Chipped paint on the walls, holes from a door knob being pushed to far, water stains on a ceiling from a leaking roof, or did the kids use the walls as their colouring books. These are just a few of the normal day to day things that can occur around the house that would have you searching for that left over paint you saved from a previous painting project.
If you want to avoid repainting the entire wall or room, here are a few tips you are going to need for a quick touch up.
Why Touching Up Paint Is Difficult
Homeowners become frustrated when doing their own DIY painting, because whenever they try to do touch ups, they just never seem to really work out. There are reasons for the touch ups not matching up exactly to the paint colour that is already on the wall even if you just painted the room 3 or 4 months ago.
It is nearly impossible to do touch ups on a wall and get it looking exactly the same if the paint on the walls is older than 3 months. The last time the walls were painted really doesn’t matter because no matter how often you try to paint over it you will always see where the paint fades. Paint ages and fades and even after three or four months since you painted the entire room, there will still be a noticeable difference if you try to touch up an area on the wall with fresh paint.
Because paint takes approximately 2 to 3 weeks to fully cure, when you attempt to touch up the wall there will be a noticeable difference in how the paint shines. You will see the older paint look duller while the newer one shines bright.
The effects of the difference in the paint is magnified if the touch up is done in an area where direct sunlight and daylight shine on the area. If for example the wall that the touch up paint is being applied to is facing or in direction of a window that receives a lot of daylight and sunlight, you will undoubtedly see difference and there is no way out of making that wall look perfect again than to paint the entire wall from corner to corner.
When Is It Ok To Touch Up Paint
Touching up any paint will always prove difficult because of the way paint ages and cures. Fresh paint touch ups as small as they are will be noticeable. There are exceptions to everything and that includes paint. Here are a few places and ways you can to a satisfactory touch up paint job that will hardly be noticeable.
You can get away with a touch up is if the area is closer to the baseboard, where there is less direct sunlight, and usually the eyes don’t look down but always straight ahead and up. By this reference we mean, that the touch up job that occurs in the middle or towards the top of a wall, or close to the ceiling will be more noticeable than the one at the bottom, where most people never really look.
When Do You Have To Repaint
Depending on the paint finish used, sometimes one can be more forgiving over another. Take for example a flat paint finish will be less noticeable than a high gloss sheen. When the imperfection is about the size of a pea, you can get as close as possible to the existing paint on the walls by touching up the paint with a q-tip, only if the area to be touched up is very small.
Larger areas will most likely require a full repainting because you will notice the difference on the paint colour and how the new area where the touch up is will be shinier than the rest of the area.
Bonus tip: If the area is behind some big bulk or heavy furniture like a sofa or couch, you can touch up the paint without having to worry about anyone noticing it since the furniture will always be in front of it.
Interior and Exterior Painting Touch Ups
If you have nicked your front door paint it is not always a quick easy touch up paint job as just like any interior painting you will notice the difference in the paint colour shade between the old and the fresh paint used as a quick fix.
Now without a doubt you may be asking yourself “what if I get a colour match and a brand new can of paint”. While it is definitely a better option than using old paint. But the fact is that even if you use the latest paint-matching technology, the sheen will be off, making your touch-up stand out just as much or as badly as if it was a different color.
The variations in paint colours when some time has passed since you last painted, makes a touch up job not as simple or easy as first thought.
Before you pick up that paintbrush and cause yourself frustration check with an Ottawa Interior and Exterior Painting Expert to see if the entire room needs repainting. Calling on the professionals can help alleviate the headache.
Our final thought is let us turn that negative into a positive. If you have blemishes, streaks, nicks, holes or other damage done to your walls let us take the opportunity to repaint them in either the exact same colour or a new one. Painting is the most cost effective, inexpensive home improvement project that can really transform the look of your home.
To book your free house painting estimate CONTACT US
This post was originally published May 25, 2015 and edited on Apr 27 2020
