should i paint walls or sand floors first

There are some benefits of getting your base set before working on the walls, including:

• It’s often easier to choose a paint shade that matches wood tones versus choosing a wood tone to match paint color
• Damage to the wall from a sander is relatively simple to fix
• If you sand the floors first, you won’t have to worry about dust working its way into your paint job

Full Answer

Should floors be painted before or after walls?

Floors are expensive, but walls are not. It can be difficult to clean paint off of a floor. Walls are not fun to patch up, but they are still easier to fix than flooring. If you paint walls first, some homeowners may think that it is possible to paint with relative abandon, then sand out your paint drips.

Is it messy to sand and paint a hardwood floor?

If you’ve ever been a part of a hardwood renovation, you know how messy it can be. As the floor sander glides from corner to corner, it’s not unheard of for damage to be done to the walls. Chips and knicks are frustrating enough when your wall needs painting; it’s all the more so when the wall has just been painted.

Should you paint or sand first when remodeling your home?

This is where it pays to plan ahead. If you have hardwood in place, and are sanding and re-staining, painting first can allow light paint splatter to be easily removed during the sanding process. This changes, however, depending on what flooring you’ll be installing. Paint splatters on new carpet fibers can be disastrous.

Should you paint or install new floors first in a renovation?

If you’re renovating a room in your home, you’ll need to decide which comes first: painting or installing new floors. Most people think that painting should be done first to prevent any spills from marring brand-new flooring.

Should you paint first then sand floors?

Do you have to sand hardwood floors before painting? If you're painting completed wood floors, you'll need to sand and prime them first. When you're on your hands and knees with sandpaper—or even an orbital sander—it can be an exhausting job. Rent a floor buffer from the hardware store to save your back.

Should you paint before or after flooring?

It's always best to paint after your new flooring has been installed. Clients are concerned about paint being spilled on the new floor, which is a valid concern.

How do you clean walls after floor sanding?

Use a soft rag and clean the walls by hand to make sure that absolutely no dust survived the swiffering or vacuuming. These are just a few simple ways to clean the dust off the walls. The main thing is to use something to get the majority of dust off such as a broom, Swiffer, vacuum etc.

Do you install floor or walls first?

Compared to fixing commercial walls, fixing floors is a relatively harder and messier process than fixing the walls. To save on all the cleaning, it would be best to do the floors first. If you do the walls first, you'll end up hiring someone to clean all the floors once the wall paint is done.

Should you paint before or after refinishing hardwood floors?

If it's unfinished hardwood, then you have to sand and stain the floors. This process will usually result in scuffing up the baseboards and some stain on the sides of the base boards. Hence, the base boards need to be painted afterwards.

When should you paint when remodeling?

We recommend painting once all major structural and functional work is done, but before new flooring or carpet is installed. Essentially, floors come last so you can avoid the heavier wear and tear multiple contractors, tools and dust the full renovation brings.

Should you do floors or kitchen first?

Since wood floors will contract and expand as the temperatures change and moisture increases or decreases, it needs room to breathe. Having the floor installed tightly beneath the cabinets could result in buckling and subsequent damage. It's a popular reason for installing wood floors after putting in the cabinets.

What comes first flooring or cabinets?

Installing flooring before your cabinets is the best choice for most hardwood floors. When professionals install floors then cabinets, it's easier to get everything to standard heights. It's also a safer installation process for your cabinets since you won't risk any damage to them as professionals install the floors.

Why do you sand your floor?

Sanding the floor first prevents damage from the sander and dust, and allows you to make any needed repairs before working on the final flooring.

How long after refinishing hardwood floors can you paint?

Both painting and refinishing have some time considerations. For example, one thing you should know when refinishing hardwood floors is that you need to avoid walking on it for at least 24 hours after the final coat of floor finish is applied. So it could be at least a full day after your floors are complete before you can start painting.

How long do you have to wait to paint a wall with oil based paint?

If you use oil-based paint for your walls, you can apply a second coat within hours. Otherwise, you’ll need to wait 24 hours before adding a second coat. If you go this route, you may need to wait up to a day or more before you start on the floors.

Is it more expensive to repair a floor than paint?

Floors are more expensive and time-consuming to repair than a paint job

Why Is it Better to Install Flooring Before Painting?

It’s a natural assumption that painting should take place before installing flooring. However, the opposite is true, and we’re going to tell you why.

What to use to protect new flooring?

Masking. Once the new flooring has been installed, you’ll be able to protect the surface through the use of painter’s tape and drop cloths. These two items are valuable tools that keep mess to a minimum and protect your floors. Most professionals consider painting to be finish work.

Do you need to paint a floor after you remove the baseboards?

Depending on the type of flooring you’ve purchased, removing your baseboards and trim is usually necessary. Once you’ve removed these items, they may require repainting and some repair. When the trim has been reattached to the walls, the nail holes will need to be filled and touchup painting is done.

Do epoxy floors need sealer?

As with installing other types of flooring, the finished floor can be covered with tarps or drop cloths to provide protection from wall paint spills. Epoxy floors also require a layer of sealant. Any debris, dust, or dirt that falls in the sealer will become a permanent part of the flooring.

Is it safe to paint before installing flooring?

As a result, they prefer leaving it until the end of the job. With the right precautions in place, installing flooring before painting poses no risk of damage.

