Your stair railings don't take up as much surface area as your walls or even your cabinets, but just like how adding a vase can elevate a dining table's aesthetics, painting your staircase railings can improve the overall look of your home. For example, painting your railings a sleek black can instantly change your home’s vibes from farmhouse to modern and contemporary. Painting stair railings is generally less tiring than painting walls and more straightforward. You do need to be a bit more careful, as you'll have to manoeuvre around various tight spots and corners, but overall, it’s a lot less painting to do, and it’s relatively simple, with fewer things to take note of. Here’s how to go about it. Gather Your Supplies These are the supplies that you’ll be needing: Mild detergent and degreaser Sandpaper (Medium and fine grit) Painter’s tape and drop cloths Wood filler Paintable caulk Angled brush Primer Enamel trim paint in satin or semi-gloss finish Step 1: Carry Out Repairs Whatever you’re painting, you should never be painting over damages. Otherwise, when those damages worsen, they’ll compromise your paint and lead to issues like peeling and bubbling. Here are the various damages and how to fix them: Loose spindles: Secure any wiggling spindles with wood glue at the top and bottom if the gap isn’t too big. If it’s too big of a gap, use wood filler instead, let it dry, and then sand it smooth. Cracks, dents, and holes: Fill them up with wood filler slightly higher than the surface level, as it’ll shrink as it dries. Then, once the filler has dried, sand them smooth. Rust (for metal railings): Scrub the rust off with a wire brush or sandpaper, then continue scrubbing until the surface is smooth, and then apply a rust-inhibiting primer before painting. Step 2: Cleaning And Sanding
Is your staircase scuffed, worn-out, or just plain outdated? A repaint might just be the answer. Repainting your staircase can make it look good as new without the cost of a full replacement, while at the same time enhancing its durability. You'd also be able to customize it however you like. You could have an elegant, timeless dark brown, a modern monochrome, or a warm neutral staircase — it's entirely up to you. Sure, it might be a bit more tedious than regular wall painting, but you won't have to worry about a thing, because you’ll have this handy guide by your side! We'll be bringing you through the entire painting process, from gathering your supplies to picking the right primer and paint, and of course, painting your stairs the right way. Stairs Painting Tools & Equipment
Your driveway is one of the first things that passers-by and visitors see. It's also the first thing that greets you when you return home. Granted, most driveways aren't there for aesthetics, but a worn-out driveway can give your property an overall rundown and neglected feel. To prevent this, you don't have to splurge on an expensive driveway replacement — all it takes is some simple repairs and a new coat of paint (or technically coating). In this article, we're going to cover how to choose the right coating, how to apply it for both concrete and asphalt driveways, and other important things to note when painting a driveway. Here's how to ensure a smooth and successful driveway paint job. How Much Of An Impact Can Painting Make? It's not just about looking nice — a new layer of coating is instrumental to ensuring the longevity and durability of your driveway. UV rays, moisture, and oil are the main culprits behind cracking, fading, and staining. A good protective coating shields your driveway from these damaging elements, adding years to its lifespan and dramatically reducing the amount of maintenance and repairs that you'll need to perform. And don't forget that with the huge facelift that it gives your home, it also brings up its resale value by quite a fair bit. It's not uncommon for a driveway paint job to yield a return on investment of 50% to over 100%, especially if you’re DIYing to keep costs down. On top of all these, consider that by protecting your driveway and helping to stave off any significant damage, the protective coating delays a $5,000-15,000 driveway replacement. So the impact a coating can have, particularly on your finances, is certainly more than enough to justify the time and capital costs. Here’s how to protect your driveway with a coating. Step 1: Choosing The Right Paint For concrete driveways, since they’ll be subjected to stressors like the weight of cars and friction from car tires, you need to use an extra-tough coating. And there’s no tougher paint out there than a combination of an epoxy base coat with a urethane top coat. These are two separate coatings that you’ll have to purchase on their own, but it’s necessary for maximum toughness. Alternatively, you could also opt for acrylic concrete coatings. Those are less durable, but much easier to apply. Layering an epoxy and urethane coating will give you solid protection. You’ll have: Strong UV resistance Excellent moisture resistance to prevent moisture damage Great abrasion resistance to resist wear and tear from tires and foot traffic Chemical resistance for protection against oil, fuel, brake fluid, etc By layering those two coatings, you’ll keep your driveway well-protected against the main damage culprits — UV rays, moisture, and oil. In comparison, acrylic concrete coatings still protect against UV rays and moisture, but they don’t hold up well against friction, chemicals, and oil. Consequently, if you opt for acrylic concrete coatings, expect to have to recoat about twice as often. Moving on to asphalt, asphalt is petroleum-based, and petroleum reacts poorly with most paints. As such, regular paints won’t stay on asphalt. Instead, you’ll need specialized asphalt sealers. These specialized sealers will soak into asphalt and restore its deep black color, as well as help keep out UV rays, moisture, oil, and chemicals, while also improving the asphalt’s flexibility. Step 2: Cleaning And Repairs If there's debris and dirt all over your driveway, your coating won't adhere securely, so cleaning is an essential preparation step. Cleaning
