# how to clean microfiber rollers



## stl911 (Jul 16, 2014)

i hope my question is not stupid to you but i have not get the answer yet.

i have been using microfiber exclusive recently. however, cleaning it up is very hard for me to restore it to the original shape. it stick together after i remove excess paint (latex not oil) with 6 in 1, then wash it with clean warm water. 

so, can you let me know how you do it?

throw couple or more of microfiber roller after each job is adding more expense on me

thanks


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## Jmayspaint (Mar 26, 2013)

Spin them out with a hose.


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

try washing them with a little dish or hand soap. It will help quite a bit.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

stl911 said:


> i hope my question is not stupid to you but i have not get the answer yet.
> 
> i have been using microfiber exclusive recently. however, cleaning it up is very hard for me to restore it to the original shape. it stick together after i remove excess paint (latex not oil) with 6 in 1, then wash it with clean warm water.
> 
> ...


I'm from the old school of painting. Three washes and a spin. Can't afford to leave the water running in order to clean a lousy roller sleeve. And if it's the end of the day, I just soak it in water and spin before painting the following day.

In the last thirty years of painting, roller sleeves have never registered as an issue for me. However, I'm kind of a brute when it comes to painting. I don't comb my brush's hair, or spend a whole lot of time nurturing a roller sleeve in hopes that it becomes a better performer. 

Use and abuse baby...I know...pretty ugly.


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## stl911 (Jul 16, 2014)

Jmayspaint said:


> Spin them out with a hose.


i saw people use hose on youtube, however, when i paint apartment the hose is not work as most balcony does not have water pipe, but thanks for sharing


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## radio11 (Aug 14, 2015)

Do you have a hose that works back at the shop or at home?


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## straight_lines (Oct 17, 2007)

We keep them wet. 18's will fit in a six gallon bucket.


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## SemiproJohn (Jul 29, 2013)

Try a price increase that will allow you to throw away the roller covers. Occasionally I will clean out a mini-roller cover, but I chuck the rest.


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## beedoola (May 18, 2015)

Relevant thread. I couldn't clean mine very well either. Ended up tossing them.


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## Gwarel (May 8, 2012)

Scrape it out with a 5 in 1 and let it soak in a bucket of water. Overnight the solids will end up in the bottom of the bucket. Spin to win. If you want to put it up for another day, leave it on the spinner and spin it with a hose. Works with all types of covers.


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## Pete Martin the Painter (Nov 8, 2012)

I use to clean, now I wrap in saran wrap if I need to use it more than one day, then let the paint dry and toss. Not woth the time to clean plus putting all that paint into the enviroment cannot be good. And I think the qaulity of the roller lessens after it is cleaned. If it is small job, I might clean and then use to apply primer.


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## Pete Martin the Painter (Nov 8, 2012)

vermontpainter said:


> Dave
> 
> That is a very good question, and I wont try to speak for NEPS, but I think there are some answers to why a member wouldnt be obliged to post his best strategies on the forum.
> 
> There are so many universal challenges, particularly to marketing - like mailing list generation - that when you find a unique solution and get it to work for you, its almost like proprietary information that you would gladly share with noncompeting colleagues in other markets, but may not feel comfortable sticking on a thread for the world to see. Solving marketing and sales challenges is difficult, and when you do, it gives you a position of differentiation that places you slightly ahead of the curve in your market, and that might make you hesitant to make it readily available to the whole wide world wide web. There are so many people who roll through looking for quick solutions, but never contribute anything meaningful. Just a thought.


Why is it an expense for you. They HO should be paying for any materials.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

Toss em and buy new ones. Build it into the estimate. 1 cover per color/product. It costs more to clean em out than to buy a new one anyway...


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> Toss em and buy new ones. Build it into the estimate. 1 cover per color/product. It costs more to clean em out than to buy a new one anyway...


prove it, please


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## [email protected] (Mar 1, 2008)

The only time I clean a roller is when I am done with the project. Zip lock bag every night. With no air in the bag..Clean when the job is done. If the cover is worth it.


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

Come to my store, buy massive quantities of roller covers at a bulk discount, and use all you need. Just use them and let them dry out. Get a new one every 10 minutes even.


