Interior Trim, Baseboard and Door Painting in Denton, TX

Interior trim painting in Denton, TX covers baseboards, door and window casings, crown molding and interior doors, the parts of a room that take the most bumps. Safe Choice Painting cleans and scuff-sands the trim, caulks gaps, tests old paint to see whether it is oil-based, primes where needed and brushes on a semi-gloss that wipes clean.

Older trim, more coats

About 14 percent of Denton's housing was built in the 1960s or earlier, by Census estimates. Trim in houses that age has often been painted many times, and some of those coats may be oil-based. Newer homes have their own issue: builder trim is often painted with the same flat or low-sheen paint as the walls, which scuffs and holds dirt.

Is it oil or latex?

Latex will not stick well to old oil paint without the right primer. So before we paint, we test:

• Benjamin Moore's method: rub a cotton ball dipped in 70 percent isopropyl alcohol on the trim. If the paint does not come off, it is alkyd (oil-based); if it does come off, it is acrylic (latex).
• Sherwin-Williams' version: if the alcohol just cleans the surface, it is likely alkyd; if it gums up the paint quickly, it is likely latex.

Oil-painted trim gets cleaned, scuff-sanded and primed with a primer made to bond to it. Then the new coat can be a waterborne trim enamel, which dries faster and stays whiter over time than oil.

Prep that makes trim look sharp

1. Clean. Baseboards collect dust and grime; door edges collect hand oils.
2. Sand. A light scuff sand dulls the old gloss and knocks down drips from past paint jobs.
3. Fill. Nail holes and dings are filled and sanded flush.
4. Caulk. Gaps at the top of baseboards, at casing joints and at crown corners are caulked.
5. Prime bare wood, patches and oil-painted trim.
6. Paint two coats by brush, cutting a straight line at the wall.

Doors

Most interior doors are painted in place: hinges and knobs are masked or removed, and the edges are painted so the door closes clean. Six-panel doors are painted in the order of the panels so brush marks run the right way. Doors that stick get pointed out; planing them is carpentry, not painting.

Stair parts and built-in trim

Stair skirt boards, risers, newel posts and handrails are trim too. They take heavy wear from feet and hands, so they get the same cleaning, sanding and semi-gloss as the baseboards. Stained wood handrails can stay stained while the painted parts around them are freshened.

Trim with walls or on its own

Trim is often painted with the walls, after the walls, so the line at the edge is crisp. It can also be its own job when the walls are fine but the baseboards and doors look worn. Bedrooms get the same trim work; see bedroom painting in Denton. Outside trim, fascia and soffits are covered on exterior trim painting in Denton.

Color and sheen

White trim is the common choice, and there are many whites; we match the existing white when only part of the house is done. Semi-gloss is the usual sheen. Darker trim and doors, such as black or deep green interior doors, need more coats and a careful cut line. The general guide is interior trim, baseboard and door painting.

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• Interior trim, baseboard and door painting
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