# Paint Walls or Trim First On a Repaint?



## linkbrothers (Sep 11, 2009)

I'm thinking about more effective ways to do repaint projects. Traditionally I have always cut and painted the walls and then cut in the trim afterward. But upon reflection, it would seem more effective to paint the trim *first*, not bothering to cut in carefully. Once the trim is completed, then the walls can be cut and rolled in. This would eliminate the time-consuming issue of cutting in trim around freshly painted walls. 

The opposite approach could be to paint the walls first, painting up to and overlapping the trim slightly to avoid tedious cuts. Then the trim could be painted in afterward. But this would result in more cutting, I think. 

So, what do YOU think? What problems am I going to cause by doing it this way? And how do you do it?

Thanks.


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## nEighter (Nov 14, 2008)

Introductions


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

You will get at least 2 different opinions on this.:yes: Pick one and go with it:whistling2:


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## TJ Paint (Jun 18, 2009)

i usually just go from top to bottom. unless it really makes a diff somehow.


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## plainpainter (Nov 6, 2007)

Haven't we been 'here' before? I always like to engineer a job so that things dry in time for the next phase. If you leave trim to the end - you have to wait for coats to dry - that stinks. Do walls first - same thing. Put a coat on the trim - then in the mean time roll a coat on the walls, maybe that takes up your whole day. So that sets you up for second coat on the trim the next day. Then by the time you are done with the trim - go back to the first room - and start cutting in the all the walls you rolled the previous day. By the time you have done cutting - go back and re-roll the walls - then do a last 'dry' cut. Depending on how many are in my crew or what not dictates the order of how things go. 

Got a couple of really unskilled guys and one really good painter? Throw the two unskilled guys to slop on paint on the trim - and give the skilled painter a small 9" roller to occupy his time, engineer the job such that when skilled painter is done rolling - the other two unskilled guys are finished. Perhaps on this job, because of your crew, instead of waiting for the trim to dry - have your skilled guy cut in the walls against the first coat of trim. Then split up the two unskilled guys - one to roll walls for the second coat - and another to only 'face' off the trim. Then the second day - shift the unskilled guys over to another job - and leave the skilled guy to cut in the outside edges of the trim - and wrap up a second 'dry' cut on the walls. 

Every job is different - and there is an efficient 'path' that dictates how each job is done. There is no one singular right/correct way for a job to be done.


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## tedrin (Oct 22, 2008)

I always paint the trim first...

I usually do 2 coats on repaints..[90% of the time]

Day 1: [Walls]

Prep

Roll

Cut

Day 2: [Walls]

Cut

Roll the finish coat....

This method is used only when I can do the 2nd coat the next day..That way the mud won't flash...Otherwise I have to spot prime....And I always tape my baseboards.


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## johnpaint (Sep 20, 2008)

A little this and little that. Ever job is different you know.


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## TJ Paint (Jun 18, 2009)

johnpaint said:


> A little this and little that. Ever job is different you know.


:thumbup:


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

I was thinking lately, should I prime before paint? When I come across a job that requires priming, I have all ways painted then prime. I'm not so happy with the results. 
.
I also always put the 2nd coat 1st. I get better coverage and better hide that way.


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## Slingah (Sep 24, 2007)

I like to do the ceilings last....waaaaay easier :yes:


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## johnpaint (Sep 20, 2008)

Sometimes I get to the job and don't feel like doing anything.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

johnpaint said:


> Sometimes I get to the job and don't feel like doing anything.


That why I start my day with dinner then end it with breakfast. Work like a charm.


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

johnpaint said:


> Sometimes I get to the job and don't feel like doing anything.


When I get to work late I leave early to make up for it.


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## mistcoat (Apr 21, 2007)

ewingpainting.net said:


> I was thinking lately, should I prime before paint? When I come across a job that requires priming, I have all ways painted then prime. I'm not so happy with the results.
> .
> I also always put the 2nd coat 1st. I get better coverage and better hide that way.


:lol::lol::lol:

That's where I'm going wrong. 
I see it all now... some of it :blink:


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## mistcoat (Apr 21, 2007)

I see this thread turning into another wrong'un :yes: :thumbup:


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## tedrin (Oct 22, 2008)

mistcoat said:


> I see this thread turning into another wrong'un :yes: :thumbup:


The way you guys throw around "THANKS" makes it a basically meaningless statistic...