We live in an amazing time where new discoveries are being made every day, and technology can now do things we’d never have imagined possible a decade ago. In today’s world, your paint can do way more than just make your home look pretty. There are now paints and coatings that can clean themselves, heal their own scratches and scuffs, and even regulate temperature! This means lower energy bills, cooler homes, less maintenance, and safer and healthier living spaces. And that’s not all. There are even more amazing and advanced technologies in the works, and we’ll be covering them in this article too. Ready to find out what these smart paint technologies are and what they can do for you? Let’s begin! What Are Smart Paints And Coatings? Before we get into the actual smart paints and coatings, let’s clear up a common area of confusion first — what actually are smart paints and coatings? Well, there’s actually no strict definition or a single quality that makes a paint or coating smart, and the technologies behind each smart paint and coating can vary quite a bit. In general though, paints and coatings need to be able to sense and react to the environment appropriately to be considered “smart”. So when there’s a change in the environment, whether it’s temperature, light, moisture, or even bacteria, a smart coating would sense it and react in a useful way, whether it’s changing its color, releasing a chemical, or some other reaction. However, a paint or coating can’t be considered “smart” just because it has a bit more added functionality. For instance, there are paints and coatings that reflect more sunlight and keep your space cooler, but those wouldn’t be considered smart since they don’t actually sense the environment, and they don’t react . The definition of smart is still slightly vague, but you get the idea — it needs to sense and react to be “smart”. Alright, now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s jump right into the smart paints and coatings. 1. Self-Cleaning Paints
Looking to revamp your mobile home? Or maybe you're just tired of driving around a relic on wheels. Either way, repainting your mobile home can make it look like new again, and turn it from a tired, weathered ride to something that you proudly show off to others. It also helps protect your mobile home’s exterior from the elements, and can even help maintain interior energy efficiency. Before you start painting your mobile home though, you should know that painting mobile homes requires different preparation techniques and steps, as well as different paint types from normal wall painting. The painting application method is the same as for normal walls, but given that you'll be painting either metal siding, vinyl siding, or fiberglass panels, you'll need to prepare them differently for the paint to be able to adhere to them. Since your mobile home will also be exposed to road debris, you'll also need to choose your paint carefully for toughness. And that's not all. There are a few other things that need to be done differently throughout the entire painting process, and it’s important to get them right for a successful mobile home painting project. You’ve got nothing to worry about though, because we’re here to walk you through the entire process. Let’s get started. Tools & Equipment
When it comes to designing their home office, many people focus on the desk, the chair, monitor placement, plants, and so on. But one crucial aspect that people often miss out is the color of their walls, usually because they don’t think it really matters. However, multiple studies have shown that colors do affect your mood and productivity. Even putting studies aside, just ask yourself, would you be able to work in a completely black room? Or how about one with rainbow colors? Those are extreme examples, but just imagine yourself working in those environments, and it should be apparent that colors can definitely affect your mood and focus. To be fair, colors won’t double your productivity or magically make you smarter, but they do have very real effects on your creativity, decision-making, stress levels, eye fatigue, and so on. These effects may not be particularly noticeable, or perhaps they might not even manifest themselves, so sometimes, it can feel like your choice of paint color doesn’t really make a difference. But no matter what, the possibility that the right colors could help you complete your work quicker and produce higher-quality work should be enough to warrant some serious consideration for the palette you surround yourself with. And the more often you work from home and the longer your working hours, the more important this becomes. Either way, whether you work from home one day a week or you’re fully remote, here’s how to choose the right paint colors for your workspace at home. Color Psychology: What Can Paint Colors Do For You? Why is the blue sky relaxing? Why are sunflowers and the sun associated with happiness and cheerfulness? Certain colors just never fail to invoke certain feelings and moods. That's the power of colors. Here are some of the amazing things that colors can do for you Blue: Improves concentration, stimulates thinking, and provides mental clarity. Green: Similar effects to greenery in nature — rescues eye strain and lowers stress, enhancing comfort when you're working. Yellow: Sparks creativity and innovation, and also energizes your mind. Neutrals: Reduce visual distractions, thus helping maintain mental focus and concentration, and facilitating thinking. Red: Boosts energy and can also increase heart rate. Once again, these likely won't be very keenly felt. You’re probably