Decorating is a beast of a job if you elect to tackle a huge room or a complex hall, stairs, and landing project. But if done well, the end result is well worth your time, sweat, and tears. The key to success when decorating is protecting everything you don’t want to be painted or papered. In this article, we are going to look at how best to do that and succeed in home decoration project.
Dropcloths
Paint is great, but not when you get it all over your hardwood floor, expensive leather sofas, and plush rugs. Before starting a decorating project, remove everything you can from the room. Anything that is left must be covered. Use heavy-duty dropcloths from a company such as Trimaco to protect your floors and furniture. Drape them over your floors and furniture before you open a can of paint. That way, you don’t need to worry about paint splashes and other mishaps.
Specialist Protection Materials
If you are decorating a kitchen or anywhere with a range of different surfaces, check out the various surface protection materials available, such as absorbent paper and delicate floor protector. Corrugated plastic sheeting is handy for protecting different surfaces, including countertops. Any type of plastic protection material will prevent paint and corrosive substances from attacking the surface of delicate items of furniture, wooden flooring, and carpets.
If you need to protect a floor, such as hardwood, vinyl, or tile, look for an adhesive protective material that will stay in place until you are ready to remove it. This is important when you want to protect stairs, as plastic, cotton or canvas cloths won’t stay put on stairs unless they are taped down. Be mindful of health and safety issues. The last thing you want is a contractor falling down the stairs because they tripped over a loose section of cloth.
Plastic Sheets for Windows
Adhesive plastic sheeting is useful for protecting windows from paint. It comes in rolls. The low tack surface adheres to glass, but it is easy to remove at the end of the job. You can also use this type of plastic sheeting to protect kitchen units and awkwardly shaped items, such as heaters and wall-mounted boilers.
Masking Tape
Don’t forget about the small things, such as electrical outlets and lights. Masking tape is handy for protecting electrical outlets and skirting boards. Run a length of masking tape along an edge and wrap it over an outlet. You can easily remove it when you are done.
Plastic Bags
Use plastic bags to protect ceiling and wall lights if you don’t want to take them down. Wrap plastic bags over light fittings and fix them in place using masking tape. Be careful not to use plastic on lights with old-style bulbs, as these get hot when switched on. LED bulbs are cool to the touch, so they are safer.
Lastly, always protect entrances and exits if you have contractors in. They need to walk in and out of the building, so unless you want to clean all the carpets at the end of the project, put some sheeting down to keep them clean.
