Do it yourself

Like myself, many of you are renters so painting rooms isn’t exactly a regular event.

However, from time to time an incident may occur that results in a minor damage to paintwork, be it a small hole, some scratches or peeling paint.

So I am going to explain the best possible procedure to get that damage fixed without having to paint a whole wall, saving you precious time and money.

First thing to do is sort out the colour. Have a look around your apartment or house, in particular laundry cupboards or the garage for any tins of paint that might be lying around, they will have the colour name written on it, making your job much easier.

If you cannot find anything, you will need to try and scrap off a small section of paint to be matched at your local paint store. A flat, clean sample roughly the size of a 10 cent piece or larger is required, if you can’t use what has already come off, use a Stanley knife to cut something away. Once you have found your colour, or had a sample matched, it is time to complete the job.

You will require: a sample pot of paint (this will do fine for patching up as they come in a low sheen finish); undercoat; 120 grit sandpaper; appropriate filler; filling blade or scraper; nook and cranny roller; and frame.

Firstly, the damage needs to be cleaned up (warm water will do). Remove any dust or plaster that is hanging around. Sand smooth any edges that have been created also.

Apply the filler using the filling blade or scraper, ensure the hole or crack is suitably filled and smoothed over as best as possible. The type of filler required will depend on what exactly is being filled, fine cracks, holes etc. Your local paint expert will be able to assist here. Using a filling blade, patch up the damage and smooth over. Once dry, sand.

It’s then important to apply one coat of undercoat to any patched areas. Fillers can be quite thirsty and soak up too much of the top coat and affect the colour. Haymes Paint has a great prep coat range to help here. Once the undercoat is dry, give a light sand.

Lastly, apply two coats of paint in the matching colour. I would recommend using a 100mm fabric or microfibre roller. This will provide an appropriate stipple (texture) to match the wall. A light sand in between coats and you are all done!