not going to walk into a yellow-painted room and suddenly start getting a ton of fantastic ideas for your novel. However, if you’re mindful enough and observe closely, over time, you’ll probably notice the subtle influences of each color on the way you feel or the way your mind works. You might even notice them from the first moment you step into the room if the shift is strong enough or if you’re very self-aware. So now that you know the impact that paint colors have on your mental and physical state, and your productivity, the next question is, how do you go about choosing the right colors for your home office? We’ll now be going into more in-depth breakdowns of each color and explain when, where, and how to use each one, so that you maximize its positive impact. Best Colors For Calm And Focus A lot of times, calm and focus are the number one priorities for workspaces, so we’ll be starting with the best colors to achieve those — blue and green. These colors keep you calm and steady while at the same time helping your mind stay sharp and concentrated, which is why they’re so popular for workspaces. Blue
Nobody ever buys just the right amount of paint to use, unless they're really really lucky. In most cases, you'll end up with some leftover (or a little short if you're unlucky). What most homeowners do when they have leftover paint is usually to just store it away, and that's a smart move, because you may need it later on for touch-ups, repairs, or color matching. The problem is, a lot of times, after a year or two, when they eventually have need of the paint again, it's separated, crusted, or unusable. This is often because they didn't store it properly, but it could also be because it's past the shelf life of the paint. Whatever the case, knowing how to dispose of paint you no longer need or can use is important, because improper disposal can not only be very harmful to the environment, but is also illegal in some regions. If you're wondering why something as seemingly harmless as disposing of paint can be illegal, that's because it's not harmless, far from it . We'll go deeper into their dangers later on, but for now, you just need to know that they can be extremely dangerous if you just casually throw them into bins. And if you still choose to go ahead with improper disposal, you risk facing fines of hundreds to thousands of dollars, being liable for cleanup costs, and even being criminally charged. So don't just chuck your unused paint into the bin. Here's what to do instead. Why Proper Paint Disposal Is So Important Starting with the environmental effects, when you pour paint down drains, it can clog up pipes and disrupt wastewater systems. They won't be filtered out by wastewater systems either, since these systems aren't designed for paint, so your paint will get past these systems and go into waterways. Through these waterways, they then flow to rivers, lakes, and oceans, harming aquatic life and contaminating drinking water. That’s not all though. As if environmental damage wasn’t bad enough, improper paint disposal can also severely wound workers who’re working around it. In the best case, workers may only inhale the VOCs and experience symptoms like headaches, dizziness, and nausea. But in the worst cases, since paints and thinners are flammable, when mixed with hazardous waste like batteries, they can easily ignite or even explode, especially under heat and pressure in compactors, landfills, and trucks. This is exactly why it’s illegal to dispose of leftover paint without taking the proper steps first. You could end up costing people their lives or causing huge fires to break out. It’s also why the punishment for unsafe paint disposal can be quite severe, ranging from fines of hundreds of thousands of dollars, to even imprisonment. These punishments may seem severe just for throwing a can of paint away, but they’re necessary to deter the unthinkable harm that could happen from that mere can of paint. How To Not Waste Paint
At first glance, using a paint sprayer seems like a much easier way to get your house painted than rolling. You just spray over the areas that need to be covered like spraying a hose, and voila , you now have an evenly covered, smoothly painted wall. No need to go through hours of rolling, and no need to make sure that you maintain consistent pressure and cover every spot on the surface evenly with your roller. However, in reality, it’s a bit more nuanced than that. Spraying is undoubtedly a much faster and more efficient way to go about painting your home. But while it sounds straightforward, spraying paint is a longer and trickier process than most homeowners realize. It comes with its fair share of additional steps and demands, which you need to be aware of before you go out and purchase a paint sprayer and start spraying your walls. Now, we’re not saying don’t spray paint your home. In fact, there are various situations in which you should definitely be spray painting instead of rolling. The key is to know when to spray paint and when to roll. Both spray painting and rolling have their pros and cons, and in this article, we’ll be breaking them down for you, as well as going over when to use each paint application method. What Is Spray Painting? Spray painting works by atomizing paint into fine droplets, so that when you spray the paint, it comes out as mist. When done right, it not only allows you to cover large areas quickly, but also uniformly, and it gives you a smooth, professional-looking finish. The downside is that it requires much more preparation, and the technique is harder to learn than rolling. Without the right technique, you could easily end up with ugly streaks or even have to redo the entire paint job. As such, while spray painting can be faster, its speed also means that it’s harder to control, and when things go wrong, they can go downhill fast. What Is Rolling?
