Free Hand vs. Tape
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Glad you asked. Our new policy is tape the top of the baseboard if it is to stay clean or natural wood. We use 3m green. All other lines are to be hand cut. The main reason is all tape bleeds to a degree. I am talking about repaints mostly. On new work we take it case by case. I caught one of my new helpers taping off a heat vent on a white ceiling that was going to be cut and rolled. No more of this foolishness. The young guys are going to have to learn to handle a brush or find a new line of work. I blame 3m with their blue tape tv commercials for a lot of this over use of tape. I didn't mean to go on a rant but you hit a nerve. Thanks I feel better now. MOPAINT
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Tape is for spatter protection and once in a while if there is a blind spot between the edge of a casing and the inside corner of two walls where we have to jam a brush in. When staining stair treads we will tape off risers. Drawing lines? Never. Ever. Cutting is one of the arts of our trade. It takes skill, patience, good eye and sensibilities.
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I have been known to run a tape line along the jamb edge and wall if the color is bright red or dark like deep purple, but never on the ceiling line or outside corners no matter what color.
Ben
Its a matter of production folks, not pride. I grew up in the business when taping was for amatuers only. You have to look at the cost of tape against the potential time saved and quality product. I could cut in with the best but found that taping sometimes saved time and aggravation. I don't paint much anymore but typically liked to tape off baseboards to keep the roller spray off.
Try doing a couple rooms both ways and monitoring time and material. Go for production and quality.
mandrake
Try doing a couple rooms both ways and monitoring time and material. Go for production and quality.
mandrake
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I am a better cutter than I am a taper. It would take me longer to tape off than to just cut the damn line!
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About the only thing i break out the tape for is stripes. Sometimes to cover the glass on the back doors of new construction too.
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On custom jobs, the tops of the base and the sides of window frames and door jambs are taped. If you have people who can tape fast, it produces a better looking job and any lower skilled (and lower paid) painter can cut in. Still cut in ceilings by hand.
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Ditto. :thumbsup:
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Same to you ProWallGuy! I fired a guy last summer because he couldnt cut without taping lines. On our high end residential jobs it was an embarrassment to me that I had a guy who couldnt cut. I gave him every chance and lots of tips to learn that skill and he just couldnt wrap his mind (or eye) around it. That really is one of the things that separates us from less accomplished professionals. Its the most rewarding thing when the homeowner comes in at the end and comments on how crisp our lines are.
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I caught one of my new helpers taping off a heat vent on a white ceiling that was going to be cut and rolled. No more of this foolishness.
Hate to say it but I prefer to have fixtures, light trims, speaker grills, wall plates, door hardware, etc REMOVED- and that started with customers wanting it. No matter how good you cut or even mask, eventually after a few paint jobs those things are going to look like they have been cut around. If you want to keep everything looking new that's what you have to do.
Hate to say it but I prefer to have fixtures, light trims, speaker grills, wall plates, door hardware, etc REMOVED- and that started with customers wanting it. No matter how good you cut or even mask, eventually after a few paint jobs those things are going to look like they have been cut around. If you want to keep everything looking new that's what you have to do.
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How long did you give him? Mastering cut lines don't happen over night. :no:
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As others before me have said, I'll tape the base to protect from spatter. Otherwise I freehand except in rare occassions such as when the wall texture is such that you can't get a clean line or if the wall is too porous. When I do use tape, (and this includes the base) I always "set" the tape with a putty knife to minimize the paint bleed. I also cut the junction between the taped off area and the wall with a putty knife before pulling off the tape. Then afterwards I'll go around and take care of any paint bridging or bleed that has occured.
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He had 5 years experience. I gave him 3 months. He was unwilling to commit to it.
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yeah cut everything. tape for spray protection from the roller.
Tape when I feel like taping, cut when I feel like cutting. It really depends on the job. If the colors have sharp contrast, on an aparment, I'm just taping everything. Then cut the trim only.
I was raised on the idea of only sissies using tape, but learned along the way that it isn't always true.
Just like everything else in life, it isn't in black or white. There is no bottom line rule of how to do it every single time. I'd have to shoot myself if there was.
Taping is another one of those jobs by itself. It takes time to learn it. I'm not worried about bleed most of the time. But a taped line is never the same as a cut line. If you do faux stripes, with tape, you have to use a really thin tape to get rid of the ridge. If you still paint the line, after remoing the tape, its even smoother.
I was raised on the idea of only sissies using tape, but learned along the way that it isn't always true.
Just like everything else in life, it isn't in black or white. There is no bottom line rule of how to do it every single time. I'd have to shoot myself if there was.
Taping is another one of those jobs by itself. It takes time to learn it. I'm not worried about bleed most of the time. But a taped line is never the same as a cut line. If you do faux stripes, with tape, you have to use a really thin tape to get rid of the ridge. If you still paint the line, after remoing the tape, its even smoother.
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