How to prepare your home for a painter and decorator comes down to four jobs: clear each room of breakables and clutter, protect the floors and fittings that are not being painted, agree what you will leave to the professional, and sort out access and timing before the first coat goes on. Settle those four things the evening before, and the painter spends the visit painting rather than shifting your furniture around the room.
What to agree before the painter books in
Before a date is fixed, confirm which rooms and surfaces are being painted: walls only, or ceilings, skirting boards and doors too. Say whether you are changing colour, since a dark wall going lighter or bare plaster being painted for the first time usually needs an extra coat and more preparation than a straight repaint in the same shade. Ask whether the painter supplies the paint or you do, and whether they move furniture themselves or expect you to clear the room first. Our guide on hiring a painter and decorator in Ireland covers the rest of that conversation, from quotes to payment.
How to prepare your home for a painter and decorator, room by room
Start with anything fragile or sentimental. Take pictures, mirrors and shelf ornaments down and store them somewhere out of the way, not just propped against a wall in the same room. Dulux's own advice for homeowners getting ready for painters is to clear the room where you can and push whatever is left to the centre, well away from the walls and the ceiling edge. Take down curtains and blinds if they are not staying up during the work, since paint spray and brush marks on fabric are hard to shift afterwards. Empty shelves and clear windowsills completely rather than leaving a few items behind. A painter working around a row of ornaments either slows down or risks knocking one off.
Protecting floors, switches and fittings
Cover floors with proper dust sheets rather than old bedsheets, which paint can soak straight through. Dulux recommends masking door handles, light switches and socket covers with painter's tape before work starts, along with window and door frames you are not painting. If skirting boards, radiators or a fireplace surround are staying their current colour, say so clearly and ask for them to be taped off rather than assumed. Take light fittings and lampshades down where you can reach them safely, since paint dust settles on them and brush marks near a pendant light are easy to miss until the room is finished.
Checklist for the day before the painter arrives
- Pictures, mirrors and ornaments taken down and stored, not just leaned against a wall.
- Curtains, blinds and light fittings removed where they are not staying up during the work.
- Furniture pulled to the centre of the room and covered with dust sheets.
- Floors covered with proper dust sheets, not bedding.
- Switches, sockets, handles and anything not being painted masked with tape.
- A clear route from the front door to each room being painted.
- Pets and children settled somewhere away from open paint tins and wet surfaces.
What to leave to the painter and decorator
Filling larger cracks and holes, sanding new plaster and priming bare walls are jobs for the painter, since a product or technique that does not match what they plan to put on top can cause problems later. If part of the job involves new plaster or patching after other building work, our guide on removing plaster dust before you paint covers how to clear dust safely before the first coat goes on. The same caution applies to any work at height beyond a kitchen step stool. Ireland's Health and Safety Authority sets out the safe way to use a ladder: footed at roughly the right angle on level ground, with the user keeping three points of contact and not leaning out to reach a spot just beyond range. If taking down a curtain pole, light fitting or high shelf means working from a tall stepladder in an awkward corner, it is worth leaving that one task to the painter or another tradesperson rather than improvising with a chair or a box.
Access, pets and timing while the work is on
Agree how the painter gets in if you will not be home for the full visit, and where they can park, especially on a narrow terrace street. Decide where pets will be kept while tins and brushes are out and doors are propped open for ventilation, since an open door is also an easy way for a dog or cat to slip out. Ask how many days the job will realistically take once preparation is included, not just the painting itself, so you can plan around a room being out of use for longer than expected. Check with the painter how long each coat needs to dry before the room goes back to normal use, since this varies by product, temperature and how well the room is ventilated.
Once the brushes are packed away, a light clean usually finishes the job: dust sheets removed, floors swept, and any paint flecks on skirting boards or glass gone over carefully while they are still fresh. If the rest of the house could do with more than a quick tidy once the smell of paint has cleared, our guide on preparing for a deep clean covers what that involves.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to move all the furniture out of the room myself?
Ask the painter first. Many prefer small items and breakables removed and larger furniture pulled to the centre and covered, rather than carried out of the house. Agree who does the moving and who covers it before the day starts.
Should I take down curtains and blinds before the painter arrives?
Take them down if they are staying off during the work, since paint marks on fabric rarely come out. If a pole or track is also being painted, leave it in place and ask the painter how they plan to work around it.
Can I fill small holes and cracks myself before the painter comes?
A quick-drying filler on a small hole is fine if you sand it smooth and let it dry fully, but leave larger cracks, damp patches or bare plaster to the painter, since the repair affects how the paint goes on afterwards.
How long should I expect the room to be out of use?
That depends on the number of coats, the surface and drying conditions, so ask the painter for a realistic estimate once they have seen the room rather than assuming that a single day covers preparation, painting and drying.