
This 7 days, I’m chatting with painting expert Brian Santos, a.k.a the “Wall Wizard.”
Brian is a fourth-generation painting contractor, author of most effective-providing household advancement books, and has toured for far more than 25 yrs with his “Wizard Workshops” that empower audiences with simple suggestions, tips, and methods for effective home enhancement jobs.
He has shared his abilities on countrywide Television set, which include “Good Morning America,” “Today,” and HGTV’s “Smart Answers,” as well as on TLC and the Discovery Channel.
Brian is also the Director of Education for Fresh Coat Painters, the only job of this type in just any painting or house advancement franchise.
Brian was brought on to the Contemporary Coat Painters team to teach and share his understanding of the business and company ownership inside of the business to new and established franchise owners.
Stop by thewallwizard.com for Brian’s painting tips and reference books and freshcoatpainters.com for his experienced tips.

Best Spray Portray Tactics
What are some of the recommendations you’ve discovered around the a long time when doing work with spray paint?
Brian: The finest spray portray suggestion I can give is to read the guidelines. I know it is a ton of data in small print, but it’s the important to your project’s success. Listed here are a handful of more tips:
- Put together adequately. Do not spray in the sunshine, thoroughly clean the surface area the right way, and make positive you hold the can correctly at the ideal angle.
- Shake the can. It usually takes 30 seconds to two minutes to get the rattle inside of to get started shifting. This is significant for thoroughly mixing the products and aerosols so the paint sprays accurately.
- Use a spray paint take care of. It snaps about the prime of the can, and when you pull the cause, it’s like a gun. It depresses the spray nozzle and puts out the materials effectively.
- Implement two skinny coats of paint in its place of 1 major coat. This helps prevent any runs and drips, and also will allow the chemicals to evaporate plenty of to let the 2nd coat to bond correctly.

Higher-Volume Small-Stress Sprayers
Notify us more about high quantity small stress (HVLP) sprayers and some of the applications they do the job well in.
Brian: I appreciate these matters — HVLP sprayers are pretty much like airbrushes. What they are intended to do is atomize the substance and you can management the circulation and strain.
The very best one particular I can advocate is the Wagner Flexio 3000 HVLP Paint Sprayer*, which is readily available at House Depot. It has a induce and a dial for you to alter the tension, as well as it has a corded and cordless option.
*This is an affiliate hyperlink. If you order this item, we will receive a modest fee at no added price to you.
For the DIYer, this is almost certainly one of the very best applications you can have, but you have to manage it and clear it routinely.
Here’s a idea for cleaning it: Set about three drops of material softener for each quart of drinking water in the sprayer and flush it out. This assists thoroughly clean the sprayer in between coats and lubricates the within.

Painting a Fence With an Airless Paint Sprayer
What do you propose for portray a fence?
Brian: An airless paint sprayer is terrific for portray a fence. You can ordinarily discover them at any resource rental heart, and what I like about renting them is that they are preserved. Plus, if you have been to go out and purchase this, it would price tag you any place from $500-$1,200.
When leasing just one, be guaranteed to get just one that has plenty of volume move for your project. And though you are at the tool rental middle, ask an employee for a demonstration so you can see how to effectively function it.
Like I mentioned prior to, usually read the recommendations and make confident the sprayer is primed effectively.
Appropriately cleanse the fence ahead of painting. Use a backyard garden hose and a cleaner to take out any algae, grease, grime and oxidation. The paint is only as very good as the floor it is bonding to.
You really do not need to use any primer because fence stains are intended to penetrate into wooden fiber. There are also very clear coatings, semi-clear stains and good stains that homogenize to even out any irregularities.
The significant issue is to hold moving and backbrush along the way. Spray the paint or stain on, then have someone go with a brush powering it and perform that paint or stain into the area. This will make confident the paint or stain bonds appropriately.

Painting Kitchen area Cabinets
What are some ideas for house owners who are thinking about painting kitchen cupboards?
Brian: Changing kitchen cupboards can price tag you up to $20,000, so portray is certainly charge-effective.
A paint occupation is only as great as the floor you are getting ready, so first, ask on your own if you want to see the grain in your cupboards or not. All woods have a grain, and if the surface is not prepped currently, that grain will display as a result of. If you really do not want to see any grain, phone a skilled to do the position.
For the DIYer who desires to do a small refreshing, listed here are the standard functioning techniques on how to do it:
- Clean up the surface of the cabinets. Moist sand the cabinets with a Scotch Brite pad and an alkaline cleaner named Easy Environmentally friendly Hd. This will split down the grease and frivolously sand the surface at the very same time, eliminating a whole lot of dust.
- Degrease the surface area of the cabinets immediately after cleansing. Rinse the surface area with 91-proof rubbing alcohol. Rubbing alcoholic beverages is a natural degreaser and deglosser. It evaporates and forces out the moisture that could possibly be in the wooden. This will generate a sterile area that’s all set for primer.
- Key the cabinets. The type of primer to use is dependent on if it is a lacquer-coated or painted surface area. Acquire a drawer encounter or portion of the cupboard to a paint retail store and ask the expert to see what kind of floor it is, and they can propose what sort of primer to use. Implement two slim coats of primer and evenly sand between just about every coat with 300-grit sandpaper.
- Spackle and caulk in between the two coats or primer. If you have floating cupboards, do not caulk in between the floating panels. The wood requirements to broaden and contract with the ordinary humidity in the property, so caulking can bring about the cupboards to crack.
- Last of all, utilize two even coats of paint to the cabinets.
- To safeguard components on cupboards, use rubber cement. Just after portray, you can peel it off.
- If you will need to reset hardware, significantly hand pulls, use Bondo, not wooden filler. If you slam the cabinet, the wooden filler plug could pop out.

Common Mistakes
What is the largest oversight property owners make when tackling any paint project?
Brian: Not planning a floor properly. And also, not safeguarding other surfaces. It’s wonderful how the paint will splatter if you’re spray painting, or dust will waft as a result of the residence.
Create a containment procedure, and make positive to place a new filter in the HVAC process soon after you are performed to reduce dust spreading during the home. The extra you can incorporate and command, the better final result.
Also, clear among actions. That’s in which a great deal of dust and debris can get into a paint project and the success are not as good as they could be.

Brian’s Tips
“Wizards Operate Soaked:” It is essential to do the overall surface though materials are damp. Have anyone slicing in as yet another person is rolling paint to hold that moist edge so the color is regular.
Also, if you’re portray with a roller, the previous stroke you do ought to be in the same course, so you get the good sheen and the proper impact with the coloration.
Even further Looking through
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