Forgot the blue tape on a trim job and learned the hard way

I was painting baseboards in a rental house in Austin and skipped the blue tape because I figured I had a steady hand. 10 minutes later I dragged a wet brush across a window frame and got white latex all over the wood. I spent the next hour with a rag and mineral spirits cleaning it off while the homeowner stood there watching. Has anyone else had a project go sideways because you got lazy on prep?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_taylor15d ago

Oh man, I gotta gently disagree with something from that first reply though. Trying to wipe wet latex off wood with just a wet rag is actually not a terrible move if you catch it fast enough. The trick is you gotta blot it, not smear it. You dab at it with a damp rag and then immediately dry it off. If you start rubbing in circles that's when you push it into the grain and make a mess. Mineral spirits definitely work better for dried paint but for fresh stuff a little water and patience usually does the trick. Your buddy probably just reacted too fast and rubbed it in instead of lifting it off.

michael66915d ago

Man, I had a buddy do almost the exact same thing on a flip house in Houston. He was all confident with the trim paint too, got some on the door frame and tried to wipe it off with a wet rag. Ended up smearing it into the grain and had to sand the whole thing down and repaint it. His wife still brings it up every time they paint something.

jade51711d ago

Had a buddy who did something similar on his own house, except he used a paper towel that was way too wet. He thought he was being careful but the water just pooled up and soaked into the wood grain before he could even blot it. Then he panicked and wiped harder, which is the worst thing you can do (I've learned that the hard way too). He ended up with this weird cloudy stain that wouldn't come out no matter what he tried. Had to strip the whole door frame back to bare wood and start over with a primer coat. He still jokes about it whenever someone mentions painting - says it was a $200 mistake in materials and a full weekend of his life.