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## George Z (Apr 15, 2007)

Wrap it in plastic if you re-use.
Soak it overnight.
Dish soap, spinning, they are all good suggestions.
Another is, buy rollers that are easier to wash and pre-wet them.
Don't wash them on the lawn or spin them outside if there is paint water in them. 
Paint water needs to go down a sink so it can be treated.
http://ecopainting.ca/eco-painting/environmental-tips/washing-the-rollers-or-not/
Tossing them out is not a good environmental choice:
Simply comparing the environmental impact of paint water waste, versus solid waste of a dried up roller is not an accurate comparison. 
As a painting contractor, we need to replace every thrown out roller with a new one. What is really the ecological footprint created by the process of manufacturing and distributing a new roller? There are raw materials to be created, transported and used, manufacturing waste, water usage, logistics and transportation for distribution etc.


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

George Z said:


> Wrap it in plastic if you re-use.
> Soak it overnight.
> Dish soap, spinning, they are all good suggestions.
> Another is, buy rollers that are easier to wash and pre-wet them.
> ...


But that is all left behind in china so who cares? They don't!


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## George Z (Apr 15, 2007)

PACman said:


> But that is all left behind in china so who cares? They don't!


We do. That's just the manufacturing part of the comment you are referring to, but even at that, less demand means less supply.


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## GoTime (Jul 2, 2013)

If you are doing apartments, just wrap it up in a trash bag. No need to clean just to throw the same color back on it. I'll use a cover for five or six units and then throw it away.



stl911 said:


> i saw people use hose on youtube, however, when i paint apartment the hose is not work as most balcony does not have water pipe, but thanks for sharing


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

chrisn said:


> prove it, please



Buy them by the case during a good sale (or online). pay about $5-6 a piece. bill the customer $11/ea. ,wrapped into your materials and sundries (to which you add 20% markup anyway). how long does it take to thoroughly clean one out? 10-15 mins (ish)...if I pay one of my guys $28/hr and he spends 15 minutes messing with 1 roller cover, it just cost me about $7 plus burden to save 1 cover. Toss it and keep painting.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

PACman said:


> Come to my store, buy massive quantities of roller covers at a bulk discount, and use all you need. Just use them and let them dry out. Get a new one every 10 minutes even.



EXACTLY!! my paint store guys love me....used 3 of them in about 45 minutes today. 3 different colors, 3 walls. i love tray liners and new covers. i buy em in bulk and toss em with the rest of the trash. HO pays for them anyway...


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> Buy them by the case during a good sale (or online). pay about $5-6 a piece. bill the customer $11/ea. ,wrapped into your materials and sundries (to which you add 20% markup anyway). how long does it take to thoroughly clean one out? 10-15 mins (ish)...if I pay one of my guys $28/hr and he spends 15 minutes messing with 1 roller cover, it just cost me about $7 plus burden to save 1 cover. Toss it and keep painting.


approximately 45 seconds for me and I, for one would never bill any of my clients $11 for a sleeve. Do you charge them for your brushes, drops, caulk, etc,etc?


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

chrisn said:


> approximately 45 seconds for me and I, for one would never bill any of my clients $11 for a sleeve. Do you charge them for your brushes, drops, caulk, etc,etc?


If you can fully wash out a dripping wet cover in 45 seconds, I wanna know your secret. In my experience, 45 seconds will get a pretty good mess going. And my HO's pay for my tools to be used as part of the shop rate. How else to you keep things maintained, and purchase new equipment? And of course they pay for caulk, spackle, bondo, etc. That's all part of materials. The paint store doesn't give that stuff away for free....neither do I!


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## Steve Richards (Dec 31, 2010)

A "wash or toss" thread..nice!

I toss mine unless it's a lambswool (which it usually is nowadays).

My ecological footprint's already pretty big, because the EPA makes me send contractor bags full of huge sheets of 6 mill plastic to the dump...only to get run over by a dozer and caught in the early morning breeze, floating aloft like giant clear sails in the sunrise... sprinkling little pieces of lead base paint down upon humanity as they silently float away towards the ocean.