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## mistcoat (Apr 21, 2007)

Thanks :thumbup:
:thumbup:
:thumbup:
:thumbup:


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

No! THANK YOU!


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

I'm gonna go make a cake!


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

RCP said:


> I'm gonna go make a cake!


Be sure to frost it before you bake it.


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## MR.X (Mar 9, 2009)

walls then trim...way ive always seen it done...but too each there own like stated..


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## WAGGZ (Apr 2, 2009)

Me usually trim then walls. But the job I start tomorrow and one earlier this summer we didn't put the finish coat on the base boards until last because the floors were being refinished. So it can be different every time.


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## linkbrothers (Sep 11, 2009)

Thanks Guys! 

Yeah, points taken - every job is unique. I like the guy who said he primes last because he gets better coverage. Well done.


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## Last Craftsman (Dec 5, 2008)

linkbrothers said:


> So, what do YOU think? What problems am I going to cause by doing it this way? And how do you do it?


This depends upon whether you live in the northern hemisphere, or the southern hemisphere.

If the water in your drain spins counter clockwise, paint the trim first.

If the water spins clockwise, paint the walls first.

If you live on the equator, the accepted method is to paint the walls and the trim at the same time.

This is due to a phenomenon known as the paintuinox. Being closer to the sun causes light to be diffused in such a manner that it is virtually impossible to discern where the wall and trim actually meet.

Painting the walls and the trim simultaneously creates a cosmic paradox which opens a rift in the space-time chrysanthemum, unveiling an invisible perfectly straight force-field that exists between all walls and trim in the entire universe.

The wall and trim paint will guide themselves along this force-field line in perfect synergy, creating the most perfect line, despite the hindrance of being to close to the sun.

All Jedi painters are aware of this mystical chymestry.

This is actually where the expression "flying to close to the sun" came from. It is a little known fact that Icarus was a house painter who lived on the equator. His inability to cut a straight line between trim and wall would drive him into fits of aerobatic rage, and eventually he flew to close to the sun, and burned off the bristles on his finest ox hair brush.

Just be sure to consult a local Shaman to guide you in the process, many men have tried and died in pursuit of this ancient ritual.


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## TJ Paint (Jun 18, 2009)

:thumbsup:


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

Last Craftsman said:


> If you live on the equator, the accepted method is to paint the walls and the trim at the same time.










LC, Why does this happen to me every time I paint the walls and the trim at the same time. I hate it when they take me and keep poking me. Sometimes it hurts for days. I can never reminder the whole encounters. 
I am on the west coast. Is this method only if I live on the equator? Have I crossed the cosmic paradox beyond space-time?


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## Schmidt & Co. (Nov 6, 2008)

This is getting worse than the Amber thread......


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## JNLP (Dec 13, 2007)

It depends for me. Small job where I can't wait for dry times so much I do walls then trim. If it's larger though I like to work top to bottom. Crown, windows, and door casings first, then walls, then base. Reason being is I make cleaner cuts faster cutting wall into trim with the exception of baseboard which I cut cleaner faster into wall and don't have to worry as much about overspray.


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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

linkbrothers said:


> I'm thinking about more effective ways to do repaint projects. Traditionally I have always cut and painted the walls and then cut in the trim afterward. But upon reflection, it would seem more effective to paint the trim *first*, not bothering to cut in carefully. Once the trim is completed, then the walls can be cut and rolled in. This would eliminate the time-consuming issue of cutting in trim around freshly painted walls.


OMG! I think you've stumbled onto something! You may have changed the way the entire painting industry approaches...uh..??..uh....PAINTING!


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## capitalcity painting (Apr 28, 2008)

JNLP said:


> It depends for me. Small job where I can't wait for dry times so much I do walls then trim. If it's larger though I like to work top to bottom. Crown, windows, and door casings first, then walls, then base. Reason being is I make cleaner cuts faster cutting wall into trim with the exception of baseboard which I cut cleaner faster into wall and don't have to worry as much about overspray.


This is how we do it also. I'll never understand how people think its easier to trim the wall last to the baseboard. Its so much easier to cut the wall into the base that when someone says the baseboard is fine dont paint it, I throw it in for free.


