How to Paint a Straight Edge Without Tape | Ask This Old House
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- Опубліковано 10 жов 2024
- In this video, This Old House paint expert Mauro Henrique shows host Kevin O’Connor how he paints a straight edge when tape just isn’t an option.
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Host Kevin O’Connor and paint expert Mauro Henrique talk about cutting in without painter’s tape. After explaining that there is no shame in using painter’s tape, Mauro shows Kevin his preferred method for cutting in using a putty knife and paintbrush.
Difficulty: ⅕
Cost: Under $50
Time: Varies
How To Paint a Straight Edge Without Tape
Understand that there is no shame in using tape to achieve a perfectly straight edge. But, there are times when tape won’t cut it, whether the abutting material is too delicate, or it’s just too difficult to get tape to stick to a thin edge. In those cases, these steps on how to paint a straight edge without tape will help.
1. Take the putty knife in your non-dominant hand, place the handle between your thumb and forefinger, and hold it by the blade. The thumb should be on one side of the blade, and your fingers should be on the other. This gives the putty knife a bit more stability than holding it by the handle alone.
2. Load the paintbrush with a bit of paint. Don’t overdo it, but ensure there is enough paint for at least a foot of painting.
3. Place the blade edge of the putty knife into the corner or edge, holding it firmly but loose enough that you can slide it along the edge.
4. Touch the bristles to the surface in front of the knife and slowly drag both hands down the joint at the same pace. Be sure that the bristles never get ahead or fall behind the knife.
5. Stop when too much paint accumulates on the putty knife. Stop the blade in place, remove the brush, and then carefully lift the blade pulling slightly toward the paint side to prevent excess paint from getting on the trim. Wipe the blade clean with the paper towel before carefully placing the edge back into the joint and continuing.
6. Continue down the joint to the bottom. Keep the edge of the knife in place and flip the brush over so the angle of the bristles changes. Carefully paint up the edge of the joint before carefully removing the knife.
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Materials:
Paint [amzn.to/3PMawcp]
Paper towels [amzn.to/3NIoKZZ]
Tools:
Angled paint brush [amzn.to/3z9GMAk]
6-inch putty knife [amzn.to/3NcQaYc]
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How to Paint a Straight Edge Without Tape | Ask This Old House
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I would say the result is far from perfect if you look closely. When I do this method, I like to put some tape on the knife in order to better seal the little gaps between the knife and the wall.
I have been a professional painter for over 35 years and I never use tape for edges unless I am spraying. Tape costs money and time and it is fairly easy to paint a straight edge with just the brush. On inner corners like on this video just put your eye between the brush and edge and go slowly. For outer corners stay behind the edge so that your brush does not stray onto the opposite plane. With painter's tape you can too easily get paint under the tape which defeats the whole purpose. Also, one would typically let the paint dry before lifting off the tape and if any paint has dripped under the edge then it is far too late to do anything about the drip under the tape. Also, in these demonstrations the painter just dips his brush into maybe 1/2 inch of paint. Anyone can paint perfectly with just a 1/2 inch load of paint on a perfectly clean brush. In professional painting one never just dips a 1/2 inch amount of paint, it is too inefficient. The way to make money as a painter is to put as much paint on the brush as possible and to use a large(2 1/2 inch or larger) brush. This is because the most inefficiency in painting comes from the constant dipping of the brush into the paint container. Therefore a large brush allows for less dipping. The putty knife trick is just that, a trick. That works on a very short segment but then there is too much paint on the knife and you have to wipe it off which requires you to stop and use a rag. In just painting a standard sized bedroom you would go through dozens of rags trying to keep you knife clean. This is NOT good advice!
Finally, the so-called painters tape is just a gimmick. I remember in the 1980's before this product was brought to market there was only white masking tape. When the blue came to market I examined it and it was exactly the same as the white. This is nothing but a gimmick. If, as a professional, you believe that the blue tape is better than the white then you might want to reexamine your claim to being a professional painter. The blue color was used to convince amateur/do-it-yourself painters that they were acting like the professionals.