A few roller sleeves isn't going to make a whole lot of difference.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> EXACTLY!! my paint store guys love me....used 3 of them in about 45 minutes today. 3 different colors, 3 walls. i love tray liners and new covers. i buy em in bulk and toss em with the rest of the trash. HO pays for them anyway...


I would have never guessed you to be a tray painter. I thought all West Coast painters worked out of fives.


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## Seth The Painter (Jun 24, 2015)

Customers pay for everything! That's how I roll I put everything I need in the bid and then some.


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> If you can fully wash out a dripping wet cover in 45 seconds, I wanna know your secret. In my experience, 45 seconds will get a pretty good mess going. And my HO's pay for my tools to be used as part of the shop rate. How else to you keep things maintained, and purchase new equipment? And of course they pay for caulk, spackle, bondo, etc. That's all part of materials. The paint store doesn't give that stuff away for free....neither do I!


I use a roller washer thingy I bought at the PPG store years ago. You hook it up to a sink(at MY house) slip the sleeve in the tube, seal it up and turn on the water. 45 seconds later, a clean sleeve.


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## PRC (Aug 28, 2014)

chrisn said:


> I use a roller washer thingy I bought at the PPG store years ago. You hook it up to a sink(at MY house) slip the sleeve in the tube, seal it up and turn on the water. 45 seconds later, a clean sleeve.


Any link to this device?


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## Epoxy Pro (Oct 7, 2012)

I never wash roller pads. The cost for new ones is added into each estimate. Plus with all the other crap I have to do cleaning a roller pad is dead last on my to do list.

No I'm not paying some one on the crew to do it either.


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## Wildbill7145 (Apr 30, 2014)

cdpainting said:


> I never wash roller pads. The cost for new ones is added into each estimate. Plus with all the other crap I have to do cleaning a roller pad is dead last on my to do list.
> 
> No I'm not paying some one on the crew to do it either.


If I had to add sleeves to the crap I have to clean up at the end of the day... I'd call it a day. Customer pays for each and every one of 'em.


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## Gwarel (May 8, 2012)

If I was running a high production crew it would probably make sense to just build the cost of sleeves into the overhead and move on. But when it's just me and a couple of guys and I'm standing at the water hose washing out brushes anyway, the time it takes to wring out a few covers and let them soak until later when I spin them out doesn't seem like a big deal. Both answers are right, neither are wrong........IMO


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## slinger58 (Feb 11, 2013)

Steve Richards said:


> A "wash or toss" thread..nice!
> 
> I toss mine unless it's a lambswool (which it usually is nowadays).
> 
> ...


Makes ya proud to be an American, don't it?:lol:


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

CApainter said:


> I would have never guessed you to be a tray painter. I thought all West Coast painters worked out of fives.


Honestly, I'm not big on the 5er method. It trashes my frame. I like neat and tidy tools that don't drip and i hate fighting the bits of gummy paint that are inherent when you have an open bucket drying while ya work...lol. it's just my preference.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> Honestly, I'm not big on the 5er method. It trashes my frame. I like neat and tidy tools that don't drip and i hate fighting the bits of gummy paint that are inherent when you have an open bucket drying while ya work...lol. it's just my preference.


In thirty years I've never had a problem with any of that.


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## WestCoast99 (May 8, 2012)

I often wash out roller naps and re-use them with paint or use them as primer grade rollers. When you wash them out, just use a roller/brush spinner and get them really clean. I use this method with microfiber rollers all the time. In low end repaints (rentals) a penny saved is a penny earned. Just buy a $10 spinner. Oil it once in a while (WD-40 works). Mine has lasted 5 years! Good investment. I never use the spinner for brushes though.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

CApainter said:


> In thirty years I've never had a problem with any of that.


Eh, different strokes for different folks! I cut teeth in residential occupied repaints. Old folks home situations (they were all studios) Seriously crammed with not much room for gear or stuff.....learned to keep my elbow clean so that it could be run 1" (ish)off the carpet, horizontally. Same color/product. Partials and touchups... roll it tight and ya didn't have to cut it in. No drop cloth, minimal tools, etc.....Wayyyyyyyy back when.lol many things have changed since then but the pan just kinda stayed. Also did all the maintenance painting on the US Bancorp tower in Portland....43 floors of multiple colors (hence the liners) and nowhere to clean anything ( i could access bathroom sinks on some floors...took the brushes home to wash) made my life real easy to just swap the cover, top dirty liner goes to the bottom of the stack (I usually had a stack of 10 or so in the pan) and just keep paintin! That method serves me well on smaller residential projects. We use the 5er method on bigger projects and yes, my guys laugh at me too.  I feel like it's fine....