VOCs (volatile organic compounds) are chemicals that help traditional paints dry quickly and adhere well. If you can smell that fresh paint smell, it means that your paint contains VOCs. These chemicals are necessary for paint performance, at least for traditional paint, but unfortunately, they also pose health hazards and environmental risks. VOCs can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, liver and kidney damage in the long term, and various other health issues. And kids, seniors, and those with asthma or allergies are more prone to those effects. This isn't usually a problem outdoors since they dissipate quickly, but indoors, in an enclosed space, with possibly poor ventilation, VOC levels can get quite high, leading to negative health effects. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), after a paint project, indoor VOC levels can be up to 5 times higher than outdoor levels. Obviously, this is less than ideal, which is why it's worth paying more for low or even zero-VOC paints. Still, some would argue that it's only a one-off painting project, so as long as there's proper ventilation, higher VOC levels won't pose an issue. We're here to tell you that's not true. But we're also aware you won't just take our word for it — and you shouldn't. Instead, read on to learn about what VOCs are, why they're needed, how much lower-VOC paints cost, and how to actually find them. Then, decide for yourself whether they're truly worth it. Let's begin. What Are VOCs? First things first, let's go over what VOCs are, because if they're so harmful, why the heck do we put them in paints? VOCs are organic compounds that evaporate easily at room temperature. As paint dries, VOCs get released into the atmosphere, a process known as off-gassing. In other words, after the project is completed, the paint continues to release VOCs for days, weeks, or even longer. The thing is, VOCs are essential for traditional paint to adhere well and dry quickly. Without them, you could be waiting hours or even days for the paint to dry, and it wouldn’t adhere well, which means it’d start peeling in no time. Thankfully, the good news is that with the advancements in technology, today’s paints no longer require such a high amount of VOCs to function well. Some don’t even require VOCs at all. Here’s how modern low-VOC paints perform. Performance Of Low-VOC Paints Lower-VOC paints are every bit as high-performance as high-VOC paints, and can even beat high-VOC paints in certain aspects. Here’s how they match up. Application & Ease Of Use
Looking to hire a professional house painter in Raleigh, NC , but not sure how to find a good one? Whenever you're engaging a painting company or any sort of contractor, doing your due diligence is crucial to ensuring you find a solid contractor. It's not just about whether they can get the work done well. A good contractor should have the necessary credentials, be willing to back up their work with a warranty, and take care of your property while carrying out the job. Doing the necessary research may feel slightly tedious, and is definitely more effort and time spent on your part, but you need to be meticulous when vetting contractors. Otherwise, you could be stuck with peeling paint and no warranty to fall back on. Or if you end up hiring a painter who isn't registered or insured, there's nothing protecting you when things go wrong. Sounds scary? Great! Then you should be ready to do your research. Here are the things to look out for when engaging a house painting contractor in Raleigh, NC. 1. Registration And Insurance Since painting is typically only cosmetic, there isn't much risk or danger of structural damage or people getting hurt from sharp tools. As such, painting projects generally have less strict regulations than larger and more expensive projects like bathroom remodeling and roofing. Licenses are also usually not required unless the size of the job is more than $40,000, and permits aren't required either way as long as the project scope is just painting. Having said that, it's still important to ensure that your contractor is registered as a business in North Carolina. You can verify this by doing a search on the NC Secretary of State’s website . Type in the company or painter’s name, and the status should be “Active”. That means the business is legally recognized by the state of NC, is current on its filing and fees, and is authorized to operate in North Carolina. It also means that you can hold them accountable and pursue legal recourse if things go awry. Another important box to check is whether the contractor is insured . Specifically, the contractor or company should have general liability insurance, as well as workers’ compensation insurance if they have a team. General liability insurance covers third-party bodily injury, property damage, and legal liability. This doesn’t mean they can act as they wish and be protected from legal damage, or can get away with intentionally damaging your property or others. General liability insurance only covers the above-mentioned areas if it was unintentional, eg someone trips over their materials, or the contractor spills paint on your hardwood floor, or if you sue them as a result of their unintentional mistake. It doesn’t cover poor workmanship or damage to their own tools, or if their own workers get injured on the job. That’s covered by the other insurance we mentioned — workers’ compensation insurance. Workers’ compensation insurance ensures that if a crew member gets injured on your property, such as if they fall off the ladder, the responsibility doesn’t fall on you. Without either of these insurances, you could be in a lot of trouble if things go wrong. Even though those damages should rightfully fall to your contractor, if they don’t have insurance, and they refuse to cover damages, you’ll end up having to bear it all. You could take legal action, but that’s an expensive route even if you win. Or worse, they could even turn around and sue you if their workers get injured on your property, claiming unsafe conditions. So always request to see the Certificate of Insurance for general liability insurance and workers’ compensation insurance if they have a team, and check that they’re current and valid. 2. Warranties
