The Importance of Preparing Your Walls Before Painting

When we think about repainting our home’s walls, we often imagine the process of slathering a paint product over the surfaces with a brush. However, what many homeowners fail to realize is that this is only one part of the project. In fact, interior painting requires a certain amount of preparation that can easily go overlooked in the interest of saving time. This is the importance of preparing your walls before painting them and what benefits you gain by doing so.

Proper Paint Curing

First, proper wall prep ensures the paint will stick correctly to the surface and be less likely to chip away later on. Years of use tend to leave our interior walls marked up and dirty, and these particles act as a barrier that prevents the paint from fully reaching the porous drywall. For this reason, cleaning off the areas you’re going to paint is crucial to both applying the product and making sure it lasts.

Even Distribution of Color

The importance of preparing your walls before painting is also clear when you consider how evenly the color will be applied. Paint primer is used to help protect the wall and make it easier for the pigment to soak into a material. So, if it isn’t used or allowed to fully dry before being painted over it, it can give the color a patchy appearance when you’re done. Some areas might look like you expected, while some might be darker. As such, prep is key when looking for consistency.

Increased Product Durability

When the paint has what it needs to dry and stick properly to a wall, it also increases the product’s overall durability. The pigment will be much harder to blemish, and the quality of the color will remain for much longer. Preparation can also make the product less prone to cracking or chipping over time, which will retain the new look you love.

A Flawlessly Smooth Aesthetic

Perhaps most importantly, wall preparation will ensure your finished product is smooth in both appearance and touch. This is because anything that could’ve caused bumps or divots in the paint has already been removed. Old, wrinkled wallpaper and damage are usually the main offenders in these situations. Therefore, getting rid of them ahead of time will set the stage for a better aesthetic after the fact.

So, as demonstrated, wall preparation is just as vital to a project as the painting process itself—if not more so. Because of this, you want to take your time with these initial steps and may even consider hiring a professional to do them in a timely and quality manner. At Bear Mountain Custom Painting, we strive to help homeowners with tasks just like these. Our team of experienced interior home painters in Cumming, GA knows exactly what needs to be done before painting can start and how to get you the best results possible.