Hello forum,
The interior plaster is applied, and the painting work will start soon.
I believe it is a "wallpaper-ready fine plaster," which I think corresponds to quality level Q2, probably gypsum plaster.
To me, it looks very tidy and smooth, so I hardly see much need for filling, except for fixing a few small imperfections.
We don’t have high standards and just want everything to be white. I feel confident enough to prime and paint directly on the plaster myself. I also have the time for it.
My question is what a professional painter would do differently or better—basically, what is the added value of having it done professionally?
For example, I’ve read that painting fleece (paintable wallpaper or fleece) can cover or prevent plaster cracks. Would that be recommended instead of painting directly on the plaster?
In the end, it should simply look white, smooth, even, and neat.
Thanks!
The interior plaster is applied, and the painting work will start soon.
I believe it is a "wallpaper-ready fine plaster," which I think corresponds to quality level Q2, probably gypsum plaster.
To me, it looks very tidy and smooth, so I hardly see much need for filling, except for fixing a few small imperfections.
We don’t have high standards and just want everything to be white. I feel confident enough to prime and paint directly on the plaster myself. I also have the time for it.
My question is what a professional painter would do differently or better—basically, what is the added value of having it done professionally?
For example, I’ve read that painting fleece (paintable wallpaper or fleece) can cover or prevent plaster cracks. Would that be recommended instead of painting directly on the plaster?
In the end, it should simply look white, smooth, even, and neat.
Thanks!
Müllerin schrieb:
Everyone has to decide for themselves what something is worth to them.That’s what I’m trying to figure out, since you don’t really know in advance how much “better” it will get. Painting a wall white sounds at first like 90% hard work and 10% skill. But maybe it’s more like 30% hard work, 10% skill, and 60% experience that leads to a good result? I’ve also done it myself several times in rental apartments (with results I was happy with). However, always on textured wallpaper.
H
HilfeHilfe5 Sep 2018 17:45I buy high-quality paint, good brushes, and do it together with a friend.
You can do it yourself, and if you put in the effort, it won’t be worse than an average painting contractor.
Financially, everyone has to calculate for themselves. It’s usually not really cost-effective. You have to buy paint at higher prices, whereas a painting company has capital to buy in bulk. Then you need to count your own hours (a non-professional will need at least three times as long) as well as materials like brushes, masking tape, scaffolding, and so on.
We ran the numbers back then and, given my hourly wage, we might have saved around 2000 euros for both interior and exterior work.
Honestly, I’d rather sit comfortably in a warm office.
Financially, everyone has to calculate for themselves. It’s usually not really cost-effective. You have to buy paint at higher prices, whereas a painting company has capital to buy in bulk. Then you need to count your own hours (a non-professional will need at least three times as long) as well as materials like brushes, masking tape, scaffolding, and so on.
We ran the numbers back then and, given my hourly wage, we might have saved around 2000 euros for both interior and exterior work.
Honestly, I’d rather sit comfortably in a warm office.
We did the basement ourselves. It started with small “little things,” like never quite getting the corners right. I lost count of how many times I dragged tiny scratches with the slightly protruding metal edge of the roller…
What was really annoying, though, was spreading the grit from the plaster across the smooth ceiling. Something I never thought I could manage: filling and sanding the joints…
For the ground floor and the upper floor, I’m still glad we had a professional painter. Sometimes two of them worked for a whole week (spraying texture on the ceiling), and it wouldn’t have been worth my time to do it myself (although we did handle many other tasks on our own).
What was really annoying, though, was spreading the grit from the plaster across the smooth ceiling. Something I never thought I could manage: filling and sanding the joints…
For the ground floor and the upper floor, I’m still glad we had a professional painter. Sometimes two of them worked for a whole week (spraying texture on the ceiling), and it wouldn’t have been worth my time to do it myself (although we did handle many other tasks on our own).
G
Gartenfreund6 Sep 2018 07:21My parents built a house in the early 1950s. From what I’ve heard, all the wallpapering and painting were done by themselves back then. In other words, a professional painter has never set foot in that house. And I don’t think our own painting and wallpapering work is of poor quality.
So, I believe it is possible to achieve results comparable to a professional’s work by doing it yourself.
By the way, except for in the basement, I would never paint directly on the plaster but always put wallpaper in between. It’s definitely easier if you ever want to completely remove the paint.
Taping off door frames and similar areas is also not rocket science. Just recently, a major discount store had masking tape like crepe tape available at a good price—you might still find some in certain branches.
If you want to paint yourself, first work on the corners with a wide brush, then use a roller, making sure not to get too close to the adjacent wall—especially if that wall is already painted.
So, I believe it is possible to achieve results comparable to a professional’s work by doing it yourself.
By the way, except for in the basement, I would never paint directly on the plaster but always put wallpaper in between. It’s definitely easier if you ever want to completely remove the paint.
Taping off door frames and similar areas is also not rocket science. Just recently, a major discount store had masking tape like crepe tape available at a good price—you might still find some in certain branches.
If you want to paint yourself, first work on the corners with a wide brush, then use a roller, making sure not to get too close to the adjacent wall—especially if that wall is already painted.
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