Find a Decorator you can trust in Haverhill.

Hiring a decorator for your project always seem easy until you get started. With a wide range of decorators available today, it can be quite tricky separating the boys from the men and selecting the right tradesman for your unique project. There are a number of things to put into consideration, questions to ask and lots more to ensure your decorating job is awarded to the right tradesman. In this post, we’re going to give you an insight on some of the essential questions to ask to make sure the prospective decorator is a good match. Let’s take a look!

• What qualifications do you possess? With the pool of decorators around in the industry today, qualifications are needed to help you determine the true specialists. A qualified decorator gives you an assurance (to some extent) that a quality work would be done to your requirements. Decorators, generally, can earn a degree which includes course work in architecture and are also licensed.
• How do you help me identify and communicate my style to you? If you have an idea and know what you want for your space, a good decorator should be able to get it out of you by showing you pictures and asking questions which can vary widely.
• Do you have examples of previous work that are similar to my project in style, scope as well as budget? A decorator that answers yes to this question is a good indicator that they can handle your project. If they don’t, you can ask for pictures of projects they feel is quite similar to yours

How To Prepare Exterior Walls For Painting?

For a great and smooth exterior finish, preparing the walls before painting is crucial. A great painting job melts the heart and even more so if its done by you. This is a relatively easy task that can be completed without much hassle by an expert DIYer. However if you lack the needed confidence to pull off your exterior wall painting preparation task, then hiring the services of a reliable professional who can guarantee the best result would be your best bet. In this step by step, we aim to take you through the steps involved in preparing exterior walls for painting.

Before you get started, you need to make sure you have the necessary tools in place. These includes a filler and filling knife, sandpaper, soap, sponge, wide paint brush, masking tape as well as drop sheets.

✓ Ensure a smooth surface with a filer and sanding. This includes removing and replacing any rotten or decaying timer, proper sanding as needed, scraping off of peeling areas with sanding and filling of cracking areas with the help of exterior grade filler. Once the above is completed, you can then proceed to filling any holes or cracks in your exterior surface with a top quality exterior filler ( the application should be done with a putty knife).

✓ Cleaning. With the help of a quality and soft brush, clear out the dirt and cobwebs on the exterior’s surface. Then wash the walls with a good detergent to remove any remaining dirt and grease. You can use a bristled brush and a high pressure cleaner to make the process easier.

✓ Mask the area. This involves using a top quality masking tape along the edges you do not wish to paint and pushing the tape’s edges down firmly in such a way to get straight edges.

This will depend on your property, but commonly painted areas include rendered walls, guttering, soffits and fascias, and window frames. Generally you can paint what you want but on older or listed buildings, you may be restricted. An experienced painter will tell you what is possible.

How To Paint A Ceiling

If you’re a bit hesitant to take on the seemingly awkward task of painting your ceiling, you’re definitely not alone. However, there are ways in which you can make ceiling painting tasks one of the less strenuous tasks you’ll find around the house as they’ll help you get rid of most drips and also assist you to easily determine whether or not you’re covering the whole ceiling. In several cases, painting a ceiling simply means painting it white again and most same colour painting jobs are way easier than painting with a new colour entirely. When you have the right size of nap controller as well as the appropriate length of an extension pole, painting over your head will be a lot easier. Here’s how to paint a ceiling.

✓ Prepare the room. This include removing as many furniture and objects from the room as possible while also laying down plastic sheets on the remaining ones. And also cover the floor with paper or canvas drop cloths.

✓ Remove obstructions. Detach or remove everything that can make your work harder like light fixtures or smoke detectors.

✓ Protect surfaces. This includes protecting vertical surfaces like the windows and doors from ceiling paint.

✓ Prepare the ceiling. This involves vacuuming the ceiling to get rid of any dust or dirt, sanding any rough spots on the ceiling with a sandpaper and filling any small holes or cracks in the ceiling (optional).

✓ Prime the ceiling. Use an angled brush or paint edging tool or primer to cut in edges of the ceiling.

✓ Paint the edges of the ceiling. When the primer has dried, simply paint the edges of the ceiling to create a frame in which you can easily work in.