Can wood shavings get into paint?

If the correct amount of drying time has not been allotted, dust and wood shavings can get into the paint on your walls, ruining the finish. If your home renovation project includes refinishing existing hardwood floors, it becomes that much more important that your flooring takes top priority over overpainting.

Can you paint carpet before you remove it?

Tearing up old carpet or flooring is a very messy job. When removing the old flooring, you’ll likely unearth a vast amount of debris, dust, and dirt. If you choose to paint first, these particles can land in your fresh coat of paint, marring the finish.

How long is Sherwin Williams painting video?

I wanted to share a VERY helpful video from Sherwin Williams, with some quick and super useful DIY painting tips. It’s just 2 minutes and covers types of brushes and painting techniques. Also, towards the end of this article, I share the painting tools and accessories that we use (with links to buy them on Amazon).

Where can I buy paint samples?

You can definitely go to your local painting store to buy some samples (and a brush…be sure to paint with 2 coats), but I have a MUCH EASIER way for you. Check out SAMPLIZE.

Do you paint walls after you finish flooring?

Most of the painters I work with prefer to paint the walls AFTER we have completed the flooring. They are confident that their guys will cover the floors and do a neat job. They want the finished product to be perfect and they know this is a better way to achieve this result. It is also avoids having to come back for a separate trip to paint the base boards.

Do you paint the floor first or the base?

Now, if the homeowner is the one painting, I will usually advise them to paint first (since they are less confident in their abilities and more likely to damage the floors) and then paint the base boards after we do the floors. Also, I have seen many variations on this theme (e.g. prime and do first coat of paint, then floors, then last coat of paint and base boards).

Can you rip up a floor after painting?

From there, you should rip up the floors. Note: rip up can often result in minor damage to walls and base boards. If just carpet is being removed, this can scuff of the base boards. If tile, hardwood or laminate are being removed, this can often result in base boards needing to be removed. Removing base boards from the walls will usually result in paint chipping (so it would be a shame to do this after you freshly painted the walls).

Can you paint the ceiling first?

The reason for that is that this can damage the floors. Also, it’s often better to paint the ceilings first, especially given that the ladders will rest on the floors. From there, you should rip up the floors.

Is it bad to paint base boards?

It’s too bad, because now they have to either pay the painters to come back again to touch up and repaint base boards, or else they need to do the work themselves. It’s too bad, since it would have been avoidable if they had asked the contractors. Now, if the homeowner is the one painting, I will usually advise them to paint first ...

Do contractors trust their advice?

However, this is a personalized process. If you’re working with a contractor, trust their advice. They will usually do what’s best to get you the results you demand.

Do you need ladders to paint ceilings?

For the painting project, it’s a good idea to talk with your contractor to determine the work involved: If you’re painting the ceilings, the workers will need ladders, and move them all over the room. If you’re changing the texture, they may be scraping or spraying, getting fine dust throughout the room.

Can new flooring change the height of the floor?

New flooring can also change the height of the floor. Are the baseboards in the right location?

Can you paint floors before refinishing?

The biggest reason not to refinish your floors before you paint is it’s easy to drip paint on a newly refinished floor. While you can use drop cloths to cover everything up, there’s always a chance the folds of the fabric can move and allow drops through and onto the floor. That would require work to remove the paint, possibly removing the varnish or top coat, and require time and money to fix the problem and bring your flooring back up to good condition.

Can you move from one type of flooring to another?

Flooring has its own share of to-do’s: If you’re moving from one type of flooring to another, there will be prep work to the subfloor. Depending on the flooring, the baseboards may need to be removed and changed accordingly. New flooring can also change the height of the floor.

Can you paint before flooring?

Best case scenario, if at all possible, we usually suggest prep work be done to the walls before the flooring is installed. The final paint job can be completed as the finishing touch after the flooring is in place.

Can you paint a room with a different color?

What’s more, if you get the color wrong, you simply select a different color and repaint. You can’t do that with your flooring .

Can flooring damage walls?

There is a possibility that the walls or trim may be damaged by the installation of the flooring. Scuffs, dings, and nicks sometimes happen, then the surface has to be touched up by the painters. If there are a lot of touch-ups, then there may be additional costs involved in have the painting contractor make a return trip.

Is it better to paint the baseboards or return?

A return trip is less efficient and could end up costing you more money since a painting contractor has to send a crew back out, move furniture, re-mask everything and then paint the baseboards.

Should I paint my floors after painting?

A lot of homeowners think that they should do the floors after the painting because they don’t want the painters to spill on their brand new floors or carpeting. I can certainly understand their concern, but if you hire a professional painting company, you shouldn’t have that concern. The answer to the question is, “do the floors first!”.

Do you have to remove baseboards when installing new flooring?

Many times when putting in new hardwood floors or stone and tile floors, the baseboards need to be removed and then replaced with new baseboards that sit on top of the new floor.

Is painting a finish trade?

The bottom line, painting is a “finish trade” and should be one of the last things you do in your remodeling project. As long as you hire the right painting company that knows how to protect properly surfaces, do those floors first!

Can you paint baseboards after flooring?

If the painting is done after the flooring, then the baseboards can be prepped and painted with everything else saving time and money. A good, professional painting company is used to having to do extensive masking to protect surfaces, including newly finished floors.