts as a permanent driblet cloth around the room and avoids the hassle of dragging effectually your drop and potentially smearing pigment drips from your drib textile onto the floor.

Prepping Windows and Doors

For windows, yous'll desire to run a strip of record where the trim/casing ends and either meets up with vinyl on the window, drinking glass or whatever cloth is non to be painted.

You'll also desire to remove whatsoever window coverings and cranks.

For door trim, you lot accept two options. You lot can completely remove the door and hinges, or place two strips of tape over the hinge, then outline the door swivel with a razor blade pocketknife and cut off the excess tape so only the hinge has tape on it when completed.

Step 2: Cleaning The Trim

Whatever quality paint job has to involve cleaning of the surface that is to be painted and trim is no exception.

If the room is a relatively make clean room, a vacuuming with a shop vac should be sufficient.

If the room is a kitchen, where grease has built up over the years, and so a mix of warm soapy water should be used to hand wash all the trim. I'm not talking well-nigh an hr or ii of scrubbing, but ten minutes or so and wipe down all the surfaces that will exist painted.

Make certain to go over the surfaces a quick second time to remove any soap residue.

Dining Room With Green Walls and Painted Trim

Stride 3: Filling Nail Holes

If yous are painting your trim white (or really whatever other color), every pigsty, gap and crack is going to show afterwards it has been painted. All holes will show every bit a contrasting black and be horribly noticeable.

I like to fill all my smash holes with spackling paste. It is piece of cake to work with and sands actually easily.

This step should accept you lot no more than 5-10 minutes or and then in a standard room.

Do not fill up gaps between the wall and the trim with spackle or gaps betwixt trim boards. These gaps require a flexible caulk or they volition crack almost immediately afterward the job is completed. Just concord off on caulking, for now, caulking is step 6 for a reason.

If you were painting kitchen cabinets, this is where I would talk about filling the grain of the forest to ensure the smoothest cease possible. But this is trim. Trust me, non worth the time and effort to fill up the grain on your trim.

Step 4: Sanding The Trim

Sanding your trim earlier painting has multiple purposes.

Get-go, it will smooth out the nail holes that you filled with spackling paste.

Second, information technology smooths down the surface and helps the final production feel and expect better.

Tertiary, it breaks downwards any previous surfaces that may not be porous enough to allow the primer to bond also as information technology should. Sanding scuffs the surface and allows the primer to bail properly with the trim that is beingness painted.

For my first round of sanding, I like to use medium dust 3M sanding sponges. The sponge cream forms nicely to the trim as I am sanding, keeps my mitt away and prevents slivers, and is rough enough to quickly and finer prepare my surface for painting.

Later on you accept sanded all of your trim, you lot'll need to once again shop vac everything. A great pigment chore requires a flawlessly clean work surface area to prevent grit and droppings from getting in your stop, so don't but vacuum off the trim, but vacuum the room.

Step v: Priming The Trim

After all the work of getting your trim ready for pigment, you finally become to bust our your paintbrush!

At that place are lots of different primers that will work corking for priming your trim. I'm non going to tell you what yous should or shouldn't utilise here, but rather give you a few tips.

Note On Oil vs H2o-Based Paints For Trim

If you are going to use an oil-based pinnacle coat, you should utilize an oil based primer. If you are going to use a water based top coat, then you should utilise a water based primer (though you tin opt to use an oil-based primer to assist lock in stains improve and so they do not drain through into the water-based meridian coat).

Typically in a residential home, I am going to always recommend water-based paint. Oils tend to release too many VOCs and stink upward your habitation. Oils are also harder to clean upwards since they require paint thinner and you must properly dispose of that thinner. Water based paint tin can be cleaned up in your laundry sink.

The deviation in look from water to oil-based paints is becoming smaller and smaller every year as water-based finishes get better and meliorate.

When you start brushing on your primer, try to apply long fifty-fifty strokes that go with the length of the trim. Try to come up downwardly gently on the trim and lift off gently on each stroke.

The smoother your brush strokes are, the smoother your finish will look when completed.

Your goal should be to use enough primer where y'all are applying information technology thick only not thick enough to cause runs. Try to notice that sweet spot.

After the primer has had ample time to dry 100%, you'll want to sand all of the trim again. Yous'll notice that quality paint jobs crave many different rounds of sanding!

For sanding the primer, I recommend using 3M fine grit sanding sponges. These sponges are a little bit effectively than the medium grit I recommend using before priming and they get the primer feeling actress polish and ready for the next step.

After you lot sanding is complete, make sure to shop vac all of the trim and the room to completely eliminate whatever dust in the surround.

