It's no secret that painting a room in your house is no easy feat. Once you've picked out the right color, it starts to feel like the fun part is over and minor thoughts start to become major concerns.
Did I pick the right primer? How will I tell if I mess up? Can I still use the paint that's been in my garage forever? To get the bottom of these tricky questions, HuffPost Home reached out to a few painting experts for help.
Scroll through the painting tips below.
1. Revive those leftovers from your garage.
If your paint "looks like cottage cheese, it's useless," said Ken Collier of The Family Handyman, a DIY home improvement site. But he assured us that "latex paint can freeze a couple times and still be good." Once you determine if your paint can be used again, Collier said it's best to buy a little paper filter at your local hardware store to filter out little bits of dry paint and rust, then you're good to go.
2. Spend a few dollars on a clamp light.
It could be the best $5 to $10 you'll spend, especially if you catch any mistakes before you finish painting. "Position the light to illuminate each section of your wall from below so that you can really see the paint go down smoothly," said Jean Brownhill Lauer of Sweeten, an online matchmaking service for homeowners and renovation professionals. "This will help you avoid skid and the lumpy, uneven hallmarks of a DIY paint job."
3. Pick the right primer.
"When priming a wall, consider tinting the primer towards the color you'll be repainting. It will help you achieve full coverage faster," said Kristen Chuber of Paintzen, a painting service that uses technology to connect people with painters. And if you're painting over a dark wall, Collier suggested using a white primer, though a grey primer "may give a more 'true' final color or require fewer coats."
4. Use tape to prep your roller brush.
"New roller brushes are usually covered in tiny hairs and bristles," said Lauer. "Use the tape like a lint roller to remove that extra layer so it doesn't end up under the fresh paint on your walls." Congratulations, you've already avoided your first mishap.
5. Forget making a "W." Paint on vertical stripes.
You're ready to paint, but how should you cut into that big wall? "The classic advice for rolling on paint is to put a "W" on the wall, said Collier. "Many pro painters don’t do that, preferring to load the roller and do a vertical stripe top to bottom, overlapping each time. It gives the paint a very uniform coverage."
6. Store wet paint rollers in sealed plastic bags.
"It will keep [the rollers] from drying out," Chuber said. If you need to pick up where you left off the next day, you won't need to worry about a hard, dry paint roller."
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