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## Last Craftsman (Dec 5, 2008)

ewingpainting.net said:


> LC, Why does this happen to me every time I paint the walls and the trim at the same time. I hate it when they take me and keep poking me. Sometimes it hurts for days. I can never reminder the whole encounters.


As I said, you must consult a local Shaman to pursue this ancient ritual.

You would do well to visit your local "Shaman Williams" store, where they will provide you with the necessary materials and incantations to guide your journey.

P.s. Those entities who are attacking you are student painters from a different dimension. They have the advantage when you are in their dominion. Exercise caution. That poking feeling is the sharp end of their yard signs which they indiscriminately try to put anywhere where there is a vacant space.


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## 1977corey (Feb 27, 2009)

WOW, you lot are a funny bunch. where the HELL is DaArch?


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## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

1977corey said:


> WOW, you lot are a funny bunch. where the HELL is DaArch?


 
Still working on putting names to the million or so pics he took at the NGPP convention.


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## gamebird (Jul 18, 2009)

Workaholic said:


> When I get to work late I leave early to make up for it.


 
lol


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## jmda (Nov 14, 2007)

Every job is different - time constraints etc.

However, if it is a large interior repaint (several rooms/whole house)

remove wallpaper (see this too often not to mention)
prep all surfaces to be painted
paint ceilings
paint all trim, doors, windows except for the base board
paint walls
paint base


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## Pete S. (Aug 12, 2009)

JNLP said:


> It depends for me. Small job where I can't wait for dry times so much I do walls then trim. If it's larger though I like to work top to bottom. Crown, windows, and door casings first, then walls, then base. Reason being is I make cleaner cuts faster cutting wall into trim with the exception of baseboard which I cut cleaner faster into wall and don't have to worry as much about overspray.


:thumbup: -- Was beginning to think I was the only one who went this route.


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## regal (Oct 23, 2007)

classic


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## WisePainter (Dec 27, 2008)

Sologloss waterborne acrylic white trim and then 1 coat flat on the walls.

12'x12' sq. 10' high walls 3 windows with 6 pane double hung sashes.

5 hours.

I like trim first, then walls.


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## tntpainting (Apr 3, 2008)

brilliant I tell ya


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## Joepro0000 (Jul 27, 2009)

Slingah said:


> I like to do the ceilings last....waaaaay easier :yes:


 
I hope your not serious.


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## daArch (Mar 15, 2008)

While I was still painting, I advised the HO that the ceiling and trim would look old and tired if I just hung paper and did not paint those surfaces. She thought I was just trying to upsell.

I'm sure all you know what happened.

It is NOT fun papering first and then painting, especially the ceiling. The time for just taping up the plastic over the walls equalled the actual painting of the ceiling


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## painting247 (Mar 18, 2009)

Gettin back to the subject matter: I prefer to do the trim first!
How's the cake?


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## Picky Painter (Oct 7, 2009)

Alright, after lurking on these forums for a few months it's my first post!

If I'm doing a total repaint I'll get my wall and/or ceiling repairs on first, then I will work on window and door casings. I never try to cut trim paint to the very edge of the trim where it meets the wall, that is too time-consuming. If any trim paint gets on the wall I just make sure it gets feathered out so nothing nasty shows in the finished product. I try to get two coats on the trim before cutting and rolling walls. I always do baseboards last after walls, since the top edge of the baseboard always looks laser-straight. I find that when you cut the bottom of the wall to the already-painted baseboard the line doesn't look quite as "crisp".


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## Last Craftsman (Dec 5, 2008)

Joepro0000 said:


> I hope your not serious.


Hey Joe, I got a bridge for sale, you might be interested.


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## Joepro0000 (Jul 27, 2009)

Last Craftsman said:


> Hey Joe, I got a bridge for sale, you might be interested.


Maybe next year!:no:


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## jason123 (Jul 2, 2009)

Painting trim first I think is faster ,cutting the top lip of that baseboard when the walls r done is a pain. Watch out for the roller splatter and your ok , the other thing that messes up this approach is that you must invoice first then get your deposit later! Make sure you buy the paint after the job is done.