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Step 6: Caulking The Gaps

Caulking the gaps in your trim vastly improves the last await of your painted trim. Gaps show upwards as a black contrast to your white paint and the caulk makes the installation look perfect. Information technology as well allows for a razor sharp tape lines when yous get to paint your walls.

Many painters will tell yous to caulk the gaps in your trim before you prime, simply I similar doing information technology after priming for a handful of reasons.

First, one time all of your trim is primed, the gaps stand out like a sore pollex and you tin can see exactly where the caulk is needed. This saves you lot time from having to caulk areas where caulk is not needed.

Second, at this indicate the trim has been sanded twice and primed, your chance for slivers has reduces dramatically.

Tertiary, the priming and sanding has fabricated the trim very shine and thus allows y'all to lay a very fine smooth bead of caulk.

Quaternary, the caulk is non-porus and paintable, information technology does not need to be primed, and so y'all tin top coat correct over it without sacrificing durability, quality or look.

How To Caulk Your Trim

I recommend using a dripless caulk gun, a wet material and a tube of flexible, indoor, white paintable caulk.

Cut a very small piece off the tip of the tube of caulk and brand certain to cut it at an angle so you lot tin lay the tip of the caulk neatly into the gap every bit you squeeze out the caulk.

I like to run a bead of roughly 5′-10′ before stopping and going over the bead with my wet rag to smoothen it out. By running the rag over the caulk, it forces the caulk into the gap and leaves it looking perfectly shine.

Make sure to rinse out your rag often and keep information technology very moisture.

E'er start your caulking in corners as they are the near difficult to become looking squeamish and make clean.

Yous should use just plenty caulk to fill the gaps, try not to take any caulk coming out or over the gaps. Information technology is fine to have the caulk sew the wall just a fiddling scrap as well.

There is no sanding or anything else needed subsequently caulking. Give your caulk ample time to dry and them move on to acme blanket your trim.

Step 7: Painting The Trim'south Beginning Tiptop Glaze

Now that all your prep, hole filling, priming, and caulking are completed, it'due south time to start brushing on the first top coat of paint onto your trim.

There is no magic or astonishing tips here, just brush on your top coat using long even smooth strokes. Effort to again find that sweet spot where you are applying plenty of top coat, but not and so much that you lot have any runs. Avert runs at all costs.

At that place are many different top coats that yous can employ for your trim that volition work just fine. Window and door trim will require something a little more durable that baseboard trim though.

My personal favorites are Benjamin Moore's Satin Impervo and Sherwin William's Pro Archetype enamels.

Both of these products are like shooting fish in a barrel to utilize, come up in h2o-based versions and dry to a beautiful and durable terminate!

Sand and Vacuum Your Top Coat

One time your first summit glaze has had fourth dimension to thoroughly dry, then it is time for your terminal circular of sanding.

For this round of sanding I recommend using 3M Extra Fine sanding sponges.

I've constitute that using their fine (or medium) sanding sponges can leave tiny scratches that tin prove in the final coat. However, the Extra Fine sponges will sand off any dust in the finish, give it a perfectly smooth finish and the scratches left in the finish are hands covered with the last top coat.

After sanding, make sure to shop vac the trim and the entire room so you are gear up for the final superlative coat.

Stride 8: Painting The Final Glaze

The final step in painting your trim is also the easiest and quickest. You've prepped, primed, caulked, first coated and now it's fourth dimension for the final glaze.

Zero new here, make sure you lot use even strokes and that no grit or droppings lands in the finish.

Y'all should find that you demand less pigment and that it spreads easier as well. This is due to the fact that the trim has a smashing barrier already on information technology and this top coat isn't being sucked up into the previous coats as much.

Accept your time, pay attending to detail and you will have a great looking finished product.

Step ix: Cleanup

Afterward all of your painting is completed, cleanup is your last pace. All you need to know nearly cleanup is to wait until the pigment has dried, just non cured.

If the paint is dry, y'all won't make a mess while pulling tape, paper and drop cloths.

Just if you look besides long (days) and have immune the pigment to cure, any drips yous find that made their way onto the flooring will be drastically harder to remove. Runs in the terminate will also exist harder to fix.

Painting Trim In Conclusion

Painting your trim, whether base trim, window trim or door trim, does require a good amount of time. But with patience and attention to item, it is a projection that any homeowner tin can easily do and have great results.

Got some of your trim paint on the floor or carpet? Check out my commodity on How To Remove Paint From Nearly Any Surface.

Have any questions or comments? Leave them below, I always make sure to answer every question!

Source: https://diypaintingtips.com/how-to-paint-trim/

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