The Correct Use of Paint in the Home

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 79, Issue 2, 15 August 1949, Page 183

The Correct Use of Paint in the Home

MANY a housewife likes to brighten up some part of the interior of her house with fresh paint from time to time. A beginner need not fear to try painting, provided she knows a little about the behaviour of paint. Some points which may be useful to the person who has had little experience of painting are dealt with in this article by Edith G. McNab, Rural Sociologist, Department of Agriculture, Dunedin.

THE choice of paint depends mainly on the purpose for which the paint is required. The smooth, glossy, hard finish of enamel paint is desirable for furniture and shelves or bathroom and kitchen walls, for it will stand up well to repeated washings. Living room or bedroom walls may be better finished with a flat-surfaced paint, which provides a more pleasing texture from the point of view of interior decoration. For floors special floor paint or varnish should be used, because ordinary wall paint will not wear as well. Flat paint should be used for undercoats. Information about the quality, quantity, and kind of paint to buy should be obtained from a paint salesman, who should be told the size of the area to be painted.

Never mix different brands of paint. If the exact shade required is not obtainable, it is sometimes possible to mix different colours of the same brand to get the shade desired.

Preparation of Surfaces

Any surface to be painted must be dry, ; clean, and free from grease or wax. Moisture will cause blistering of . the paint, and “creeping’.’ will take place over a greasy surface, on which paint will not dry properly. Surfaces which may be greasy, such as kitchen walls near the range, or which may have been waxed, such as floors or furniture, must be thoroughly cleaned before painting. If an alkaline solution is used for cleaning, all traces of it must be removed before applying paint, as alkalis saponify the oils in oil paints.

Roughnesses in the surface should be smoothed with glasspaper, finishing with a fairly fine paper. The glasspaper should be wrapped around a flat piece of wood or cork of a size comfortable to grip so that the surface of the glasspaper is flat on the surface to be painted. (The correct method of doing this is shown in the upper illustration on the next page.)

Remove any dust left after glasspapering. Small holes or cracks should be filled with putty after the first coat of paint is dry. (Putty can be made by mixing whiting with raw linseed oil and kneading it until it is plastic. Do not use so much oil that the mixture is sticky to handle. Putty can also be bought ready made, but usually requires some kneading before use.) A spatula or putty knife is the best tool for applying the putty. New wood should be well seasoned before being painted.

If the surface has been painted previously, it may need only . thorough cleaning and a light glasspapering before repainting. If the old paint is badly cracked or very chalky, it is

best removed before fresh paint is applied. A painter would probably burn off such paint, but the housewife, with a small area to treat, can use a hot solution of caustic soda (lib. to a gallon of water). The usual precautions in handling caustic soda should be observed, and the solution should be applied with a fibre brush, not a bristle brush, because caustic soda will destroy bristles. The solution softens the paint, which may be wiped off. Rinse the surface well, because any caustic soda left will destroy the new paint as readily as the old. This treatment raises the grain of the wood, so the surface will require glasspapering before painting. Painters’ sugar of soap can be used in much the same way as caustic soda. Do not attempt to paint over varnish without first removing the varnish. Metal surfaces to be painted must be free from rust, which can be removed with a wire brush or emery paper. Application To apply paint use a good brush, of a size suited to the work. A good brush is likely to prove more economical in the long run than a cheaper brush and it gives more satisfaction in use. As a general rule, hold the brush with the thumb on one side of

the handle and the fingers on the other, brush from side to side. The hold may be varied for reaching into awkward p aces ’ oughly* b3o?e hfa?ie?S-

gredients sink to the bottom. It is advisable in mixing first to pour off half the contents of the tin and then, when the remaining half has been thoroughly stirred, to pour back the thinner top half. Further pouring of the paint from one tin to another will complete the mixing. Stir again from time to time during painting. Mixing time can be reduced by inverting the tin of paint several times for a day or two before opening the tin. Generally ready-mixed paint used soon after it is bought needs no more preparation for use than thorough mixing, but if it has a “heavy” feel when brushed and has a tendency to leave coarse brush marks, it is too thick for applying and should be thinned by adding a thinner. Frequently old paint which has been stored for a long time after part of it was used thickens up considerably. Most manufacturers give directions on the labels of tins concerning the thinner to be used, but the usual thinner is oil of turpentine. Care should be taken that too much thinner is not added or the paint will be spoilt. Do not overload the brush with paint, as that leads to splashing and to putting the paint on too thickly, when it may run. Dip the bristles only an inch or so into the paint, especially at first. Excess paint can be removed from the brush by drawing it against the side of the tin. Brush the paint on well, working the brush backward and forward with the grain of the

wood. After the paint on the brush has been applied, finish the area with light strokes of the brush, working only one way, from the unpainted area toward and overlapping the last area painted. Finish each stroke very lightly so that no brush marks are left.

Work in strips, doing a few boards at a time. If a room is being painted, begin with the ceiling, then work from the top downward on each wall in turn.

When painting ceilings or the upper part of walls use something secure to stand on, such as a solid table or sound step-ladder, and avoid the accident which will happen sooner or later if a rickety piece of furniture is used. Save energy by finding something of suitable height and avoiding extra stretching or bending.

Never leave a strip unfinished; otherwise a permanent mark will be left at the stopping place. For example, if there is not time to finish a wall, finish the strip being painted to the end of the boards or the corner of the wall.

Cleaning Splashes

If any splashes are made, wipe them up at once, using a duster or a rag soaked in turpentine. (Mineral turpentine is quite suitable for this and is cheaper than oil of turpentine.) Do not let any splashes dry on the part to be painted, for the marks may show through the finished painting.

When two colours are to be used adjacent to each other allow one to dry before putting on the other; this prevents diffusion of the colours where they meet. If the same brush is to be used for the second colour, clean it before applying the second colour. The previous coat of paint must be quite dry before putting on another coat. Before applying the next coat it is a good plan to leave each coat 48 hours after it appears to be dry. The number of coats necessary depends on the condition and colour of the surface before painting; If it has never been painted before, or if the last paint has been removed, at least two coats will be necessary. Three coats may be better (use flat paint for the first two) and it may require three coats of a light colour to . hide an old dark paint.

Quick-drying enamels have to be put on rapidly, so it is best to avoid using enamel until some experience of painting has been gained.

Never allow paint to dry on a brush. A brush which is to be used again in a few days may be left suspended (but not standing on its bristles) in water, and the water removed from the bristles before the brush is used for painting again. When the painting is finished rinse the brush in mineral turpentine, wash it in warm, soapy water, rinse it in fresh, warm water, and dry it.

Before they are used painted furniture, benches, or shelves should be left a day or two after the paint appears to be dry so that the risk of spoiling the surface is lessened. This is particularly important if any heavy objects are to be put on painted shelves.