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## Hines Painting (Jun 22, 2013)

George Z said:


> Wrap it in plastic if you re-use.
> Soak it overnight.
> Dish soap, spinning, they are all good suggestions.
> Another is, buy rollers that are easier to wash and pre-wet them.
> ...


I appreciate your zeal for environmental awareness George, and agree with minimizing the carbon footprint of a business, but I think arguing that washing is better is just a strawman's argument. 

It' doesn't take into account the impact of the initial treatment and distribution of the water, in addition to the carbon footprint of cleaning it again after the fact and then redistributing it, or the mining and/or creation of the minerals used to treat the water. No matter the choice, there's a carbon footprint. 

And, as an example, 50%+ of the houses in my area are on septic tanks, if I use a sink/toilet for the water, it doesn't get treated, leeches into the ground anyways, and can potentially damage the good bacteria in the septic tank causing human waste to leak into the ground.


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## beedoola (May 18, 2015)

chrisn said:


> I use a roller washer thingy I bought at the PPG store years ago. You hook it up to a sink(at MY house) slip the sleeve in the tube, seal it up and turn on the water. 45 seconds later, a clean sleeve.





PRC said:


> Any link to this device?


Yes, I'm interested in this as well.


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

PRC said:


> Any link to this device?


They seem to be out of business. I will ask the next time I am @PPG. It is something like this
http://hardwareonlinestore.com/inde...kvRcWQRn1Emm168RAdvKxdt-Y1Szs-RpIqhoCkbDw_wcB


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

chrisn said:


> They seem to be out of business. I will ask the next time I am @PPG. It is something like this
> http://hardwareonlinestore.com/inde...kvRcWQRn1Emm168RAdvKxdt-Y1Szs-RpIqhoCkbDw_wcB


My old PPG store i managed had one for 8 years. Never sold at half price. I bet it is still there 7 years later.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

LPT,

I actually like using a pan for multiple colors. As a matter of fact, I use the pan quite often at home. I just found it to be less productive in an actual work setting where I need to move at a quick pace. I like the ability to grab a bucket and quickly climb around and hang it on a ladder if necessary. But as you suggest, to each their own.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

CApainter said:


> LPT,
> 
> I actually like using a pan for multiple colors. As a matter of fact, I use the pan quite often at home. I just found it to be less productive in an actual work setting where I need to move at a quick pace. I like the ability to grab a bucket and quickly climb around and hang it on a ladder if necessary. But as you suggest, to each their own.


I use a cut pot all the time for the stuff you discribe...gotta move! Cutting out of a pan is rediculious unless it's just some little dingbat project!lol


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> I use a cut pot all the time for the stuff you discribe...gotta move! Cutting out of a pan is rediculious unless it's just some little dingbat project!lol


LPC,

If I didn't know any better, I'd of guessed you were from the East Coast! In all of the thirty plus years of painting in California, I've never heard the term "cut pot" until I joined paint talk. I've always heard it referred to as deuce, cut in bucket, or two gallon bucket. And it was only when pans were mentioned by PT members, that I ever considered using one. Maybe if I had more practice with one, I'd prefer it.

Did you ever do any painting near the other coast? Nice pic BTW!


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## Oden (Feb 8, 2012)

Nothing says DIY like a paint pan


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## Oden (Feb 8, 2012)

Pot stirred


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

PACman said:


> My old PPG store i managed had one for 8 years. Never sold at half price. I bet it is still there 7 years later.


You find out if they still have it and I will buy it


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

Oden said:


> View attachment 60426
> 
> 
> Nothing says DIY like a paint pan


I guess I have been a paid DIY for 25 years or so


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## Hines Painting (Jun 22, 2013)

I've become a fan of the roller tray lately. Just seem to be easier to work out of. I like the 18" wooster tray though, I only use the 9" for accent walls.