✓ Paint the ceiling in grids.

There are lots of paints that are suitable for different areas of your property. In general, gloss and eggshell paints should be used in high traffic areas, whereas matte paints are suitable for lower traffic areas. Professional painters and decorators can give you advice on the most suitable types of paints.

How Much To Paint A House Exterior?

Do you feel your home is need of a lift to enhance its visual appeal or give it some TLC? In order to impress your visitor or potential buyers, kerb appeal is simply everything. Many homeowners are usually discouraged due to the thought that a painting job is always an expensive one with not so much value in return. However, in reality, painting your home’s exterior is actually one of the most significant improvements one can make as it tells your story and communicates your value.

The cost of getting a house exterior painting job done is based on a number of things which includes the type of walls you possess, whether it’s a maintenance project, whether it’s your first time of painting the house as well as your location. So what’s involved in a painting job?

✓ Scrapping off the loose paint.

✓ Brushing off cobwebs and dust on the surface

✓ Washing the wall

✓ Application of fungicide to mouldy patches

✓ Repairing minor damages

✓ Applying paint surface stabiliser

✓ Applying two coats of your chosen paint

✓ Disposal of waste as well as a full clean up of the site.

Below is a breakdown of the cost of painting the exterior of a house. Kindly note that this is just an example (using a semi detached house) to give you an idea of how much your project is going to cost.

✓ Costly scaffolding isn’t required here but platform towers can be need - this will cost about £80 to £100.

✓ Materials including sand or cement for repairs, plastic sheeting, tape, paint, masonry stabiliser as well as fungicide treatment will cost about £200 to £300

✓ Cost of labour for two workers £700 to £1000 based on the location

If you’re planning to get a stair lift to be fitted in your home or property, one of the first things you’ll have to consider is whether your staircase is straight or curved as this would be the primary determinant of the stairlift type you’d go for. If you happen to have a curved staircase, you’d need to purchase a curved stairlift as only this can be fitted. Once you’ve identified the type of stair lift you need, then the next step is to determine the price to purchase and install such unit. In this post, we’re going to give you an idea of curved stairlift prices in order to help you make the best informed decisions possible. Let’s take a look!

Unfortunately, a quick and simple answer can’t be provided to this question as there are so many factors that influences the price of a curved stairlift. The bespoke nature of installing the necessary equipment is the main reason why the amount of new curved stairlifts greatly varies in the UK as well as the amount and complexity of the work required. For instance, if you purchase a curved stair lift with an intermediate landing, you’ll have to customize the track of the stair lift to fit your stairs which will make it a lot more expensive than ones without an intermediate landing.

With these in mind, providing an upfront and accurate estimate of a curved stairlift cost would be hard. As a result, this question can only be answered accurately taking into account all relevant factors by an expert after which they pay you a home visit. They’ll take into account whether  any existing fixtures and fitting will have to be removed or perhaps there’s a need for a custom feature to be installed and lots more.

How To Paint Exterior Door?

The front or exterior door is an excellent way to add to your house’s visual appeal. You choose to add a little style, think outside the norm and stand out in a lot of ways.

The front door or exterior door is what your guests are going to first come in contact with and can go a long way to shape their impression about you. It’s also one of the very things that grabs attention when looking at a house from a distance. So if you’re going to paint it yourself, you should know there’s no room for errors. However, if you’re not confident enough then we’d recommend you hire the services of a reliable professional who can guarantee the best results for help. Here’s some top painting advice aimed at helping you getting the project done in a quick and easy manner.

✓ Prepare the front door. Detach the doors from the hinges ( you may decide not to completely detach the door). However, there’s the need to tape off and protect the exposed hardware or windows if you won’t be detaching the door completely before painting.

✓ Start to paint the front door. Use a brush to run along the taped area to create a frame in which the roller can easily work in. What’s more? If the exterior door is metal or fibreglass, you can create a more natural look by painting in the direction that would be on a wood door.

✓ To fill and refine your front door painting, you can simply roll the paint directly on the surface for a flat one-panel door. However, if it’s a panelled door, then you’ll have to first make use of your brush to paint the inlaid regions before using the roller on the flat, outer regions.