1. use a fine angled brush
2. don't overload the brush with paint.
3. Don't use too much pressure or paint will drip.
4. First, run a practice line with a loaded brush to ensure the bristles are covered and grouped together with paint so it doesn't turn out wavy like in the first part of this vid.
5. Use your freehand to stabilize your painting hand by grabbing your wrist. You can even use a wrist brace if you're hardcore dedicated to that fine line.
6. Work from a cup or pint of paint. Reduces the chance of totally dipping your brush.
7. Have a good clean damp rag to wash off any errors you make. It's easier to clean a mistake than to try to correct it later when it dries.
Just need a good angle brush like a purdy xl and you can easily free hand cut with the tip of the angle. It's actually preferable to freehand surfaces that aren't perfectly flat because you have to give the illusion of a smooth line where if you used tape it would be obvious it wasn't.
It was disappointing not to see him freehand a clean line indeed… it’s what makes a pro a pro. Often you can set the brush on an angle like 1cm away from the intended line, start moving a bit and graduatly move towards the intended line position. Often you can get a very clean line like that.
You only get one chance. You can see the top of the cut is not perfect, and there’s really no way to touch it up easily. That one spot would drive me crazy, it’s a good tip, but I couldn’t go this route. Paint build up on the metal is also something to account for, it’ll easily move from front to back of the straight edge. Maybe wrap it with paper at the very least?
As a painting contractor of roughly 20 years, I disagree with this method for brushing an important edge. Best thing to do is free hand brush it if tape is not an option. Even tape bleeds, if your applying with a brush. Frog tape or backfilling can help but spraying is usually king for laser crisp lines with the correct tape.
Tape and caulk when you need a laser line. That’s my favorite way. Time consuming but wow it’s perfect
Tape and caulk is indeed an amazing technique, works on any surface and the finish is really laser like. Only with tape got to be careful not to rip off good paint from the wall which was supposed to stay untouched.
This is brilliant
Mauro is the best. It's funny, my neighbor just mentioned Mauro yesterday at a weekend get-together. We both learn from the best.
Even tho it takes me awhile to process his accent he’s still my preferred source
Mauro is an idiot! I worked with the guy! He bossed his crew around and never lifted a brush or anything! What a jackwagon! He can't even paint a straight line without using a tool. I could free-hand that quicker!
Tried the putty knife, tried painters tape. Best and fastest way is to just get good freehand. I can cut a room before your done taping. I'll swear about it constantly though. The most four letter words come out of my mouth when I'm painting.
This only works if the wall is perfectly flat which never happens in my town
Nor any town!
lol
Every wall is neither straight, nor flat, nor true. As a trim carpenters its our job to make them look like they are. Our only ally in hiding these “omissions in craftsmanship” is a quality painter. As an Irishman said, in a thick accent, “paint and caulk makes me the carpenter I’m naught (not).”
@@charlesthomas1142 haha that's very true. I'm starting to wonder if this trick actually works. Will test it out tomorrow.
Causing does solve the problem you just gotta lay down a load
Carpet is the ideal situation where you need to use that technique. But I use a much larger shield and tuck it under the baseboard if I can.
This is “Gold”! - 👍🏼
Free-hand, ftw! With experience and a quality brush you'll know just how much paint to carry to get the job done no matter if you are following a straight line or not. That said, I do use a putty knife in a few rare occasions, but tape pretty much never.
Even when doing baseboards on hardwood flooring? I would go with the tape option in that case.
How about just cutting with the brush only???????? I do it all the time, with no tape and putty knife.
Used to paint apartments and I never taped anything, or used a putty knife/paint blade for anything. A well loaded brush, a steady hand, and some practice and I can cut up into just about any space with no muss, fuss, or dirty lines.
Very neat and practical trick👍
How is this a clean edge?
Just buy a good edging brush, and practice a little, it's not hard to paint a straight line.
Really useful, thank you!👍🇬🇧
My father used to cut in edges without any tapes. I tried to copy his technique but it takes a really steady hand and brush stroke. Of course, back in those dinosaur days, there was no such thing as "blue" painter's tape, just those super sticky ones.
