How to Paint a Bathroom

Have you ever painted rooms in your home? If you have personally experienced it, then you'll know that the task is not simple. Before you can even apply the paint color of your choice, there is a lot of planning and preparing that needs to be taken care of. And when it comes to painting a bathroom, the task can become a bit challenging. Why? Well, for starters, a bathroom is lot smaller than a bedroom or kitchen. There are way too many nooks and crannies that can put you in a tight spot, no pun intended. Plus, you can't just paint the walls and forget about the crevices, ceiling, and bathroom cabinets. If you're going to take this project onto your shoulders, then you have to see it through till the end. So to help you with your "paint the bathroom" endeavor, we have put together the following article which gives you some useful tips for painting a bathroom.

Steps to Take Before Painting a Bathroom

There is a task before the first step which falls under the planning part of the project - deciding the colors to paint a bathroom. Since we will be painting the entire bathroom, do you want to use one color for the walls, ceiling, and the cabinets? Or would you prefer a combination of colors? The choice is entirely up to you. So to finalize your choices, I would recommend you to get some paint samples at home and try various combinations or you could browse the Internet for colors. When you have selected the paint colors for bathroom, we can move forward.

With any home improvement task you carry out, the first step is to de-clutter the area. So your job is to get rid of all the items that you have in your bathroom. Empty the cabinets, remove the nicknacks, and thoroughly clear the area. Don't leave any corner of the bathroom; remove small shelves, toilet paper holder, towel bars, hooks, mirror over the sink, fan grates, and shower rod. Store all these items in another room, away from you so you don't trip and fall over. Keep the bathroom free of clutter. When your bathroom is empty, lay plastic sheeting on the toilet, bathtub, sink, and the floor. If there are baseboards around the walls, place tape over them. You need to place tape around the edges where the walls meet the ceiling. This is only needed if you are painting the ceiling and walls with different colors, though. This way, you can easily protect the rest of the bathroom from becoming a mess after you're done.

First we clean the walls. Although the bathroom walls may not require a lot of cleaning, there are few things we need to take care of like mold and mildew. Use mild ammonia cleaner or mold removing products to treat mold effectively. Also, when you apply the new paint, the walls will be free of mold infestation and dirt. If the walls are damp, for any reason, keep the windows and door open so that they can dry completely. You don't want to apply fresh paint on damp walls. And finally, if there are gaps in between the bathroom cabinets and walls, tub, and shower enclosure, then caulking should be done. Make sure that you use a high quality silicone caulk which can be painted on. After all these precautions are taken care of, we can begin painting.

Paint the Walls and Ceiling

Not everyone is aware of the proper bathroom painting techniques. However, that doesn't mean you can't carry out the project on your own. All you require are the right steps and you can easily go ahead and learn to paint a bathroom ceiling along with the walls. Wear hand gloves, place a face mask on, and keep the windows and door open at all times.

• Let us first target the corners and tight spaces near the fixtures. With a paint brush and not a roller, we will paint the area which has been taped off. This way, you won't splatter paint all over the place.
• Finish off the areas behind the toilet, the space underneath the cabinets, around the tub, sockets, etc. You are basically coloring the outer lines and then filling the color inside.
• When you are done with the outer lines, use a paint roller to fill the color on the walls. Add little paint in the painters tray and dip the roller in it.
• Roll the roller in the paint, cover it properly and paint the walls. Make sure you use an even pressure and use the roller vertically on the walls.
• Finish all the walls and let the paint dry completely. If you want, you can apply another coat and let the second coat dry completely as well. Once the paint is dry, remove the tape.

For the ceiling, if you are applying the same color as the walls, I would advice you to paint the ceiling first. You will require a ladder to reach the ceiling. It would be a good idea to have someone there with you when you do this because you don't want to keep climbing up and down the ladder to get the paint. Now on the other hand, if you are applying a different color than the walls, then make sure you tape off the edges so the colors don't interfere with one another. Learning to paint a ceiling is not different from learning how to paint the walls. So just follow the steps mentioned above for the ceiling as well.

Paint the Cabinet

Painting cabinets can be a bit tricky but with the right guidelines, we can do it in a jiffy. So let's get to the cabinets next and finish your bathroom painting project as soon as possible. But before that, remove screws, hinges, pulls, and knobs off the cabinets. We need a clean slate to paint on and of course, you don't want to paint the hardware. Empty the drawers and remove all the items from the cabinets. Keep the cabinet doors in the next room till you have to paint it. Remember which door goes where along with its hardware or at the time of putting everything back in place, you'll be confused. Place plastic sheeting on the floor before you begin to paint.

• Purchase a tri-sodium phosphate solution to clean the cabinet area. With water and clean cloth, rinse the surface properly and let the area dry completely.
• In place of the hardware, fill them with putty and let it dry. This is because the paint might dry in the holes and make it difficult to put them back in place.
• Now use a 150-grit sandpaper and sand the surface with it. We want the surface to be absolutely smooth.
• First paint the frames on the outside. Use a small roller, dip it in paint, and use vertical movements to paint.
• Once the frames are finished, paint the insides of each door. When the doors are done and left aside to dry, paint the front of the drawers.
• Let the drawers dry properly and till then, paint the other side of the doors. Let the doors dry again.
• See if you require any additional coats. If yes, then use a 220-grit sandpaper and sand the frames, doors, and drawers.
• Now apply the second coat in the same manner we did before. Once the paint is completely dry, replace the doors and drawers along with the hardware. Make sure you are not too rough or apply too much pressure when you do this or the paint will chip off or get spoiled.

See how easy that was. I know that there are many steps and minute details that need to be taken care of. But in the end, with the right guidelines and painting tools, you can paint the bathroom on your own.