Painter’s tape is the often green colored tape that you use to cover your trim or hard edges when you are prepping your painting job.
It is easy to remove without damaging surfaces and will help you to protect the areas you don’t want to paint.
But is it really necessary?
This is one of the more time consuming parts of the job, and there is a lot of debate as to whether or not it is even needed.
If you are planning a painting project, you might find yourself looking for ways to save time without cutting corners.
Your first step might be to pick up your phone and search ’professional painting contractor near me’.
If you are in the Bucks & Montgomery Counties and this led you to Purcell Pro Painting, then you have come to the right place.
First, let’s take a look at the benefits and the drawbacks of using painter’s tape, and we will share our recommendations, which, to be honest, may simply to be to save yourself the effort and give us a call.
What Are The Benefits Of Using Painter’s Tape?
If you are anything like us, you want the job done properly.
You want to look at your final result and feel happy with how it turned out.
So whether or not to use painter’s tape depends on your comfort level, your artistic ability, and your experience.
Here are benefits to using painter’s tape.
1. It Provides The Straightest Line Possible
If you are someone who lies in bed at night staring at the imperfections on the wall rather than reading sleeping, then you understand the importance of a straight line.
Most painting jobs will involve large areas of long, straight lines, such as the ceiling.
The line will stand out more the darker the color you are painting.
How confident are you that you can paint free hand in a straight line?
And then there’s the insomnia…
2. It Protects Your Wall From Spillover
When you were a child, you probably did a paint by number once or twice.
If so, you learned to start with the lighter colors first.
This is because a darker color will cover up any mistakes you made with the light one.
The same can be said on your walls, especially if you have a white ceiling or trim.
Painter’s tape helps you protect those lighter areas so that you don’t have to repaint them once you’re finished with the big job.
3. It Can Save You Time If You’re Doing It DIY
Applying the tape can be time consuming, but for a first timer, it’s much less frustrating than trying to do a perfect job freehand.
Make sure you buy the best quality tape, in the size that will suit your space.
Once you have your area taped off, you will find you can slap on the paint with much less hassle to worry about getting it straight.
Your trim will be well protected from drips or slips of the hand.
You will be able to paint to the edges much easier with a roller, too, depending on the surface.
If you have no experience, then painter’s tape is an easy sell.
What Are The Drawbacks Of Using Painter’s Tape?
If there are so many benefits to using painter’s tape, then why don’t more professionals use it?
Here are some of the downsides to using painter’s tape.
1. It’s Much More Time Consuming If You’re A Professional
For most professionals, painter’s tape is not worth the time it takes to apply.
A seasoned pro will have the equipment on hand to do a great job.
Painting freehand requires the best quality brushes with a fine edge.
The high quality paint used by professionals is also much easier to work with.
The pros use a method called “cutting in”, where everything is done freehand and results in a finished look.
You need great lighting so that you can see what you’re doing when painting freehand, but the professionals have this covered.
2. Painter’s Tape Doesn’t Always Protect From Bleed
Even the highest quality painter’s tape has been known to bleed through, especially if you are using a darker color.
So why do all that work taping off your corners if you may still have touchups to do after the fact?
When you rip off the tape after the job is done, it can still do damage to the paint underneath.
Professionals know that painter’s tape is not a guarantee of a perfect job.
So most of them opt to go freehand.
3. It’s Useless On Bumpy Or Uneven Surfaces Like Stucco
There are situations where painter’s tape simply cannot be used.
If you are painting a wall with an uneven surface, no amount of tape will help you to get a clean line.
On a bumpy finish like stucco, you will find it impossible to tape off along the ceiling.
These finishes are a lot harder to paint in general, so be sure to use a top quality, thick paint that will fill in all the holes.
Which Should You Choose?
Weighing the pros and cons, will you choose to work with painter’s tape for your project?
Most professionals will tell you they choose to do it freehand.
But you might not be as confident in your abilities.
And you may not have the tools needed to do a good job on your own.
Or the best sort of brush to get that straight line.
You also may not have the time to spend taping off your entire space.
There is another solution.
Book Your Free Estimate With PurcellPro Painters Today
If you have a painting project and are unsure of the best way to proceed, then PurcellPro Painters might be your answer.
Why not call in the professionals, who are sure to get the job done right?
Contact PurcellPro Painters today for your free estimate and let us find the straight line to a job well done.
