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You don't necessarily have to remove your old wallpaper to paint your walls a different color. In fact, removing wallpaper -- especially if it's been on the walls for years -- can cause unexpected damage to your walls. So if it's in good condition and has no signs of adhesion failure, there's no reason to invest a lot of time and effort in removing it before painting your walls. Also, by leaving the wallpaper in place, your walls will stay in their current condition, and you'll be able to start painting without delay.

Prep before Painting

It's vital to prepare your walls carefully before painting. Follow these simple steps to ensure the best results:

• Start by replacing any damaged sections and adding adhesive to loose pieces to minimize the chance the paper will fall.
• Add a thin line of clear caulk around the perimeter of the walls, at the joint seam where the paper meets the floor and ceiling. This will help seal the edges and keep the paper from peeling after you've painted.
• Cover heavily textured paper with a thin coat of joint compound (spackle). This material will help smooth out the surface so that the texture won't show through the paint.
• Gently sand down the seams of the wallpaper so they're not too noticeable.
• Apply a coat of oil-based primer to the entire surface of the walls before painting. This helps seal the adhesive within the paper and away from the moisture in the paint.
• The wallpaper is now ready for painting. Because the moisture in latex paint can sometimes loosen wallpaper glue, causing bubbles or peeling, you should use oil-based paint.

Finally, it's time to enjoy your freshly painted room.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

Natural bristles are best for most oil-based finishes including varnishes and stains. Their soft tips leave fewer brush marks.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Information in this document has been furnished by the North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) and associated contributors. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and safety. Neither NRHA, any contributor nor the retailer can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

Your wall is probably cracking because your home’s foundation is settling. A little settling over time is natural. You can repair those cracks without worrying too much more about them. But if you repair a crack and it comes back soon or gets worse, you might have studs in your wall or joists in your ceiling or floors that are damaged. That’s a structural problem and should be taken seriously.

For cracks, there are different processes for drywall and plaster. The vast majority of walls in modern homes are drywall (also called sheetrock). Drywall cracks require joint compound or spackling putty. Fill the crack and wait for the joint compound to dry. Sand it down with a very fine grit sandpaper, then put a second layer of compound on over the crack. Spread it evenly with the surface using a putty knife. This should blend the putty with your natural wall surface. Once it’s dry, sand that layer down to even out the surface and you’re ready to paint.

If you live in an older house that has plaster walls, the crack-filling process is a lot like sheetrock, but you may have to deal with securing a lathe board first. Lathe boards – what the plaster is spread over during initial construction of the walls – can separate from wall studs and make it seem as if you’re wall is warped. To reattach a lathe to a stud, simply hammer a few nails through the plaster and lathe. This may cause a few hairline cracks, but you’re there to fill cracks anyway. Once your lathe boards are secure again, use a putty knife to fill cracks with a small amount of plaster paste. You can find the paste in both powder and premixed forms at Westlake. Once your cracks are filled, sand and paint.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

First, you need to determine the total square footage of the area you’re going to paint. The easiest way to do that is to add the length and width of your walls together and multiply by 2. Then take that number and multiply it by the height of your walls. That will give you the square footage of the paintable surface.

Example: If your room is 12’x14’, add 12 and 14. That gives you 26. (12 + 14 = 26) Now multiply 26 times 2. That gives you 52. (26 x 2 = 52) If you have 9’ ceilings, multiply 52 times 9. That gives you 468. (52 x 9 = 468) Your total paintable square footage is 468 sq. ft.

Once you’ve determined your square footage, you should plan on one gallon of topcoat for every 350 sq. ft. or one gallon of primer for every 250 sq. ft. of untreated or unpainted surface such as bare drywall, raw wood or masonry.

In the instance above, you should purchase two gallons of paint or primer. If your project needs more than one gallon of paint, mix all of the paint in a paint bucket before you begin. If there were slight variations in the tint of each gallon, this will blend them into one perfect color.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

The type of sandpaper first depends on the type of material you’re sanding:

• For woods, garnet and flint are best.
• For metal and fiberglass, use silicon carbide.
• If you’re using a power sander, aluminum oxide works well.

Choose your grade, grit and coating:

• Grades of sandpaper run from ultra-coarse to ultra-fine. Coarser papers are rougher than fine.
• Coarser papers also have a lower number when it comes to grit, because grit refers to the number of abrasive particles per square inch.
• Lower grit is better for rougher surfaces and surfaces that have large blemishes.
• Fairly smooth surfaces with only slightly noticeable imperfections call for a larger grit.
• Use open-coated paper on soft woods and closed-coated papers on hard woods.

For the best results, review our sanding tips.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

There is no right or wrong color, but here are some simple tips:

• Take your furniture and window treatments into consideration. There's nothing like spending all of that time, effort and money on painting a room only to realize that it doesn't match the tone of the rest of the room.
• Collect pictures from magazines and the internet. When you decide to paint a room, don't jump right in. Start to look through other people's choices until you find a combination you think will complement your own style and furnishings.
• Use color cards. Take a trip to your local Westlake and grab some color cards that you like. Take them home and put them next to your couch, your bedspread, your curtains or anything that will start to give you an idea of what matches and what doesn't. Reminder: color on a wall is usually a lot more powerful than on the color card. It's not a bad idea to go a shade or two lighter than the color you like on a card.
• Pick the right white. Not all whites are actually white. True white is a very harsh color in most rooms. It's simply too bright and sterile. Most whites have a hint of tan, pink or blue. Those are usually better for most homes than true white.
• Know what colors can do for a room. If you want to warm up a room, try shades of reds, oranges or yellows. If you want to cool a room, go with blues, greens and grays.
• Test before you paint. Buy a small amount of paint in the complementary colors you like (one for trim, one for the walls). Paint a board with each shade of paint beside the other to see how they look together. You can also use a small section of wall in the actual room you'll be painting. This may help you visualize the color scheme in context a little better than a painted board.
• Test again. Try a couple of different colors. Try dozens more if you need. By buying small amounts of paint and testing them, you could save yourself the time and money of painting a room, not liking the results and painting again.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.<-->

Warm weather months are a great time to treat the exterior of your home to a new coat of paint. It will give your home that coveted curb appeal and attractiveness, and also serve as a protective "shield" from the deteriorating effects of wind, water, sun and mildew.