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## Gwarel (May 8, 2012)

I like working out of these. Sometimes I line them with a trash bag.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

CApainter said:


> LPC,
> 
> If I didn't know any better, I'd of guessed you were from the East Coast! In all of the thirty plus years of painting in California, I've never heard the term "cut pot" until I joined paint talk. I've always heard it referred to as deuce, cut in bucket, or two gallon bucket. And it was only when pans were mentioned by PT members, that I ever considered using one. Maybe if I had more practice with one, I'd prefer it.
> 
> Did you ever do any painting near the other coast? Nice pic BTW!


Ty! And nope. Never been anywhere near the east coast. All my work has been in Portland and Seattle. West Coast in da haussss! 
There's definitely a technique to it (pan use)...sometimes it's worth it sometimes not. I just hate cleaning buckets and grids and crap. I live in an apartment with no hose access so if I can't take care of it on site, I gotta take it to the shop. Screw that!


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

Oden said:


> View attachment 60426
> 
> 
> Nothing says DIY like a paint pan


It's a value!  hahaha


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## PACman (Oct 24, 2014)

Oden said:


> View attachment 60426
> 
> 
> Nothing says DIY like a paint pan


My linzer rep wanted to know why i didn't want to buy these! I told him because I'm not walmart.


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## radio11 (Aug 14, 2015)

Gwarel said:


> I like working out of these. Sometimes I line them with a trash bag.
> 
> View attachment 60434



I use those everyday--have 3 or 4. What size trash bag?

BTW, how do you cut out of a pan? Seem like a WHOLE LOT of bending and squatting. Holding a pan just doesn't work--at least for me. 


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## radio11 (Aug 14, 2015)

radio11 said:


> I use those everyday--have 3 or 4. What size trash bag?
> 
> BTW, how does somebody cut out of a pan? Seem like a WHOLE LOT of bending and squatting. Holding a pan just doesn't work--at least for me.
> 
> ...






Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## radio11 (Aug 14, 2015)

lilpaintchic said:


> Ty! And nope. Never been anywhere near the east coast. All my work has been in Portland and Seattle. West Coast in da haussss!
> There's definitely a technique to it (pan use)...sometimes it's worth it sometimes not. I just hate cleaning buckets and grids and crap. I live in an apartment with no hose access so if I can't take care of it on site, I gotta take it to the shop. Screw that!



Try the Handi products. I use the paint paint everyday with liners and toss it for clean up. Their roller products have liners as well, but haven't used those. They've got to be more ergonomic than a tray. 


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## Gwarel (May 8, 2012)

radio11 said:


> I use those everyday--have 3 or 4. What size trash bag?


I've been using the big contractor bags. I cut them in half, tuck them in tight and tape them to the outer side of the bucket. The down side is the paint seems to dry film quicker to the plastic bag, but in situations where clean up is more challenging it's sometimes easier to just change liners.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

radio11 said:


> Try the Handi products. I use the paint paint everyday with liners and toss it for clean up. Their roller products have liners as well, but haven't used those. They've got to be more ergonomic than a tray.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I just use a cut pot. I've used the hand pails and such, they're ok but I just like the Ole pot.I just let paint dry in it, then peel a nice thick layer out. It's like a liner only lazier. LOLOLOL


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

lilpaintchic said:


> I just use a cut pot. I've used the hand pails and such, they're ok but I just like the Ole pot.I just let paint dry in it, then peel a nice thick layer out. It's like a liner only lazier. LOLOLOL


I actually take mine home( sometimes) and clean them along with my brush and roller cover


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

CApainter said:


> LPC,
> 
> If I didn't know any better, I'd of guessed you were from the East Coast! In all of the thirty plus years of painting in California, I've never heard the term "cut pot" until I joined paint talk. I've always heard it referred to as deuce, cut in bucket, or two gallon bucket. And it was only when pans were mentioned by PT members, that I ever considered using one. Maybe if I had more practice with one, I'd prefer it.
> 
> Did you ever do any painting near the other coast? Nice pic BTW!



Seattle area. Cut pot is how I learned it as well.


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## ExcelPaintingCo (Apr 16, 2011)

Damon T said:


> Seattle area. Cut pot is how I learned it as well.


 same here.


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