Paint Selection Actually Matters
When standing in the paint aisle, the choices seem overwhelming. Flat, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss, gloss. Interior, exterior, primer, paint-and-primer combos. Budget options, mid-range, premium. These aren't just marketing gimmicks. Different paints serve different purposes.
For instance, bathrooms and kitchens need paint that resists moisture and cleans easily. High-traffic areas benefit from more durable finishes, and exterior paint must withstand weather.
Choose the wrong paint and you’ll be dealing with problems somewhere down the line. Paint that can't handle moisture grows mold in bathrooms. Meanwhile, flat paint in hallways shows every fingerprint and won't clean.
Quality matters too. Cheap paint requires more coats to cover properly, takes longer to dry, and doesn't last as long. The money saved buying budget paint gets spent applying extra coats.
Technique Determines Final Appearance
Watching an experienced handyman paint well makes it look easy. The reality is that proper technique takes practice to develop. Brush strokes, roller pressure, and cutting in along edges all affect how the finished surface looks.
Common DIY mistakes include applying paint too thick, rolling in random directions instead of consistent patterns, not maintaining wet edges, creating visible lines between sections, missing spots, and/or applying paint too thin.
These errors show up clearly once paint dries. Fixing them means sanding, priming, repainting, and turning a weekend project into a multi-week ordeal.
The Time Factor Nobody Considers
Painting takes longer than people expect, even when everything is on hand and goes right. After all, each coat needs proper drying time before the next goes on. Rushing this step causes problems. For instance, the bottom coat can peel, colors won't develop properly, and surfaces remain tacky.
Factor in preparation time, actual painting time, drying time between coats, cleanup time, and fixing mistakes, and a single room can easily consume 15-20 hours of actual work spread across several days or weekends.
Hiring professional handymen doesn't just buy speed; it also buys expertise that prevents expensive mistakes and delivers results that actually last. The team at Mr. Handyman even offers a 1-year workmanship guarantee so you can rest assured.