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## Wolfgang (Nov 16, 2008)

daArch said:


> While I was still painting, I advised the HO that the ceiling and trim would look old and tired if I just hung paper and did not paint those surfaces. She thought I was just trying to upsell.
> 
> I'm sure all you know what happened.
> 
> It is NOT fun papering first and then painting, especially the ceiling. The time for just taping up the plastic over the walls equalled the actual painting of the ceiling


Sooooo....what is your preference on what tape to use in a situation like that? Aaannnnd....what brush do you prefer for cutting into paper?




This thread has too much potential to let die a quick death.:yes:


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## Rick the painter (Mar 30, 2009)

I bring a nip with me to work,helps get me thru the day.What ever paint is closest to me when i arrive is the surface that i do first.:thumbup:


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

1) Spray ceilings
2) Back mask ceilings and spray trim
3) Brush and roll walls

I don't know how anyone can do it any other way. Maybe there are certain situations where the walls must be painted first (i.e. casings arent on yet for whatever reason) but I don't see painting walls first as being very efficient. 

I worked for a company a long time ago that used to paint all walls in a house first, then brush and roll all trim second. It was a huge waste of man-power. After being there 2 months and showing the boss how to do it right, I was promoted to foreman over 5 other guys who had been there for 2 or more years. 

I didn't stick around that long though because that wasn't the only thing they did bass-ackwards.


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## capitalcity painting (Apr 28, 2008)

Are you talking repaint rcon or new construction


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

capitalcity painting said:


> Are you talking repaint rcon or new construction


New construction, but I try to use the same systems for repaints where I can. Of course, spraying trim on a repaint isn't always possible, and in those situations I will brush/roll trim if I have to, but I still do trim before I do walls, and I still spray ceilings before trim if i'm doing ceilings (i've found that brushing/rolling ceilings never gives me the look i'm after, and takes twice as long).


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## Dbo (Nov 29, 2009)

Trim - Ceiling - Walls or Just paint it the same damn color and say "this is what ya get"


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## LatexKing (Nov 11, 2009)

Ceilings first, then walls and trim last.
Wall paint is usually flatter, and therefore, has more tooth than trim paint(gloss,semigloss), so if you overpaint the trim with the wall paint(if the wall paint not to dark) , the trim paint sticks to it.
Trying to paint over fresh trim paint, if you over paint the wall 'cause you did the trim first, the semigloss,or what ever is slick and has no tooth. 
I have no trouble cutting trim to the wall or baseboard with a nice clean brush and I only drink half caff.
I argue all the time with this douche I have to work with. He says it's easier to paint the trim first 'cause you don't have to ever learn to cut in (my words), and then he cuts the walls and paints wall paint right up to the front face edge of the trim(?).
Says some guy ad "Job Corps" said that's the way the pro's do it.
Just seems like the trim is the cherry on top. The finishing touch.
I don't even wanna see that damn semi-gloss in the place until the ceilings and walls are done.
But that's just me and I got a bad attitude, a prostate the size of a honeydew and a head full of bad memories so what do I know.


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## daArch (Mar 15, 2008)

Wolfgang said:


> Sooooo....what is your preference on what tape to use in a situation like that? Aaannnnd....what brush do you prefer for cutting into paper?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That was before blue tape. Luckily there was a crown to which we could tape the plastic with masking tape.

Which brush? The best one !!!! :thumbup:


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

LatexKing said:


> Trying to paint over fresh trim paint, if you over paint the wall 'cause you did the trim first, the semigloss,or what ever is slick and has no tooth.
> I have no trouble cutting trim to the wall or baseboard with a nice clean brush and I only drink half caff.


I'm not going to try to change your mind - everyone has their own system. But as for the semi not having 'tooth', that's what a pole sander is for. And brushing trim after painting walls takes more time than spraying or brushing trim, _then_ doing walls. 

But hey, to each their own.


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## Picky Painter (Oct 7, 2009)

Schmidt & Co. said:


> This is getting worse than the Amber thread......


What amber thread? Is it worth it to read for the entertainment value?


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## capitalcity painting (Apr 28, 2008)

Picky Painter said:


> What amber thread? Is it worth it to read for the entertainment value?


Are you all talking about my baby mama Amber, cause nothing is worst then her.


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Picky Painter said:


> What amber thread? Is it worth it to read for the entertainment value?


Search feature is a real asset at PT.:whistling2::thumbsup:


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## Wolfgang (Nov 16, 2008)

The "Amber" thread was a classic. Still read it for a good laugh.


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