Care After Painting

Posted: 06 August 2009 by Dulux

Tags: colours, maintenance, paint

Extending the Life of Your Paintwork
Throughout the living areas and bedrooms of most homes, walls and ceilings are normally finished in ‘Flat’ or ‘Low Sheen’ Acrylic. Most water-based paints appear to dry out quickly after application, but in fact it takes around a full week under normal climatic conditions to cure and develop full washability. So, if little fingers draw on or otherwise disfigure your newly painted wall within a few days of it being finished, you should resist the temptation to wash it straight away. Instead, give it up to a week to cure then wash it down to your satisfaction.

Cleaning 'Flat' Paintwork

• Flat paint is normally used on ceilings. The ceilings can be made to look like new if you follow these few simple directions for the removal of dirt, scuff marks, etc.
• Don’t use rough abrasives or solvent cleaners, stiff scrubbing brushes or harsh caustic preparations. These will ‘gloss’ or polish the surface resulting in obvious highlights, which can only be rectified by repainting.
• Instead, use warm water to which a small amount of mild detergent has been added.
• Apply the solution to the affected area with a soft cloth, or a soft bristle brush where the marking is particularly stubborn.
• Having thoroughly cleaned the affected area, you should then proceed to wash down the whole wall or ceiling to eliminate any chance of patchiness.
• Finally, rinse off the washed area with clean water to allow to dry.

Cleaning ‘Gloss, Low Sheen and Semi-Gloss’ paintwork
In the service rooms of your home, such as bathroom, laundry and kitchen, all surfaces are prone to a build-up of film composed of cooking fats, soap, household dust and so on. In a relatively period, this film will dull the most successful paintwork but careful and periodic cleaning can greatly extend the life of your painted surfaces. Simply follow these easy directions.

• Don’t use abrasives or caustic-based cleaning compounds as these will scratch or eat into the paint surface you are doing your best to maintain. Instead use warm water, with a little detergent added.
• Apply to the affected area with a soft cloth and be sure to wash down the whole surface as well. Where necessary, use a soft bristle brush and a little more elbow grease than you might safely use on ‘flat’ paintwork.
• Wash to whole job down with clean water and allow to dry.

Looking After Outside Paintwork
Whether your home is timber, cement render, brick, masonry or some form of building panel, all exterior painted surfaces will benefit greatly from an annual spring clean. Approach the job in much the same way as for interior surfaces.

• Prepare a bucket of warm water mixed with a moderate amount of household detergent. Caustic-based preparations should not be used as they will often remove not only the grime but a good part of your paint covering as well.
• Apply to the entire painted area with a soft bristle brush, broom or soft cloth, naturally you will need ladders, scaffolding and a long handled applicator to reach some of the higher parts of your home’s exterior, under eaves, along fascias, etc.
• Before the wall or other painted surface has the opportunity to dry, you should hose it down thoroughly with clean water. Hosing down by itself, even with a very good water pressure, is not usually sufficient to remove the normal build-up of road grime, sap stains, dust and so on.

A good job will keep your home looking clean, extend the life of your paintwork and add to its value. Through periodic washing, you may observe parts of the exterior (window frames, etc), which could benefit from a little ‘maintenance painting’. By touching up before the next overall paint job, you may be able to keep the amount of make-ready required for your next all-over painting job to the minimum.

The paint finish on different walls of your home do not deteriorate at the same rate. In general, the west wall will first show signs of break down, followed later by the north wall, then the east wall and finally the south wall. To reduce the amount of work, paint one wall of your home per year in the order of surface deterioration. So, paint the west wall in year one, north wall in year two, east wall in year three and south wall in year four. By painting one side of your home each year before the surface coating breaks down, you will save a lot of work and unnecessary expense on make-ready materials. Ensure that you use Dulux Weathershield for the best results and the longest life span.