Monday 13 April 2015

Paint Brushes

I know a lot of people who don't, but is there anyone else apart from me that just bins brushes and rollers after decorating? It costs nearly as much in cleaners as the brush costs and then you've got to do the cleaning, and then they're stiff and useless for the next job anyway.

Also, does anyone else keep paint? I do, but I'm realising that other than white gloss and radiator paint, I never use it again.

8 comments:

Lola said...

Point of order. I loathe and despise home DIY. With a passion.

But I do lots of garagie stuff. I clean all brushes and equipment (even ones used for fibreglassing). I tend to keep paint, but not DIY paint, because I don't do DIY.

View from the Solent said...

I bin rollers after use. Not worth the enormous and messy hassle of cleaning them, they're cheap to replace.
Keep brushes though. Buy good quality ones and clean them well and dry them properly and they won't be stiff next time. Good quality brushes give a much better finish than cheap ones.

I keep paint; use it for touching in the inevitable marks and scratches every few months.

proglodyte said...

Never fails to amaze me how much paint is left on a roller or pad, and how bloody long it takes to squeeze it out under a tap.

Brushes are piece of piss to clean (at least re emulsion).

Tim Almond said...

Lola,

"Point of order. I loathe and despise home DIY. With a passion."

I have a general rule about doing jobs - if I have to do it at least once every few years, I'll learn to do it and maybe buy stuff. The investment in making mistakes or equipment pays off. So, painting, putting up shelves, worth learning. Fitting a bathroom? I hire the pros. They know all the secrets and all the tricks because they have the experience.

VftS/proglodyte,
maybe I should keep the brushes, but yeah, rollers seem to hold a sea of paint.

Lola said...

TS. Nah. Anything in the house that isn't an emergency - get a proper man in.
Mind you I was only saying to Mrs L yesterday after contemplating the gear in my (large) garage how much stuff I have actually got after at least 55 years of making things. It's really quite impressive. And all based on the principle you espoused - buy the tool.

Mark In Mayenne said...

Hi Mark, if you are using special brush cleaner, then presumably the paint is oil-based. In this case you can keep brushes useable without cleaning them, by storing them overnight in jars of water. Squeeze them between newspapers the next morning and you're ready to go. Clean them once at the end of the job.

http://www.acorneroffrance.blogspot.fr/2014/10/paint-job.html

If you're using water-based paint, wrap the brushes in clingfilm.

Cheers
Mark

Anonymous said...

You can pick up a gallon tin of cellulose thinners for a tenner and use that as a good brush cleaner and white spirit overnight is fine and even cheaper than cellulose thinns.
Both last for years as long as you screw the top on tight As said for emulsions they really are easy to wash out under the tap as soon as you're done and retain their softness. Certainly better in my opinion to get a good brush in the first place which will be worth cleaning whereas if you get a cheap one you may as well sling it when you're done.

Bayard said...

Cellulose thinners is also great for softening brushes that have gone hard. Wierdly, a gallon can is often cheaper than a 500ml one.