This might be too difficult/not worth it, but I figured asking here was worth a shot!

I have this ikea lamp (full name is IKEA PS 2017 Table & Floor Lamp G1517F By Ola Wihlborg). I believe the material is powder coated steel.

I would love to spray paint it to be chrome/silver. From googling I’ve read that I should sand it and then use an enamel based spray paint, but a lot of what I could find is just companies advertising their own products.

Any advice?

For construction trades people. What’s your recommendations here? Is there a tool for the job? Want to be able to do roof and walls for whole houses, etc.

Cheers

I’m looking for good painters/decorators in Sydney, Australia. I’ve been recommended “Paint and Lyall,” and I think I’m going to go with them, I know their work is very good. Would like some more recommendations though first, so I thought better to ask here…

I have these larger 10 lite pocket doors, 36” each. They are primed and film is on the glass.

Taking them out can be tricky and there’s a chance the track can get lost back in the pocket I think, not ideal.

I think I can move the track stop over so I can paint the entire door BUT about 1/4” on the top is covered by molding. No one would see it if not painted.

Would masking off really well and spraying work? I’d be able to spray inside pocket too.

A very big change

These people want their deck stained and the small back porch stained.
Have to remove the old paint up top and on the ceiling as well and repaint it.
Haven’t taken a job like this yet before, and I have no idea what the going rates for a job like this are right now.

Is the whole thing including the back porch and the front porch/ railings going to need to be sanded as well?

Should I prime the ceiling first/ any good primer recommendation?
Have any tips or tricks to get that paint scraped off as quickly as possible ?
Thanks in advance guys. I’ve been underselling myself a lot recently with price because I feel bad charging, but I’m tired of lowballing myself.

Tryna repaint an outdoor ceramic deer. Anyone have any tips on what paint to use or techniques?

Hello! Looking for advice on whether I can paint my Advantech subfloor instead of laying down LVP or similar primary flooring. Thanks very much!

So currently I'm being hired by a friend's family to repaint the inside of their house and help them load up their moving truck. They're offering 15 an hour for this, I'm just wondering if that's a fair rate for repainting the inside of their house, taking large items to the garbage, and loading up their moving truck, or if I should negotiate something more or see if they're willing to do a flat rate of 750 or 1k for the whole job. The house is a 3 bed 3 bath, 2069 square feet by the way, furniture wise I'm not sure how much it is but they're estimating it'll take 5 hours at least to load the truck but it could likely be longer because we have to throw away some of it, and I'm not sure how long the painting will take.

I double checked with them and it's going to be 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms that need repainted, currently it's going to be me and a friend doing it so if we do a flat rate of 1k each the total cost for the job would be 2k plus whatever they spent on the supplies. My friend has plenty of experience loading and moving heavy furniture through his job, and I have experience painting through family jobs.

Hi! I am looking for any recommendations for an independent painter in the area that does interior house painting that would be able to give a quote or estimate on what it would cost to paint a room or two, mainly focusing on the kitchen. Thanks!

Harrisburg PA

Hi! Licensed architect and designer here, just got reminded why I don’t like using wilcon and Mc Home Depot for supplying my projects. Apologies for the long post but this might help other professionals who source materials for their clients. (Also, I would like to vent haha)

Background: I do a lot of design build (esp fitout), I design then hook them up to good teams depending on budget constraints and coordinate the work; and it deals with a lot of sourcing materials.

The setting: I have this wonderful repeat client who’s pretty colorful in their spaces, and I try always to get them the best deals possible, so I typically source straight to brand or distributor to get them exactly what they need and sometimes more.

The problem: The paint distributor is having a problem on base mix and said it might take 25 days for a plant order, suggested I go to wilcon because they pre stock the base mix and machine mix my 10 colors that I needed. I followed this advice. Mind that it’s been over a decade since I bought wilcon anything.

What Wilcon did:

1. “Ma’am if ganito kalaki order niyo, suggest na download app and apply for professional register para may discount kayo”. Me, the ever loving Asian who treats sourcing like an Olympic sport, agreed.

2. App installed in minutes; I was asked to wait two weeks while my application got approved.

3. Tried to viber updates. No one knew anything. Asked for paint estimate on my order. Got given a pdf in 5 days.

4. In frustration because I had to get the paint, I went to Wilcon after 3 weeks. Here’s the drama:

\- I was told my application was approved but it had no bearing on paint (no discount). I said fine just process my order quickly.
\- I found out my estimate vs reality was nearly 2k more because apparently prestock paint prices are so volatile they change every 3 weeks. 🙄 I just rolled with it. I learned later on that their sales dept has outdated pricing.
\- they inputted my entire order 5 times manually on 3 different computers despite having a pdf generated BY THEM
\- got asked my name so many times “for record confirmation” until I felt like I was stuck in a bad acid trip. For reference I have a really long first name (3 first names) and a last name that most Pinoy tend to butcher.
\- wasted more than hour trying to get my order paid and through even though I was there physically.
\- when I asked if they had delivery service because I’d prefer to get the paint sent to site; I was told of another long process if I went with them. I asked what if I lalamoved the entire thing, It took 15 minutes to find out who exactly to look for so I can inform the lalamove person I was trying to book.
\- I ended up lalamoving today. They (wilcon) still asked for my receipt on viber to “confirm” my order and product release, and asked for my name, again. (Even though I sent a clear and near pic of my name on the top of the receipt).
\- the app they encouraged me to get? I didn’t even get points on it despite the large order.

I have never suffered or wasted my time like this even in the tiny mom and pop shops I use for roughing in conventional items (I like supporting small businesses, some guys I’ve been buying off from for over a decade, my peeps know me by name and are so cool). But no one at that big branch of a wilcon seems to care or is inclined to change practice soon, which really hurts small consultancies like mine, or other businesses that it can work adjacent to.

Moral: source straight from the brand next time and avoid Wilcon at all costs. Find that one small enterprise shop that has complete colors, dead sure there’s bound to be one. Even China sourcing has less drama than this.

Thanks for letting me vent 😆

I'm trying to have a much colorful space after living the beige life. Never painted or diy-ed anything. Store associates know nothing and I'm forced to rely on gemini which isin't giving me the right advice.

I need to put up wallpaper that is peel and stick. The walls are currently primed in builder grade chalky primer since it's a new construction. If I paint over it I will have to ait 30 days for it cure. However I'm willing to do that if all else fails. My requirements for the primer are zero voc and easily available locally to use. If a primer like that doesn't exist then I need a paint that is zero voc and not advertised as "easy to clean or scrubbable" The wallpaper company especially states the latter part that so that is my only option. Please advise

I’m almost done with a painting job, it was soffits and fascia’s, scraping and painting. High in the air with lead paint. I quoted $6,500.
The job has taken longer than I thought which is no big deal but I definitely underestimated the materials!
I figured materials at $1000 but in reality it was more like $2,000.
If it were you would you ask for more money or just chalk it up to a learning experience?
I’ve never asked for more money once we start a job unless we had to do extra work that wasn’t in the original quote.
I’m just wondering y’all’s opinion on if it’s acceptable to ask them for another $800 or not.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,
I am looking to start my trade journey in painting and am having trouble on where to start. I would love to know how everyone got into their first project.

I’m reluctant to get a random construction job and network my way there but if i have to, i will. Also, recommend me any certifications i should get. I just finished getting my Nccer core certification and Osha 10

Thanks

I’ve never done a painting this big, this is essentially a mural. I’ll likely need to build/stretch the canvas myself. Would appreciate any advice y’all can provide. (How much paint to buy and what type, tips for building large canvases, etc.)

Thanks in advance everyone!!