Day: 24 September 2019

Whether you’re looking to hire professional decorators or paint your own walls, knowing when and how often to paint them can make a huge difference to the overall appearance of your home.

We may suggest you repaint every few years depending on the room, however, the only true answer is: repaint whenever you want to! Fashions and preferences change so you don’t have to wait several years before repainting. 

However, if you’re not looking to redecorate every month,  we’ve assessed how often you’ll need to repaint your walls depending on each type of room. This is because some rooms experience more daily wear and tear than others. If you feel that your interior walls are looking a little poorly then it’s a good idea to repaint them sooner than later, but here are some general timeframes for each room.

Repainting Bedrooms

Since bedrooms are typically only used in the evenings (unless you love a nap), they won’t see much general wear and tear and you can repaint them every 5 to 7 years. However, if we’re assessing a kid’s bedroom then you’ll likely need to repaint and redecorate the room every 2 to 3 years.

Repainting Hallways

Hallways and corridors typically need repainting more often than most other rooms because they’re used often and people are active in these rooms. You’ll want to repaint corridors and hallways every 2 to 4 years to keep it looking fresh.

Repainting Bathrooms

Bathrooms need to be repainted often due to the amount of moisture in the rooms that could affect the paint. It’s important to use a durable paint and ensure that all of the hot steam from a shower or bath is ventilated properly. If you’re unable to do this, then it needs to be repainted every 2 to 3 years, but you can extend this to 3 to 4 years if you pick a durable paint and ensure it’s well-ventilated.

Repainting Kitchens

Kitchens can be repainted every 3 to 4 years if you keep it well-ventilated and ensure that all of the grime is kept to a minimum. 

Repainting Dining Room

Dining rooms don’t see much use unless it’s a part of your kitchen or living room, so they can be repainted every 4 to 7 years depending on where they are positioned.

Living Room

You’ll most likely spend a lot of time in your living room so you’ll need to repaint every 3 to 4 years or generally whenever you want a decor change. 

Repainting the Ceiling

Ceilings should also be repainted depending on how often the room is used and other factors such as moisture, poor ventilation, grease and so on. For instance, a bathroom ceiling should be repainted every 4 to 6 years or every second time that you repaint the walls. It’s important that you repaint any coving – you’ll definitely notice the difference in paint colour if you don’t!

Repainting Doors

Doors and other interior trims such as windows, cabinets, baseboards and other decorative elements can be repainted every 2 to 5 years depending on where the doors are. You can generally time this alongside repainting your interior walls.

Repainting Exteriors

Exteriors can typically be repainted every 4 to 7 years depending on the material. For wood, you can expect to repaint it more often whereas brick doesn’t need to be repainted for over 15 years. You also need to take the weather into consideration, so this is something that is usually up to your own decision depending on its appearance.

Decorating your house is going to do so much for the aesthetics of the home, but each room is different from the next, and the cost of one room will be different to the cost of painting another. Therefore, the cost of painting a room can vary from £200 to upwards of £1,000 depending on the size of the room, the wall conditions, the type of paint you would like, the finish and the time needed.  

When you catch the DIY bug, and want to start redecorating your home (or you want to hire a professional decorator), you’ll need to make a list before diving in. Decorating is exciting, however, you’ll need to estimate correctly in order to get a reasonable price for painting supplies or before you bring in the professionals. 

There are five distinct factors to consider when calculating the costs of painting a room, and we’ve got a list of those considerations for you below. Let’s take a look!

Wall Conditions

The rooms that you are planning to paint need much more than a bucket of your favourite colour and a brush. You need to assess the conditions of the room before you get started. You need to:

• Check for scratches and cracks, holes and grease stains that can make a difference to the painting job that you have ahead of you
• Prepare the walls with sugar soap to remove grease
• Use filler to fill any holes in the walls
• Sand those down until they’re even
• Protect switches with masking tape from paint splatters

These small preparation tips are going to get your walls in the best condition for the paint job you need to do. If you’re hiring professional painters, they’ll prepare the walls for you. If you’re looking to do this yourself, the preparation can cost you up to £125.00, as you have to buy in the cleaning materials, filler, sandpaper, covers and sheets and masking tape to protect light switches and other sensitive areas.

Room Size

The bigger the room, the more paint you have to factor in. You’ll most likely need additional preparation materials and time. 

Type Of Paint

There are different types of paint that you use to paint a room, from the emulsion on the walls to the undercoat and gloss top coat of paint that goes on wooden areas, like skirting boards and doors. If you choose to go for budget paint options, it may be thinner than the branded versions, which means more coats of the paint on the walls for it to achieve the desired effect.

Patterns

Choosing to add patterns in the paint on your walls is more time consuming than just painting the wall in one colour, and may also require more paint. This can add to your quote as you will need to factor in the costs of different paint colours, materials to set and make the patterns on the walls and the time it takes to complete. It’s far more intricate work and requires a skilled decorator. Get in touch with us today and tell us about your preferred pattern.

Time Taken

Lastly, you must think about the time it takes to paint a room. An average-sized living room – painted correctly – can take a day to a day and a half. You’re paying for the labour of the person painting the room, plus VAT, and it’s essential to know your budget and your limitations before you seek a quote.

AP decorators are experienced decorators in Kent. We’ll provide a very competitive quote, so if you’re based in the Kent area, get in contact with us today on 01622 749 676.