Do-it-yourselfers (DIYers) recognize painting as one of the most economical ways to make a noticeable difference outside their homes. In fact, the 'Why Americans DIY' Study of 1,000 American homeowners commissioned by Ace Hardware reveals that nine out of 10 homeowners choose to DIY to save money rather than pay someone to do the job.

Following are some guidelines on how to freshen up the façade of your home.

Make Preparation Your Priority

Your paint job - how it looks as well as how long it lasts - hinges largely on your preparation technique. After all, 90 percent of the task depends on proper prep work.

First, have the tools you will need at the ready: Various sizes of paint brushes and rollers, sandpaper, scrapers, exterior-grade caulk and putty, masking tape and a drop cloth or two to protect shrubbery, walkways and cars. It may also be beneficial to have protective eyeglasses or a face mask on hand, as spattered paint can cause serious damage to the eyes.

Of course, you will also need a sturdy ladder to help you reach high spots. Another useful gadget found is a pot hook (about $3), which will allow you to hang the paint bucket from your ladder for easy access.

The first major step in the preparation is water-blasting the siding of your home to get rid of debris. Use either a normal hose with a high-powered spray attachment or consider renting or purchasing a pressure washer - a simple electric model will run you between $100 and $150. Trisodium phosphate (TSP) is a safe cleaning agent to use. To remove and prevent mildew, use a detergent with mildewcide or a mixture of one quart of household bleach in three quarts of water.

If your home was built before 1978, take caution before cleaning or removing paint because it may contain lead. To determine this, purchase a lead paint test (about $11) or have a professional test it for you.

Once the surface area has been power washed, concentrate on damaged areas. Scrape off flaking paint, repair surface flaws, remove old caulk and re-putty windows. Lastly, sand over and prime spots where repairs have been made to ensure a smooth area for the paint to adhere to.

The next step is priming. A paint primer seals porous surface materials so the topcoat won't soak in and dry unevenly, and it helps prevent peeling, rusting and bleed-through. Your local Ace store will be able to point out the pros and cons of choosing either an exterior latex or oil-based primer.

Once everything is cleaned, you will need to figure out how much paint you'll need, and what kind to use. A good rule of thumb for estimating is multiplying the length of each wall by its height, then add another 30 percent to be safe. Typically, one gallon of paint will cover 200 to 350 square feet. Also, buy more than you think you will need - you can always use the extra paint to touch-up trim.

Above all, invest in the best paint you can afford. Doing so will actually save you money in the long run because high-quality paint truly outlasts lower-quality brands.

Application is Easy

Once you've chosen the color and type of paint to use, you'll need to decide on how you'll apply it. This is actually less challenging than the preparation. Brushes and rollers will assist you best in getting into cracks and crevices, but a paint sprayer is the fastest way to get the job done. Opt for the technique you feel most comfortable doing.

Follow the "top-down" rule - work from the top down to get the most even coverage, and finish with the trim. Also, take care to paint into already wet paint, and not away from wet paint, making sure that there are no noticeable overlapping marks or shading nuances.

Credit:  Lou Manfredini's Tips From the Tool Box, Ace Hardware

There are several different types of rollers. The difference between rollers is the length in nap – essentially, how much fuzz or pile a roller has. The texture of the surface you’re painting determines the right nap length for your project.

• Smooth surfaces need a 3/16” or ¼” nap.
• Slightly textured surfaces –such as sand-textured walls – need a 3/8” or ½” nap.
• Textured surfaces – such as stucco – need a ¾” or 1” nap.
• Heavily textured surfaces – such as brick or block – need a 1 ¼” nap.

The type of roller also depends on the type of paint you are using. Different rollers can give you better results.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

Yes, but you must make sure you clean them extremely well. It's best if you just buy two sets of brushes-one for latex and one for oil-based paints.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Information in this document has been furnished by the North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) and associated contributors. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and safety. Neither NRHA, any contributor nor the retailer can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

Bristle has naturally split ends called flags, which help hold the paint in the brush so that it is released throughout the stroke instead of all at once.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Information in this document has been furnished by the North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) and associated contributors. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and safety. Neither NRHA, any contributor nor the retailer can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

For latex paints, use a brush made of a polyester/nylon blend. For oil paints, use brushes made of black China bristles.

For cutting in to window frames, door frames or trim, use a 3” wall brush with a straight edge. For woodwork, use a 2” brush with a straight edge. For corners and window sashes, use a 2” tapered sash brush.

For the best results, make sure you choose the right brush.

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of this information. Neither Westlake nor any contributor can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.

The best answer is whatever you feel comfortable with. A bigger brush holds more paint and applies it more quickly, but it is also harder to control.

Are you using the right brush?

Check your state and local codes before starting any project. Follow all safety precautions. Information in this document has been furnished by the North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) and associated contributors. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and safety. Neither NRHA, any contributor nor the retailer can be held responsible for damages or injuries resulting from the use of the information in this document.