How Long Does It Take to Paint a Room?

Painting the rooms in your home is a beautiful way to upgrade its interior design. It can make your space feel new, improve your mood and increase your home’s value. After deciding to paint a room, the main renovation factors you’ll care about are time and money.

You may wonder how long it should take to paint one room, but the average time to paint a room will vary based on several factors.

Factors That Affect Painting Time

Every project is different, so the best way to get an interior painting time estimate is to consult a professional. The estimate takes many things into account. These include prep time, room size, number of walls to paint, tools, number of coats, touch-up, cleanup and professional vs. DIY solutions.

Prep Time

The finished paint project looks professional when a room has been properly prepped. Preparation also protects your floors and furniture from paint. Preparing the room involves:

• Buying paint and supplies. When you choose Rent Painters, all you have to supply is the paint — we’ll take care of everything else.
• Laying out the paint and supplies.
• Moving all the furniture away from the walls.
• Cleaning dust and dirt from the walls and trim.
• Covering the furniture and floors with drop cloths. You can cover the entire floor or have the drop cloth move with the painter.
• Removing all light switch covers.
• Removing picture frames and wall decor.
• Using putty to fill in any holes, chips or dents in the wall. A smooth surface ensures the paint will stick.
• Sanding the walls.
• Using painter’s tape to cover baseboards, the area where the ceiling meets the wall, window frames and any other areas you want to protect. The tape will prevent paint from getting on unwanted areas.

The time it takes to prep your room will depend on the other factors. For example, a larger room with more furniture and wall decorations will take more time to prep than a room with less furniture.

Room Size

Preparing and painting a room will take more or less time, depending on the room size. The time it takes to paint a bedroom will differ from the time it takes to paint a living room. It also depends on how many people are painting. If you hire a team of professionals, they will finish the room quicker than you would have by yourself.

Number of Walls to Paint

When wondering how long it takes to paint, you must consider how much of the room needs painting. If the ceiling isn’t being painted, or if only one wall or section is being painted, you can save time.

Painting the trim should happen first and will not take as long as painting the walls. It’s hard to paint the ceiling on your own, so it is best to hire a professional if you want your ceiling painted. This prevents you from craning your neck at an awkward angle or reaching too far.

Tools

As with any job, the tools you use matter. The most efficient way to paint a room is to use brushes for the trim and ceiling and rollers for the walls. The roller will save time, and the brush will be more precise for smaller areas. Another option is a paint sprayer, but this risks getting paint everywhere. It isn’t typically for indoor use unless by a professional.

Number of Coats

If you are freshening up the paint in a room, one coat of the same color will be sufficient. However, when painting walls a new color or that are in bad shape, primer and at least two coats are generally recommended. Some paints are a primer and paint combination, saving you money and an additional step.

You have to consider the drying time when multiple coats are needed. If the paint isn’t dry before you add the next coat, you will see bubbles, and the paint won’t look smooth.

Touch-Up

Once everything has dried, you may notice areas that need an additional coat of paint. Maybe the original color is bleeding through, or the section isn’t as dark as the rest of the room. Touch-ups are usually needed and will increase the paint and dry time. This extra bit of time is worth it because your room will come out looking its best.

Cleanup

Cleaning up is one of the easiest steps on the list but depends on dry time. While you can have all the supplies taken out of the room and disposed of, you can’t move the furniture back until the paint dries. Even if the walls feel dry shortly after painting, it is best to wait before hanging things back on the walls or moving furniture back in place. Most of the time, waiting 48 hours is sufficient. You can check the paint can for specific dry times or consult with a professional.

Professional vs. DIY

A professional will complete a paint job much faster than you would. They are more efficient and have streamlined their routine. They also may come with a team of painters, whereas you might get stuck painting the room by yourself. Professional painters can cut your project time in half.

Other reasons you should hire professionals are:

• Better results: Professionals know many shortcuts and tricks to achieve superior results in less time.
• Less interruption: It interrupts your life to spend a day or two painting a room. Hiring a painter helps you avoid this significant interruption to your schedule.
• Knowledgeable painters: Professionals know what they are doing. They can expertly apply painter’s tape and safely paint ceilings if needed.
• Freeing up your schedule: Instead of spending all day or weekend painting, the professionals will give you a set start and end time so that you can relax on your days off.
• Expert prepping: Professionals can prep a room quickly to ensure a project goes smoothly. They will protect floors and furniture from paint and save you time and work.
• No need to buy supplies: You only have to buy the paint — the professionals at Rent Painters will bring their supplies so that you save money.

Get the Job Done Right and Hire Rent Painters

Rent Painters has serviced areas in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. since 2010. We offer people the ability to spruce up their homes at an affordable price. All interior jobs have a three-year warranty and a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

The benefits of renting a painter are endless. Get a free quote today, or contact us for more information or to discuss project details.