Painting your house can seem like one of the easier DIY home fixer-upper tasks out there. And when you compare the consequences of screwing up a paint job compared to plumbing or electrical work, painting seems a lot less daunting. But, just like everything else, there is a learning curve. And if you have absolutely no experience painting, take some time to figure out what projects might be a good fit for you, and when to throw in the towel and hire a professional.

Case Study: The Living Room Redo – DIY Attempt and hire a Professional Painter

A couple decided to repaint their living room themselves, motivated by potential savings. They tackled the project, focusing on the intricate trim work and a bold feature wall. However, they soon encountered challenges: uneven application on the trim and mismatched sheens on the feature wall, leading to a less-than-satisfactory finish. Recognizing the task’s complexity, they called in our team at Paint Pals. We corrected the uneven trim work, achieved the desired wall sheen, and ensured a seamless finish. The thrilled couple marveled at the transformation, acknowledging the professional service’s expertise and efficiency that dramatically improved their project.

Real small spots – like a single wall in a small room

Small spots are a great starting point for the first-time painter. If you screw it up, not a huge deal. Do it again or hire a professional right?

You could get some price quotes to see whether or not it makes sense to hire. Bigger, more established painting companies will usually have a minimum job fee. Don’t take it personally, larger companies have a lot of overhead and it’s simply not profitable for them to take on small jobs at low prices. Try a local handyman or new painting company that’s eager to get their foot in the door with some small jobs.

Condition of walls and other materials to be painted

What’s the condition of the walls, doors, trim, or other surfaces that need to be painted? If the surfaces that need to be painted in your home are in good condition, then go for it! The average DIYer can probably even handle some minor repairs when it comes to dings and dents in drywall or doors. I’m talking about nail holes and other small imperfections. 

It becomes very time-consuming and difficult for the average DIYer to make large-scale repairs before painting. The hardest part about making repairs is getting it to blend in. If you have smooth walls it’s relatively easy to fill holes and sand over them. Where it gets hard is matching textures. Even if you feel you’ve done a good job matching the texture, paint might show differently on patched areas resulting in spotting. An experienced professional painter will have seen it all, and they’ll be able to confidently tackle this for you.

Intricacy

Merely assessing the area to be painted doesn’t reliably indicate the project’s duration; complexity and detail can significantly affect time requirements. Painting 100 ft² of smooth wall is going to take a fraction of the time as painting 100 ft² of cabinets. For the inexperienced DIYer, painting intricate details will quickly become tedious and time-consuming. That’s true for experienced DIYers too! It is advisable to hire a professional for situations with lots of detailed painting. Such areas could include cabinets, rooms with many different colors, or areas with lots of fine wood detailing.

Exterior

If you own a one-level home that doesn’t require a ton of prep work, that might be a good DIY project! You should also take into consideration how much experience you have. If you have never done any painting, I wouldn’t even consider doing this. Just hire a professional. Painting outside adds multiple layers of complexity. Getting a clean-looking finish is hard if you don’t know what you’re doing.

How many levels is your house? Painting a one-story home isn’t a huge deal. You can knock that out with a basic A-frame ladder. Once you start getting into the two or three-story homes, you will need a small collection of different ladders. Not only that, but you will need the confidence to get up the ladder and paint all day. The view from 30-40 ft up is a lot different at the top of a ladder compared to the bottom. You’ll spend a lot of time and energy climbing up and down the ladder every time you need to move it. Painting can be very physically demanding!

The other big thing to consider is, how much prep work will your house require? Are you familiar with local regulations regarding power washing and how to collect waste water? That might not be a concern depending on where you live and when your house was built, but it should be on your radar.

Colors and sheens

Not every paint is made equally. The same can be said for the application process. A professional painter will know what to look out for when it comes to colors and sheens. It’s not always a matter of one color being good at covering or hiding. You’ll have to consider the color that’s underneath, the base paint, how much tint is involved, and the sheen! Different sheens will have different application processes. If you don’t have much experience, you’ll want to test out your paints before diving in. Apply large areas of paint to be confident with your results. Also, consider speaking with a color consultant if you don’t want to hire a painter. 

If you are wanting to apply high-sheen paints, consider hiring a professional. Lower sheen paints are a lot easier to apply and allow for easier touch-up work. They are much more forgiving for the inexperienced painter.

Whole house

Whether you are looking at the whole house on the inside, or outside, how much time are you looking to spend painting? This could end up being the kind of project that eats up every waking minute of every weekend for a month or two. For every project where I’m not experienced, I always end up taking two or three times as long as I expected. But hey, maybe you’re more realistic than I am! Professionals complete painting jobs much quicker than inexperienced DIYers, saving you significant time. This efficiency means less disruption at home, avoiding the inconvenience of navigating an ongoing project.

Quality

Last but not least is quality. Do you care if there are some imperfections? Do things have to look perfect? Are you trying to get your home into selling condition? Then it may be worth hiring a professional to do it. A reputable painting company will offer a guarantee on their work, so you can be confident in the outcome. 

If you’re anything like me, taking on a project in an area where I have little to no experience almost always ends in less-than-perfect results. And that makes sense right? How are you going to paint your home for the first time and do a better job than someone who has been doing it day in and day out for 25 years? You won’t. So consider hiring if a few drip marks or imperfections are going to ruin it for you.

Thanks for trusting us with your painting advice. As always feel free to get in touch with us if you have any questions!