He’s stroking him a little to much. The line was a little wavy but good enough, not oh my God, a miracle is upon us!
🤣🤣
Bro chill 😂😂
I was the cameraman for this video. If you think he stroked him too much ON camera, you should see what he did to him OFF camera.
I should not be getting hard from reading comments on This Old House videos. But thanks to you, here we are.
Mannerisms😊
what about the paint blob on the top left that was not shown much with the camera? I don't agree that you have a nice clean line, it's pretty bad really.
any good painter seldom uses tape , a good brush, steady hand and technique is all that counts .
I used a putty knife for all four corners in my living room.
I see paint on the other edge.
Most walls are not straight, so the putty knife will not always work.
Ok so I want to repaint my staircase and leave the ceiling untouched. I absolutely can't reach it, and no ladder will go there. Is there any tool that could be used? I have a steady hand I just need something precise and long enough thay isn't a roll
I was about to try using the putty knife to do this method of cutting edges, however after seeing this video, I definitely will not. That was not an even cut line at all, it looked pretty lousy.
Mauro , your the man. Thanks for the tip. Blessings 🙏
Laser line? Haha
the 6' one doesnt look so small to me. id say its about average, if not even on the bigger side.
a lot of guys would be proud to have one that size. also its not about the size of the tool, but how you use it ....
“
Proud of owning a big putty knife? A 6” angle grinder is what seperates the bois from the men. Or the 6” tool one got from momma nature 😁
You can do that without the use of a putty knife. You're adding unnecessary tools to your work and that can become burdensome after a while. Just get a good angle brush and don't paint so close to the corner. you'll be fine. You'll get a nice straight line and won't get any paint on the wall beside it.
I nevér use tape it can make it worse.
Can we see this for textured drywall?
Face palm, what a "Rod"
That line isn’t even straight
Uhm...is it just me or are there several spots on the side that was actually covered up by the knife?
This is why Mauro is not a main character on This Old House.
I make my living as a painter and I never use tape or a "shield" of any kind. Don't know a pro painter that does, a good brush a steady hand and occasionally a rag is all you'll ever need.
I have painted professionally for nearly 50 years. No hand cut line can approach the crisp lines done with a good tape line, just a fact....
Good for you!!! 👍 Here's a medal and a cookie for basic job competency... 🏅 🍪
For those who aren't professional painters, tape and a putty knife are valuable tools - as demonstrated in this video. In case you didn't realize it, _This Old House_ produces content for DIYers, not professional tradesmen.
@@StoneE4 thanks for the cookie! nothing wrong with using tape just surprised they didn't mention most pros don't. A lot of their content is above the heads of most diyers.
@@tabliechty9318 if it works for you great, having done it both ways i often like the result better from a hand cut line.
keep in mind that this video is for diyers!
Lol, thats not even a clean cut 😂😂
Exactly what I was thinking
It gave me the feeling that they put in their script to say “now that’s a clean line!”, then the line failed and they followed their script anyway 😅
Kevin is so steamed up
It's the plaid shirt show.
Does not work with uneven walls i always do it by hand.
Ok, how about cutting an uneven ceiling ? A whole different animal.
I used a stiff putty knife and cut a slim channel between wall and ceiling (texture ceiling) and used that to create a reasonably straight line.
I would sharpen the putty knife.
I have my tumb on the putty knife! WTF! That's a tapers knife! I swear this guy is the worst painter ever! I could cut that edge in by hand quicker than he did with that taper knife!
that's not that straight.....I can see errors
um, i avoid that technique, it creates a mess most of the time. you would have to master free hand.
The painting trade was destroyed in the 80s.
That's going to make a mess
How to attempt to paint a straight edge without tape and fail miserably should be the caption. This is a good trick but atleast do it right to validate the intent behind the video lol smh
Lase line... yeah right that looks like crap, do not use a putty knife to do your lines....
Haha amateur hour!!! What a Hack!!!!
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